From Yucatan, Mexico and Caye Caulker, Belize (clockwise, beginning at top):
1) A popular swimming beach on the northern tip of Caye Caulker, Belize.
2) A view of Merida, Mexico late afternoon, its Central Park or Zocalo in the foreground.
3) El Caracol or ‘The Snail’ was an astronomical observatory at Chichén Itzá, Mexico that contained a spiral staircase and eight windows located at the primary and secondary compass points.
4) One of many ubiquitous iguanas found at Mayan sites in Chiapas and Yucatan, Mexico. This iguana is resting on a wall near the Platform of the Eagles and the Jaguars at Chichén Itzá.
5) The Temple of Kukulkan atChichén Itzá, Mexico 100 km. east of Merida. Each of the Temple’s four sides has a staircase that contains 91 steps. The six-meter high temple on its summit is considered the 365th ‘step‘. At the base of the balustrades of the northeastern staircase are carved heads of a serpent. Twice each year at the Equinoxes, weather permitting, the northwest corner of the pyramid casts a series of triangular shadows in the late afternoon against the western balustrade on the north side that evokes the appearance of a serpent wriggling down the staircase.
6) The Pyramid of Magicians at the Mayan site Uxmal 70 km. south of Merida, Mexico. This monument features an oval or elliptical outline, an unusual shape for Mayan structures.
(Click on any image to enlarge.)
