Edzna - Late Classic Theater 7-6-10

Tucan Sihoplaya, Campeche

Arriving at Edzna is a bit like arriving at Yaxchilan – a bit of theater. One passes through dense tropical growth - swatting at blizzards of mosquitoes, climbs a series of very time-worn stairs, walks around a walk, and is then stunned by the panorama spread out below. It turns out one has ascended the northwest corner of the Great Acropolis and has a view of both the Great Plaza and the Acropolis with its most imposing five-level pyramid and House of the Moon to the south. I had enough good sense to make a sixty second panoramic video of these regal spaces before getting lost in the process of ‘collecting’ them with hundred of still images.

The Late Classic Period site that is Edzna contains some of the best preserved stucco masks to be found in any of the Mayan sites. Stucco makes a fine base material for artistic enhancement but it has the fiendish property of being very fragile, especially after subjection to the vicissitudes of time for ten or fifteen centuries. A visit to the Temple of the Masks is precarious, the air scintillating with darkening clouds of mosquitoes, in no less than three species.

Retreating to the safer heights of the Great Acropolis, one is above those vicious clouds and can enjoy the strong sense of enclosure provided by the 360 foot Nohol Na Temple that bounds the western aspect of the Great Plaza. As has been our experience thus far, we have the city essentially to ourselves. There were perhaps a dozen other visitors in the expanses with us. Making a photo survey was effortless. Importantly, when a place is essentially devoid of kinetic tourists who speak loudly and scratch their names into the ancient stuccoes, one is able to become almost as a pilgrim, listening and feeling for messages coming from the cobwebs of time. Somehow a cloud of adolescent girls snapping images of each other on a temple platform with their cell phones is far more disruptive to an ancient experience than clouds of Dengue-bearing mosquitoes.

One of the unexpected pleasant benefits of visiting these sites is the opportunity to view neo-tropical birds and play games trying to catch images of them. Alas, birds are designed for fast movement and catching them with cameras can be a particular challenge. Edzna provided opportunities to catch Royal Toucans and Motmot birds with cameras after a good bit of work. The ancient Late Classic stones certainly provide a fine stage set for these magnificent denizens of the air.

We did not settle down on dusty camp cots another night, flicking scorpions, instead finding air conditioned refuge in a splendid seaside resort in Sihoplaya to the west. There is a curious, almost ominous lack of tourists in the places we are visiting. Inn keepers, hotel managers, and assorted shop keepers mention a huge drop in tourism and trade. We had the Sihoplaya resort to ourselves. Easily accommodating two hundred guests or more, our group of eight was it. We certainly had consistent attentive service in the dining room.

There is a pleasant low-level sense of esprit des corps that can arise in a small group travelling in sometimes very challenging environments. Our group continues to get along famously and thus far, no one seems worse for the lack of down time. We have maintained quite a fast pace in our itinerary and we have been having about ninety minutes some days to turn around before dinner – happily an event spread out over the rest of the evening. We have had no conflicts of any sort. Our members seem to greatly enjoy this shared experience. Happily, not a one has evidenced the first bit of interest in shopping. There are no plastic bags of stuff for next year’s garage sale accreting under the seats of the van.

The sunset that detonated over the water tonight provided one of the best light shows I’ve ever encountered on my journeys. It certainly was an inspiring backdrop to our grand meal.