Copan, Honduras
My day in Copan starts early. Lorraine and I awake an hour before the others, awaiting Jose, our Caballero y guia de caballos, seven o´clock sharp was the plan. He is late and unapologetic. We are not impressed. He overslept. We would have loved to do the same. Sleepy eyed Jose leads us "por abajo"- down the cobble stone streets of Pueblo Copan Ruinas to the edge of the village where another caballero is finishing saddling up the three horses. It is close to 7:30.
We mount up and start down a basic dirt road... leading to we don´t know where. The sites are okay, but the rocky roads improper for gallop. Suddenly, Jose proceeds to whip our horses from behind, startling both them and us. He does this several times. He says, "You have to dominate and show the horse who is in charge." Well thanks for the tip, Jose, but if you are whacking the horses rump, the horse will think me to be an inexperienced rider and won´t be anymore apt to follow my prompts. I politely ask him to discontinue directing our horses for us. Lorraine is gritting her teeth in frustration. We ask Jose to adjust the stirrups and to tighten the sloshing saddles, as we both feel like we are going to fall off (especially with the quircky jerks of the horses that suddenly lurch when they see Jose and his whip). I end up changing horses with Jose, as I am convinced that the horse I am riding is not a good match. He jumps onto her and shows Lorraine and I how perfectly capable the horse is. He shows off by doing a "look ma, no hands, ... and no feet neither!" as he kicks and whips the horse so she will run over the rocks. Lorraine and I roll our eyes, sharing our disgust with the treatment of the poor horse, and his neglect for insuring his clients a pleasant experience. He hasn´t said anything about the area, culture, plants, or way of life.
(As an aside: Later we would weigh the culture differences with the way in which cultures view the value and role of animals. We realize our idea of a pet is different. These horses are a means of income, and have historically been used as a means of transportation and laboral service. In the US, horses have become a luxury, having been replaced by cars. We would also sympathize to some degree with the adjustments these qausi-companies must make to meet the expectations of increasing tourism, especially if they wish to stay in business.)
As we have a deadline to visit the famous Copan Ruinas, by the time we get to the base of the mountain (and our grumpiness mounting) when Jose asks if we´d like to go up the mountain, we take advantage of having an out and tell Jose we´d like to head back and get to the ruins. This shortens the trip on both ends (his being late and our early arrival to the ruins). We were further dismayed by horseback riding along the motorway to the ruins. We had specifically been assured that we would ride a trail to the ruins.
Lorraine and I agree that the poor service and tardy morning departure is a breach in our contract and does not merit full pay. We had already paid half of the $20 per person and thought it was generous to give $10 more, but not the full $20. Jose is perturbed and won´t take the ten. He babbles on about his boss and how he got us to the ruins in time. I said that I would be happy to explain our point of view to his boss, and that they could meet with us at the hotel between 11 and noon. The discussion never got heated, but I was firm about his responsibilities to his clients. We head off to the gate of the ruins.
(Wonderful source to for a virtual visit to the Mayan ruins of Copan, Honduras.)
Time to shake off all that negativity, Lorraine and I agree. Laughing and teasing I say "Yeah, I´ll give you "tip" buddy. Show up on time!" Perhaps juvenile, but we really need the relief.
Ah, la piece de resistance, Copan and her stelae, hyroglyphs, carvings, ballcourts, pyramids and sacrificial altars. The majority of the stelae are dating from the 300s to the late 700s a.d. and depict sixteen ancient Mayan kings, like Smoking Jaguar. Shocking to us, all but a handful of the ruins are open to the weather and damaging climate of constant rain. Many are buildings or plazas. The $10 entrance fee should pay for some tin roof shelters, but very few statues enjoy this luxury. The rest are being defaced and losing the depth of their carvings as the years, decades and centuries go on. In and around the ballcourt we view decorative sculptures with macaw heads, serpents, turtoise, and skulls. For a fun research on ancient Mayan gaming, look up Mayan campo de pelota (ballcourt) and find out how this dangerous game was played.
Wandering along the paths of an ancient civilization can give one a tingle up the spine. Imagine how it must have been to live in this palace, along the Rio de Copan, and trading with other Mayan kingdoms dotted along the Central American coasts and interior. With the active volcano looming overhead, angrily spewing out lava and causing earthquakes, it is no wonder the people would try anything to appease this god, by throwing virgen sacrifices. Many treasures, such as pottery, jade, and bone remains of jaguars, have been unearthed and placed in the Museo de Copan Ruinas. As recently as 1989, a king´s tomb was discovered behind the amphitheatre of the Plaza Occidental. From the 800s to the 1200s these kingdoms are abandoned and have scientists and anthropologists still speculating the fall of these dynasties. Perhaps food shortages, as there is not enough evidence to suggest that warring drove them out of these highly civilized and intelligent cities.
The jungle constantly encroaches upon such ruins, and whose upkeep proves to be labour intensive. Crews of employees with machetes and weed killer holdback the forest from reclaiming Copan. Ruins continue to be discovered in the Americas. We will visit several more along the volcano trail and of course Mexico, D.F herself.
In the meantime, enjoy:
This afternoon we will cross the border into Guatemala, just 12 km away. Ben has hired a private, luxury van for this purpose. Suffering from a tension headache I receive a massage from Dale (licensed sports massage therapist in Australia!) and return the favor later in the day (I´ve had some training, too!). We cross the massive diesel and industrially polluted Ciudad de Guatemala during rush hour, oops. A final evening descent into the pleasant valley of Antigua, we are surrounded by three volcanoes and several mountain ranges. Still, we are some 4,500 feet above sea level. The air thin, the nights cooler.
I will stay in Antigua this weekend to catch up on work projects, while my travel companions go on to Panajachel. Exhausted and rather travel nauseous upon arrival, I go right bed at 7:30pm, skipping dinner.
<< Home