Riviera Maya: Day 4

Day 4:  Cobá
My day


We started out early around 7:30 to get to Playa to buy some bus tickets to Cobá.


We took another colectivo from our resort to Playa and I was so proud of myself.  Yes, I used a lot of spanish on vacation and overall it went well, but I always struggle between 60 and 70.  They sound similar to me.  The driver told me $60 for the three of us and I didn't even hesitate when I gave him 60 pesos.  Then I sat down and gave myself a little pat on the back.  =)


We got to Playa and went to the bus terminal to get tickets on an ADO bus (charter bus) to Cobá.  Turns out colectivos don't go there.  It was about a 2 hour drive from Playa to Cobá.  We stopped at the Tulum bus station on the way and it was so interesting to see a bit of Tulum.  


Cobá Mayan for "water stirred by the wind"
We made it to Cobá, which I would guess is the least visited of the three ruin sites we visited during our week.  But there were still plenty of tour groups!  
There are lots of guides offering tours of the site.  We did not hire one, but in case you want to hold off until you get inside the gate.  Prices will drop drastically.
Cobá is set deep in the jungle, with 5 lakes, and many of the ruins have yet to be excavated.  Archaeologists now estimate Cobá contains some 6500 structures, of which just a few have been excavated and restored, though work is ongoing.  We walked along ancient sacbé pathways, climbed up many of the ruins (they let you climb here, which I love!), and went to the top of Nohoch Mul.  (They do have bikes you can rent, we just opted to walk.)
Cobá was settled before Chichén Itzá and Tulum.  Archaeologists believe this city once covered 50 sq km and held 50,000 Maya.  Cobá's architecture is a mystery; its towering pyramids and stalae resemble the architecture of Tikal, which is several hundred kilometers away, rather than the much nearer sites of Chichén Itzá and the northern Yucatán Peninsula.

Stelae appear to depict female rulers from Tikal holding ceremonial bars & flaunting their power by standing on captives.  This makes some archaeologists theorize an alliance with Tikal was made through marriage to facilitate trade between the Guatemalan and Yucatecan Maya.  These Tikal royal females, when married to Cobá's royalty, may have brought architects and artisans with them.
They were everywhere.  Especially in the Group Macanxoc.

So much planning went in to each city.  Especially with regard to astronomy.  There are runs of some 40 sacbeob (stone-paved avenues) that pass through Cobá, parts of the huge astronomical 'time machine' that was evident in every Maya city.  
We basically followed the path the tour groups were taking straight to Nohoch Mul.  Stopping at the juego de pelota (ball game) court (there were 2 at Cobá).  I love these courts.  I don't know why exactly because so little seems to really be known about it, but I love them.  They think it was a no hands game where in the end it's believed, sometimes ended with a ritual death.  They're not sure whether the person sacrificed was from the winning or losing team.  

i'm hoping for the best

yes, this skull is on the ground in the middle of the court

We made it to Nohoch Mul (Big Mound).  Nohoch Mul reaches a height of 42m, making it the second-tallest Maya structure on the Yucatán Peninsula, the largest & highest in northern Yucatán.  (Calakmul's Estructura II, at 45m, is the tallest).  The steps are a bit slippery in places because so many people have gone up and down, but just take your time and you'll be ok.
We were all a bit sore the next day.

Ready?

Let's go!

We made it.
This was the picture I told Karen we shouldn't touch because we were sweaty.  I wasn't trying to be mean.  Look at the guy's shirt next to us.  It was sweaty.

fine... i guess it's time to go back down

Some trees are growing in the structures now and if you take the time to look off the path a bit you'll see little piles of rocks that used to be structures.  Nature's taking back the area a bit.

On our trek to Groupo Macanxoc we got a break from all the tour groups and I think that was my favorite part of Cobá, although climbing Nohoch Mul was pretty awesome too.  Pretty sure we were one of the few people opting to walk to this part.  Many people had bikes or bike taxis.  Yea us!

bike taxis whizzed past us, but we didn't care... not one bit

While the ruins of Cobá's neighbors, Chichén Itzá and Tulum, are now neatly trimmed, their roped-off structures scattered among manicured lawns and gravel paths, Cobá largely has been reclaimed by the Yucatán jungle.  And I think that's partly why I loved it.

We interacted with the ruins more here.

It's amazing how much is unknown about these ruins.  I think that's what intrigues me so much about these sites.

We left Cobá and headed back to Playa.  

Once we got to Playa we walked around a bit before heading back to the resort.  

We first headed to a paleteria for paletas (popsicles), which were so delicious and really hit the spot.  The guy working was so patient as he told me what every flavor was and I translated to Mom & Karen.  We all walked out happy.

Karen & Mom did some souvenir/gift shopping, including Mezcal con gusano (with the worm).

We each got a delicious bread at a panaderia, which was SO good and fresh!

Then we headed back to the resort in a colectivo.

this is what we saw on our walk from the highway to our room

Dinero (in pesos):

$60 colectivo from resort to Playa

≈$580 ADO bus roundtrip to Cobá

$57/person entrance to ruins

$15 torta @ Cobá (all shared)

$30 x 2 sodas for Mom & Karen

$50 paleteria

$15 panaderia
$60 colective from Playa to resort

? Mom & Karen bought souvenirs in Playa

Day 1:  Arrival & Playa

Day 2:  Tulum

Day 3:  Resort Day

*I used two library books as references on the trip so we knew what we were looking at:

Lonely Planet's Cancún, Cozumel & the Yucatán 2008

Fodor's Cancún and the Riviera Maya 2012

I also found the reviews on Trip Advisor to be very helpful.
I also enjoyed this article in Time Out Chicago when planning for this trip.