A couple of weeks ago, my family and I went out on a Sunday drive and we thought we would visit nearby Coba Coba is a small town west of Tulum (Tulum is a small oceanfront village on the Mexican Caribbean Ocean that has been attracting many international real estate investors), but it is also an important pyramid site of the ancient Mayan Civilization here from the Yucatan region A few months ago, we had visited some amazing sites in the southern part of the state, so we thought the kids would enjoy this visit too Oxtankah Pyramids
One of the on site pyramids is recorded as the tallest being at 42 meters of height The picture to the left is not this pyramid but you can see a video of this high structure by clicking here MEXICO REAL ESTATE COBA SITES Coba, apart from the fascinating Mayan history, has also accumulated an interesting archeological exploration history Our local bicycle guide had informed us that the site was not discovered until about 15 years ago Given the fact that our guide was only about 20 years of age, he probably meant to say that he did not first recall knowing of the sites until he was about 5 years of age But as I read in a little further, it was first mentioned by archeologists in the middle 1800`s Not visited nor recorded but there were western explorers who mentioned hearing of its existence but due to the extremely thick jungles, were unable to visit In the 1920`s there was the first visit by a westerner, but again no pictures nor drawings were recorded to any full extent In the 1970`s, when Cancun was just starting to appear on the map for development, then the Mexico National Institute of Anthropology begin a further in depth excavation and recording of the site In 1980`s, it appears much advancement had occurred in properly registering and filing of this important Mayan settlement called COBA
Our Sunday drive took us from the busy developing town of Playa del Carmen , on a journey south for about 40 minutes till we hit Tulum From Tulum we drove west into the jungle for another 45 minutes till we arrived to the village of Coba The road was new and well kept. Two lanes with wide shoulders so the drive was pleasent and comfortable
We passed about 3 or 4 little villages with their speed bumps all along the center of these communities When we arrived to the village of Coba, a stop at the ABARROTESstore was needed to fill up the energy of our little kids This is a good word to know when living or visiting Mexico We did not notice till we came out of the store, but a small dock out onto a decent size lake had attracted a small crowd of about 7 people When we arrived we saw a nice size wild crocodile floating around looking for some food We also noticed that no one was swimming nor sailing nor any type of water sports were being played out on the water I guess the reason was that these animals had not been fed recently So we hung around to see what they ate.
Chicken!Enough wild life education for the kids and enough potential night mare material!…. we drove ahead to the archaeological site Inside the park, we found the first ruin structure immediately coming in from the entrance The famous mesoamerican ballgame had a court right within the entrance The ring and structure were in excellent shape, although it did seem narrower than others I had seen before I am not sure if the Mayans had an official court size or if they just laid out the court in approximations
After visiting the first set of structures, we looked at the map and noticed several other buildings at a walking distance But we also noticed bicycle taxi services My husband wanted to walk but knowing my kids, I knew that I would be carrying them half way down the pathSo we hired a bicylce taxi I suggest if going with a family that you use the taxi as the heat can be very strong and it is a very enjoyable ride through the jungle having someone peddling you As we came around a curve in the path, a lone pyramid caught our attention The observatory Beautiful structure, pyramid Rounded corners and sitting in its own small wooded area gave the ruin a unique and beautiful “look” for photos You can see this ruin in the video TULUM REAL ESTATE COBA VIDEO
Returning to our bikeman tour guide, he continued even further into the jungle where we could see an amazing structure towering over the tree tops Thin steps, many steps, rocky steps with a thin rope to guide all the tourists to the top I recommend strongly that you take tennis shoes when visiting Coba or any other pyramids here in Mexico as there is always much walking, and many times on slippery surfaces
Well, we came this far, why not go up and see what the view looks like It was well worth the climb Amazingly beautiful I was very pleasantly surprised at this site I know that Chichenitza and the Tulum pyramids are quite popular with the visiting tourists and visitors, but after visiting these sites, I would also rank them as some of the most interesting places to visit here in the Yucatan Peninsula Later I will write and share some pictures of the CENOTES we visited to cool down
Beatriz Lozano
(512)879-6546