Despite the enchanting name Sian Ka’an, the origin of the sky, in Mayan Language, I really had no interest to visit this mangrove forest, but thanks to Els’review I found the way to visit this site easily and turned out to have an enjoyable time. On my first day in Tulum, I decided to see the infamous road of northern entrance to Sian Ka’an. The road is indeed incredibly bad, and I had to turn back after tried for less than 500 metres! Another annoying was the park authority built long canvas wall along both sides of the road blocking the view of beach and lake, so I could not see anything at all except the bumpy road.

The next day I tried the road that Els mentioned next to the archaeological site of Muyil. The road here was in better state compared to yesterday road. At the end of road I found a small area that used as car park, a small hut that possibly an office for ranger, and a sign that I was in Sian Ka’an World Heritage Site. There was no guide or boat at all when I was there, except a group of American photographers who came here for just relaxed and enjoyed the lakeshore. They invited me to join their photographing knowledge sharing talk after they saw my DSL camera. It was a great time to talk and try new technique of photography.

Sian Ka’an is more interesting when I read the UNESCO decision, since it is inscribed in the early state of World Heritage Site program, 1987, the time that still no concept of mix site and cultural landscape. It is a great surprise that IUCN itself asked Mexico to include Tulum ancient temple, a cultural site, to be part of Sian Ka’an as well as many pre-hispanic hydraulic structures in the swamp should be recognized for cultural merit. So if in early ’90 Mexico pursue the idea of cultural landscape or mix site likes Uluru in Australia and Tongariro in New Zealand, Sian Ka’an could be one of the first cultural landscape or mix site in Latin America, but nothing happen and today it is still only a natural site.