Chichen Itza, Part 2

This post is a continuation of Wednesday's feature on our visit to the UNESCO World Heritage site of Chichen Itza over Spring Break. After emerging from the path of the Osario pyramid, we were able to get our first look at the Castillo (also known as the Temple of Kukulkan). Seeing this the morning after the Spring Equinox was very cool for us and the kids. If you want to see what sunset at Chichen Itza on the Spring Equinox is like, this video on YouTube captures it pretty well.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Temple of Kukulkan, Chichen Itza. 22 Mar 2016.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Great Ball Court, Chichen Itza.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Great Ball Court, Chichen Itza.

The Great Ball Court at Chichen Itza is very impressive, with a field rivaling the size of a soccer or football field. Imagine trying to score a goal through one of the rings using only your hips, which is what the Mayan ball court players had to do in order to win the game. We were able to see a modern recreation of the ball game at Xcaret Park.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Temple at the Ball Court. Chichen Itza.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Chichen Itza, 22 Mar 2016.

Photo by Patrick Jones. The family in front of El Castillo.

Photo by Patrick Jones. House of a Thousand Columns.

In our 2005, we entered the park through the House of a Thousand Columns. Some comparison photos from that trip are below:

Photo by Patrick Jones. House of a Thousand Columns, Jan 2005.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Jan 2005.

Photo by Patrick Jones. View from top of El Castillo, Jan 2005.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Cenote Sagrado, Chichen Itza, 22 Mar 2016.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Mayan depictions of eagles and serpents.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Skull Platform. 22 Mar 2016.

Photo by Patrick Jones. Parting Shot at Chichen Itza. 22 Mar 2016.

I feel very lucky to have visited Chichen Itza twice, and I am glad the kids were able to see this. We were able to take them to another site, Coba, which provided a nice contrast to the Chichen Itza experience. I will have a separate post on our visit to Coba.