First published: 10/03/16.

Clyde 4.0

Uxmal

Uxmal (Inscribed)

Uxmal by Clyde

I visited this WHS end December 2015 - beginning January 2016. Contrary to what the name suggests, this WHS is made up of a series of archaeological sites on the Puuc Route and not only of Uxmal. Uxmal is definitely the crown jewel of this WHS. It is the largest and most visited site in this series and it is the one which can easily be appreciated as a fully-fledged Mayan city. The 3 highlights of Uxmal are the Pyramid of the Magician, the Governor's Palace and the Nunnery Quadrangle. The Nunnery Quadrangle is beautifully carved and in a very good condition. I enjoyed the rather touristy sound and light show mainly for highlighting the huge serpent carved on the nunnery's wall. The masks of the rain god, Chaac, reign supreme and are present everywhere. However, these are even more evident and repetitive in the other minor sites in the series. I started by visiting Labna which is the farthest away from Uxmal and close to the Loltun Caverns. The site is very small when compared to Uxmal however its main sacbe and the famous arch (picture) with geometric motifs are definite highlights of what was once an elaborate road network from one city to the next. Close to Labna, I visited Xlapak which is the least impressive of the series and receives almost no mention by Unesco. In all sites, attention to detail is given while restoring these sites and every single stone is numbered to try to fit the pieces back in an enormous and difficult jig-saw puzzle. Xlapak's main highlight is the palace-like structure which is more comparable to the style in Becan and Chicanna. Next I visited, Sayil which is bigger than Labna and has a lot of Chaac carvings. I really enjoyed visiting these sites and being the only visitor for hours on end which was quite a welcome surprise when compared to the more famous Uxmal. Both Labna and Sayil are a bit over-the-top with the repetitive Chaac carvings but the site of Kabah is a total exageration. The Mayans really must have wished for lots of rain to build such a structure. Being closer to Uxmal, I wasn't alone. I would recommend visiting this site in the afternoon to fully appreciate the Chaac masks' detail in the afternoon sun. All in all, I really enjoyed my visits here and would surely recommend visiting at least a couple of minor sites together with Uxmal.

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