A Photographic Journey to Chiapas

 Along the main entrance to Chapultepec Park there is usually a photographic exhibit.  Last week I visited the park, and the walkway was lined with photographs from the tourism department of the Mexican state of Chiapas.  Chiapas, on the border with Guatemala, is Mexico's poorest state, but it is also one of its most beautiful and culturally fascinating states.  I traveled to Chiapas many years ago, and it was interesting to see photographs of places that I had visited.

Chiapas was the location of numerous cities of the Mayan civilization, and I have been to a number of its archaeological sites.

Toniná is a spectacular site whose temples and pyramids are built on terraces climbing a hillside.  The city flourished between the 6th and 9th centuries.

Deep in the Lacandón rainforest along the border with Guatemala is Bonampák.  This small archaeological site is famous for the mural paintings found in one of its temples.  The guide in this picture is dressed in the traditional attire of the Lacondón Maya.

Also in the Lacandón forest are the ruins of Yaxchilán, located on the banks of the Usumacinta River which forms the border between Mexico and Guatemala.  The only way to reach this remote archaeological site is by boat.

One of the most beautiful of all the Mayan ruins is Palenque.  A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it contains some of the finest architecture and carvings from the Mayan world.

Chiapas has a large indigenous population, the descendants of the people who built the great Mayan cities.  Mayan dialects are still widely spoken here.

Beautiful textiles are woven by the Mayan women.

In villages such as San Juan Chamula, worship in the church is a unique blend of ancient Mayan ritual with a thin veneer of Catholicism.

The diverse geography of Chiapas provides natural wonders.

The Sumidero Canyon was carved by the Grijalva River.  The canyon walls rise as high as 3,300 feet.

"Agua Azul" is a series of cascades along the Xanil River.

The photographic display brought back memories of a fascinating journey.