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Kabah and Labna

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travelswithkids
travelswithkids
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Uxmal, Kabah, Sayil, Labna & the Loltun Caverns

  • March 27, 2006
  • Rated 5 of 5 by rickhowe from Darlington, Maryland
Uxmal, Kabah, Sayil, Labna & the Loltun Caverns

Driving about 50 miles South from Merida, you'll find the start of the PUUC Trail that leads you to some of the most amazing architecture in the Yucatan.

First stop is Uxmal (where, if you wish, you can book a room at the marvelous Club Med Archaeological Villas and use it as a headquarters for your exploration of the region). Uxmal dates back to about the 10th century (or earlier), and is dominated by an amazing structure known of the Pyramid (or Temple) of the Magician. With it's oval shape, the pyramid was supposedly constructed by a magic dwarf, in a sort-of Mayan power play. Other amazing structures in the Uxmal area include The Nunnery and a Great Pyramid. Pay particular attention to the statue of Chaac The Rain God at the Governor's Palace in the South Zone. That's Chaac The Rain God, not to be confused with Chac Mool (the Toltec figure found at Chichen Itza and other sites, as well as at every gift and souvenir shop in Mexico!). Plan on spending a full day at Uxmal, by the way, and then camp out at the Club Med Villas (tidy rooms, nice restaurant, great pool).

After breakfast at the Club Med, drive along the same route to the ruins at Kabah, a terrific but small site with stone mosaics and hundreds of Mayan masks.

After Kabah, a short drive takes you to Sayil. It's another small site with a three-story building (with about 70 rooms, and that's somewhat unusual), and a ball court.

Labna, the next stop, is one of the prettiest sites in the Yucatan. It's known for the Labna Arch, samples of which you'll see throughout the region (even at Uxmal at the entrance to the Nunnery). You'll also see a similar arch at Kabah, but the arch at Labna is the largest and best-preserved (or best restored).

The last stop on our tour was the caves at Loltun. And based on personal experience, the name comes from the sound the stalactites (or is it stalagmites?) make when you walk into them and hit them with your head, "Lol-TUNE!"

After our day of climbing and walking, we grabbed dinner along the roadside at Ticul and returned to Merida. Two days of exquisite pyramiding!

From journal Rick's Guide to the Yucatan Peninsula: Pyramids, Caves and More

Kabah and Labna

Kabah and Labna

Kabah and Labna are two more of the Puuc (hill) cities of the Mayans, located near the larger city ruins of Uxmal.

Kabah was another very interesting site to visit. It's quite near Uxmal. The "Palace of the Masks" is the most famous structure here, being covered with stone-carved mayan masks, but you can easily spend a couple of interesting hours exploring the site. Don't miss the large stone Mayan warriors on the "back" side of the Palace of the Masks.

You were free to climb all the ruins. If you weren't spoiled by the better ruins at Uxmal or Chichen Itza, you would think Kabah was a really great site.

Unfortunately, we were running out of daylight and really didn't have time for much more than a cursory look around Labna, but it would have been worth spending more time at.

There are almost no facilities at either of these places, Kabah especially. It had a few postcards and a Coca-cola cooler in the entrance and that's about all. There was a little bit more at Labna, but not much.

Free admission on Sundays. We didn't see any guides hanging around for hire, but we didn't inquire either. But we were there late in the day.

From journal The Puuc Route

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