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1 <!doctype html> 2 <html lang="en"> 3 <head> 4 <meta charset="utf-8"> 5 <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"> 6 <title>Valladolid, Yucatán, México - Chris Bracken</title> 7 <link href="/css/site.css" rel="stylesheet"> 8 <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="180x180" href="/favicon/apple-touch-icon.png"> 9 <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="32x32" href="/favicon/favicon-32x32.png"> 10 <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="16x16" href="/favicon/favicon-16x16.png"> 11 <link rel="manifest" href="/favicon/site.webmanifest"> 12 <link rel="mask-icon" href="/favicon/safari-pinned-tab.svg" color="#140f42"> 13 <link rel="shortcut icon" href="/favicon/favicon.ico"> 14 <meta name="msapplication-TileColor" content="#603cba"> 15 <meta name="msapplication-config" content="/favicon/browserconfig.xml"> 16 <meta name="theme-color" content="#ffffff"> 17 </head> 18 <body> 19 <header id="header"> 20 <div class="site-title"> 21 <h1><a href="/">Chris Bracken</a></h1> 22 </div> 23 24 <nav class="site-navbar"> 25 <ul id="menu" class="menu"> 26 <li class="menu-item"><a class="menu-item-a" href="/">Home</a></li> 27 <li class="menu-item"><a class="menu-item-a" href="/about/">About</a></li> 28 <li class="menu-item"><a class="menu-item-a" href="/code/">Code</a></li> 29 <li class="menu-item"><a class="menu-item-a" rel="me"href="https://bsd.network/@cbracken">Fediverse</a></li> 30 </ul> 31 </nav> 32 </header> 33 <main id="main"> 34 <article> 35 <h2 class="post-title"><a href="https://chris.bracken.jp/2001/12/valladolid-yucatan-mexico/">Valladolid, Yucatán, México</a></h2> 36 27 December 2001 37 <p>In 1543, Francisco de Montejo (the nephew of Mérida’s famous Francisco de 38 Montejo) descended on the ceremonial centre of the Zací (Hawk) Maya, waging war 39 on the <em>Cupules</em>, a group of Maya that hadn’t taken kindly to the Spanish 40 conquistadors. When the battle was done and the town had been razed, he renamed 41 it Valladolid in honour of the Spanish city of the same name. Today, Valladolid 42 is one of the most beautiful colonial cities in the Yucatán, with a mix of 43 Spanish and Maya influences. Maya from local pueblas and from the city sell 44 traditional <em>huipiles</em> near the plaza downtown. The city is still roughly 45 centered on the <em>Cenote Zací</em> that was the ceremonial centre of the original 46 Mayan settlement.</p> 47 <figure><img src="/post/2001-12-27-cenote.jpg" 48 alt="View of Cenote Zací. Stalactites and vines hang from above. A few swimmers can be seen near the edge of the pool. A path leads upwards through the trees."> 49 </figure> 50 51 <p>The cenote is one of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen. To get to it, you hike 52 down a passage into a cavern, then wind your way down the side to get to water 53 level. The water is a deep turquoise colour, and is absolutely crystal clear. 54 In the shallow areas, you can easily see fallen stalactites lying 30 metres 55 below on the bottom. In the deep parts, you won’t see the bottom—it’s more than 56 100 metres deep. The same little blind fish that are present in the cenote at 57 Dzibilchaltún will nibble your toes in this cenote as well.</p> 58 <p>Above the cenote is a little zoo with spider monkeys, who spend most of their 59 afternoon playing with toys, and getting fed potato chips by laughing groups of 60 kids. What was more interesting, however, was that they had a raccoon in the 61 zoo. You don’t see them in México at all, and most people we asked didn’t know 62 what the Spanish word for it was, until an old man we ran into told us it was 63 <em>mapache</em>.</p> 64 <p>The main plaza of the city is gorgeous. With ornate lamp posts, hanging baskets 65 full of flowers, and beautiful hedges, it was the Yucatán’s answer to Victoria. 66 The streets downtown are kept immaculately clean by a crew of street cleaners 67 who run through the streets every morning at 5 am. The government of Spain has 68 apparently deemed Valladolid to be one of the most Spanish cities in the 69 Americas, and donates money to help in its preservation.</p> 70 <figure><img src="/post/2001-12-27-cenote-top.jpg" 71 alt="View from above, looking down into Cenote Zací. Vines hang down to the water from above. A stone staircase leads up from the dark blue-green waters. A few scattered fallen leaves litter the surface of the water."> 72 </figure> 73 74 <p>Probably the most exciting thing that happened while we were there was the 75 rain. We had gone off in search of what is supposed to be an absolutely amazing 76 cathedral and graveyard somewhere in the southwestern part of the city. In 77 typical Mexican fashion, everyone we talked to was able to tell us in 78 approximately what direction it was, so we were able to slowly make our way 79 there stumbling randomly from one Vallisoletana to the next. We never did find 80 it, but not for any lack of determination, but because it started to rain. Now, 81 when I say rain, I don’t mean the rain we get in Victoria. I don’t even mean 82 Vancouver rain. To fully appreciate a Yucatecan rain storm, you really need to 83 experience one. Imagine the streets filling with water, then overflowing onto 84 the sidewalks until the whole city is two feet deep in rainwater. We did the 85 only thing we could do: jump into a corner store. The guys in the store reacted 86 the same way any other Mexicans all over the country would react: toss over a 87 couple chairs and invite us in to watch some TV. We bought some cookies and 88 juice and sat for 45 minutes or so, watching the water level in the street 89 outside rise closer and closer to the edge of the door before we finally 90 decided that we were going to make a break for it, only stopping once for a 91 slice of cheesecake in a bakery along the way back to the hotel.</p> 92 <p>Valladolid is also famous for the cenote at Dzitnup, about 10 km out of town. 93 While we never did make it there, we heard some amazing stories about it from 94 Nick, an Irishman from Cork we met in San Cristóbal de las Casas. What is so 95 incredible about it is that it’s at the bottom of a dark cavern, with a small 96 opening in the roof. At the right time of day, the sun shines through this 97 opening and into the turquoise waters of the cenote, making it apear as though 98 you’re bathing in light. The actual name of the cenote is <em>Kiken</em> which is 99 Yucatec Maya for ‘pig,’ because the cenote was originally discovered by a farmer 100 whose his pig had fallen in through the hole in the roof.</p> 101 <p>Valladolid is also famous for its uprisings. What transpired in Valladolid in 102 June of 1910 helped to spark the Mexican Revolution that erupted in the rest of 103 the country that November when Francisco Madero flew across the border into 104 Piedras Negras, Coahuila. The revolution wasn’t over until 1920; but as they 105 say, the opening chapters were written in blood, here in Valladolid.</p> 106 <figure><img src="/post/2001-12-27-truck.jpg" 107 alt="The rusted carcass of a truck parked on the side of the street. Painted across the front: Duele mas andar a pie (it hurts more to walk). On the bent and twisted remains of the bumper: Asi como me vez te veras (one day, you'll look like this too)."><figcaption> 108 <h4>'It hurts more to walk'</h4> 109 </figcaption> 110 </figure> 111 112 <p>Unhappy with Spanish control of a land they considered their own, a small band 113 of revolutionaries had worked together for months, planning the overthrow of 114 governor Moñoz Aristegui. On the night of June 3rd, 1910, all those committed 115 to the plan met in the Plaza de la Santa Lucia at midnight. Under the command 116 of Ruz Ponce and José Kantún, one group stormed the police quarter, killing the 117 guard outside and taking everyone else prisoner. Another group, led by Claudio 118 Alconcer and Atilano Albertos took the office of the Mexican Guard, killing the 119 Sergeant of the Guard, Facundo Gil. The governor, Felipe de Regil, asleep in 120 bed at the time, woke up to the sound of gunfire outside in the streets. He 121 immediately jumped out of bed and, a gun in each hand, ran into the street 122 firing on the revolutionaries. He fought bravely until the end, when he was 123 finally killed and left lying in the street.</p> 124 <p>At this point, there was no turning back for the insurgents. They now had the 125 support of nearly the entire city, and within three days had amassed an army of 126 no less than 1500 men, armed with guns and machetes. Most had no military 127 training. Local landowners provided weapons, ammunition and food.</p> 128 <p>In Mérida, this uprising had not gone unnoticed. While the locals were 129 preparing in Valladolid, the government had sent a column of 65 men eastward 130 with 300 guns, recruiting villagers along the way. Under the command of Colonel 131 Ignacio Lara, they marched easward to Tinum, 12 km outside of Valladolid, where 132 they waited for reinforcements to arrive. The cannons of Morelos arrived in 133 Valladolid on the 7th. On the 8th, Lara led his men to the outskirts of the 134 city, where, at dawn on the 9th of June, they began the assault on Valladolid. 135 A batallion of 600 federal troops arrived on the 10th. Poorly equiped, 136 untrained, and out of ammunition, the rebels fell under the three ferocious 137 onslaughts. The death tolls were high on both sides: more than 100 138 revolutionaries and over 30 government soldiers had been killed. This was the 139 highest balance of deaths of any battle ever fought in México, and would remain 140 so until the Revolution began that November.</p> 141 <p>The leaders of the revolt were eventually rounded up, tried and sentenced to 142 death. In the courtyard of the Shrine of San Roque, Kantún, Albertos, and 143 Bonilla faced the firing squad. That November, Francisco Madero launched the 144 Mexican Revolution, and by the following April, 17000 people had taken up arms 145 against Porfirio Diaz and his government. The rest is <a href="http://history.acusd.edu/gen/projects/border/page01.html">history</a>.</p> 146 </article> 147 </main> 148 149 <footer id="footer"> 150 <div class="copyright"> 151 <span xmlns:dct="http://purl.org/dc/terms/" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#"> 152 The content of this site by 153 <a rel="cc:attributionURL" href="https://chris.bracken.jp/about"><span rel="cc:attributionName">Chris Bracken</span></a> 154 is 155 <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0">CC BY 4.0</a>. 156 </span> 157 </div> 158 </footer> 159 </body> 160 </html>