Stairway to Heaven

Imagine yourself being dropped right smack dab into the middle of an Indiana Jones adventure.  That’s what visiting a Mayan ruin is like…sans the bad guys!  Exploring, climbing, and squeezing through narrow passages makes each ruin site a lot like jungle gyms for adults and one of the most fun things we’ve done while housesitting places in Mexico and Belize. 

Visiting the ruin sites have also provided history lessons (check out our post “The Magnificent Maya”) about things that made us go “hmmm,” and are a unique way to connect with an incredible people that lived here thousands of years ago. The Greeks and Romans came up with very little that the Mayans hadn’t already thought of.  But then again, as far as history goes, the Greeks and Romans got more publicity! 

The Magnificent Maya

Deep within the jungles of the Yucatan Peninsula (Mexico, Belize, Guatemala and surrounding areas) lie the legendary temples and palaces of the Maya. By the time Europe was trying to figure out things during the Dark Ages, the Mayans had already charted the heavens, designed and constructed huge cities, evolved the only true writing system native to the Americas, as well as mastered mathematics and calendars. And they did all this without the advantage of metal tools, beasts of burden or even the wheel!