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10/24/11

Seven Wonders Part 5: Chichén Itzá, Mexico






Monumental, complex and mysterious; these are some of the characteristics of Chichén Itzá, a huge city with stone pyramids and buildings, marked by an architectonic boast that shows the geniality and the religious spirit of the Mayan Civilization.

Chichén Itza was once a great spiritual destination for the Mayan civilization. It is the birthplace of the Mayan calendar which ends on December 21, 2012. After all of these millennium, why does the calendar end on that date? Some speculate that the end of the Mayan calendar marks the end of the world. Others that it marks the end of the present age and the beginning of a new age.

It´s now a great city that currently extends over an area of 10 square kilometers, where the great vestiges of a culture that reached advancements unthought-of, especially in astronomy, impose themselves.

Personally, the main highlights of the place are “The Pyramid of Kukulkán” (staggering 24 m high. Each side had a total of 91 steps, which if you include the platform at the top makes 365 - one step for every day of the year. On the spring and autumn equinox the sun's shadow in the steps of the pyramid gives the illusion of a snake slithering down the structure. It's an impressive sight which is witnessed by thousands every year ) and “The Cenote” (well-like hole, which leads down to an underwater river. This was the Mayan's main source of water and had certain religious significance attached. The remains of children have been found in the cenote, prompting some to claim that this was a place of human sacrifice).

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