Uaymitun 2018-Blog Post #4 “Road to Ruins!”

Welcome to our Uaymitun 2018 Blog!

With apologies to Steve & Dodie, whom we met in my last post, I have blatantly plagiarized his blog title for my post about our trip to Xcambo!

But before our trip to Xcambo… a couple of just living in Uaymitun memories.

For the last couple of years the Uaymitun Flamingo Viewing site has been closed due to severe deterioration!  There must have been an influx of funding as it’s back open again and the tower has been fixed!

The view from the renovated Viewing Stand at the Uaymitun Flamingo site.
Doug & Janine at the Flamingo site.

At a recent Wednesday afternoon Jam Session at FACES in Progreso, our beach neighbour, Greg Smith and his friend, Les Kadar, visiting from Cambridge, ON joined the regulars for a few songs!  Very good!

Les on the keyboard and Greg in the back on bass guitar!

Hard to believe, but here we are in our 6th winter here in Uaymitun and we’ve never visited the Mayan ruins at Xcambo, which is about a 20 minute drive from our beach house!

Borrowing from Wikipedia…

Xcambó (X’Cambó) is an archaeological site that is located in the municipality of Dzemul in the Mexican state of Yucatán . It is considered by experts as one of the largest salt deposits on the north coast of the peninsula, with large buildings. It sits on the humid forest of the swamp , just 2 kilometers from the coast of the Gulf of Mexico , in the north of the peninsula , approximately 40 km northeast of the city of Merida , capital of the state of Yucatan .

The pre-Columbian city of Xcambó has been defined as a port that was important for the commercial and saline development of its time, mainly during the early classical period.

In the site there is a platform called the Temple of the Cross , a stepped base with a cross on its top. Also another basement in whose upper part is the denominated the Temple of the Sacrifices , as well as a certain number of burials that when discovered were found with offerings rich in foreign ceramics (polychromes of Guatemala and female figurines of the island of Jaina).

It’s definitely one of the smaller sites around, but really hasn’t been largely excavated.  Still it was a great site for a quiet visit in the morning!

Once you’ve paid the admission fee, there’s dirt road entrance to the site.
As frequently happened, a Catholic Chapel was built on the Mayan ruin.
A quiet stroll through the ruins.
One needs to fire up the imagination to visualize what it must have once been!
Appears to have been a well or a storage place
One is free to climb here…
… and here!
The Temple of the Cross
Elaine, Doug and Janine
A view of the east wing with the Temple of Sacrifices in the distance
There are several partially maintained stuccoes….
… on the Temple of Sacrifices
A view from the Temple of Sacrifices
Proof that the Mayans were a vertically challenged people!
Xcambo Security Guard!
A recently discovered Mayan Throne!
Just love the trees here in the Yucatan!

After our tour, we made a short trip into Motul and then back to Telchac Puerto for dinner at Tarraya!

Cattle crossing on the way to Telchac Puerto!

Afterward, with the help of a waitress at the restaurant we found a new Mercado on the plaza in downtown Telchac!

That’s it for this blog post… visits to Izamal, Loltun Caves, Labna and Oxkutzcab are queued up for the next blogs!

Cheers from Uaymitun, MX!

3 thoughts on “Uaymitun 2018-Blog Post #4 “Road to Ruins!””

    1. Hi Baldur, I believe they are probably about 1000-1200 old. Many of the local Maya sites in the Yucatan are part of the Terminal Classic Period.

  2. Hi That was an interesting blog. That was so exciting that you found another ruin to go to. Always fun to find something new to do !!!!!!! I love going to the ruins and imagining what life was like for the Mayan people in that time. Glad you are having fun discovering new things !!!!!
    Always liked our time at Faces. So much fun and great music.
    Enjoy, relax and have a Pina Colada for use !!!!!! Love Sandy

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