Chichen Itzá

Visit to Chichén Itzá in the morning. About 2 hrs of driving via private van to get there. Lots of tourists but it is an amazing place to visit. We had a local guide show us around and tell us about the history and designs. Lots of amazing stone carvings. Learned about the design of the main El Castillo pyramid, which in certain positions echoes like the sound of a local bird due to the shape of the pyramid faces. The staircases look like descending snakes when walking around one of the corners. And this can be seen illuminated by the sun at sunset at either the spring or fall equinox. We also saw and learned about the ball court which was used as an arena for a sport where the captain of the losing team was sacrificed by beheading. The sport involved two teams trying to get a ball through a hoop mounted to the wall using only certain body parts (such as elbow, hip, and one ankle, but no hands). Kind of like basketball. The hoops are still intact on the largest court and there are carvings depicting it.