Brief story of Yaxchilan, Chiapas

By: Laura Sainz



The weather, quite unstable, clouded, and suddenly, the sun rose bright, drove away the clouds, but didn’t so with the wind, this was blowing briskly, as wishing to take you with it to anywhere; as the boat was advancing on the Usumacinta River, water from two nationalities surround me: Mexican and Guatemalan.

It is strange to sail on the border of the own country, you really wonder if such a division exists because the earth seems to be the same, trees, plants, animals and their sounds do not know about nationalities, no matter where they grow, while the weather feel them, they live there.



The trip takes approximately forty minutes on each route, back and forth, it is hard not to get lost along the way, certainly not with the complexity of the road, but because of the endless green of both: river and vegetation, one becomes part of that verdant landscape, and among the growth of the jungle, you keep on waiting for a glimpse of some pyramid or any part thereof, that becomes impossible until a few minutes before arriving at the archaeological destination: Yaxchilan.

The boat stops, Mr. boatman, who knows plenty his waters, parks. If you look carefully along the river, you realize that is very wet, due to past rains is slippery and deceptive, you have to trust the tennis’s soles and the body's reflexes to avoid slipping out of control. The same applies to the steep climb that leads to the exotic and ancient city of warm-humid climate, this ramp appears to have been planned with not much calculation, the elderly may have trouble climbing it, because it is concrete covered with the earth we have been carying in our shoes. The best and most recommended way to climb is clinging tightly to the railing.



The disadvantages are just that, difficulties are worth. The entrance announces the beauty of the place; by breathing, the body begins to feel the warm air penetrating the lungs, the strange trunk trees that are getting very usual, because Chiapas possesses them in abundance, they stand in the path that ends on the arrival at one of the buildings, which embraces you in damp caves, decorated inside with mold. The white stone Mayan Palaces has ceased to be what they were.

Yaxchilan, with its 'Great Acropolis' and its 'Grand Plaza', is a wonderful place, at first almost unbelievable. The stones who keep many secrets -not only the Mayan ones, but those of us-, imposed for its wisdom, you feel tiny compared, because whatever thought or adjective you may impose them, they flaunted it from ages before.



This place’s silence is only broken by the howls of the monkey, at first sounds alien to the unaccustomed ear, is frightening; the ignorance of its fauna makes you imagine large animals and perhaps, unfriendly too, until suddenly, what was said by the tourist guide is remembered, then those dolls come to your head, the ones sold by the Mayan women dressed with detailed costumes. Those monkey dolls, still being so ugly -probably for that very reason-, can not be avoid, I felt so into them and bought one.



After seeing me surrounded by buildings that are guarding the time, as if it was the only way to stay alive; the lens of my camera does not seem to do them justice, if I photograph one, the rest are left out, but not even my sight can cover them all.

I decide to go to the heights, it's early, but by taking all sweaters off, it is a better approach to scale, of course, there is no cell signal, and I think that if a jaguar introduction occurred on the heights of the pyramid, I wouldn’t have any way to defend myself, nothing to do, but beg for the mercy and benevolence of a feline who has been elevated to the rank of a God, then perhaps, at the time to face it, would come to me the understanding why the Mayan people worshiped them so much.

I climb the wet steep stairs from one of the pyramids, the goal is not only reach the top, but also, avoid the sun’ rays which obstruct the view; then I face them and the picture changes, my brain seems to have understood the reasons why Yaxchilan is a privileged zone: it has it all. All you need to boast a life surrounded by natural forest on the banks of a river, laden with life, and therefore, enjoyment.



I, decide to express my respect with a sigh, and immortalized the place in my memories and in my soul.