Spanish Conquistadors Waited Months to See Mayan "City_in_the_Clouds"---See It In One Day!
Written: Oct 09 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Easiest Mayan site to visit in Guatemala
Cons: Still somewhat difficult to reach
The Bottom Line: Fascinating glimpse back in time and across cultural boundaries---one of the best places in Guatemala City area
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| mrkstvns's Full Review: Guatemala |
Mixco Viejo is far from being the largest or most important Mayan archaelogical site in Central America, but it does have one big advantage over its larger cousins that helps make Mixco Viejo a great day-trip destination for almost any visitor to Guatemala -- that big advantage is location. While Tikal is the undisputed king of Guatemalan Mayan sites, it's a grueling trip into the middle of the steamy jungles. Nobody just makes a snap decision to visit Tikal on a whim. But you can see Mixco Viejo on an easy day-trip if you're staying in either Guatemala City or Antigua. Mixco Viejo is located only about 20 miles outside Guatemala City, and maybe 45 miles from Antigua.
In my review of Antigua, I talked about some of the opportunities for sightseeing that were made available through the Spanish language academy where I was taking classes. One of the more interesting of these day trips was a van ride to the ruins of Mixco Viejo.
On the Road to Nowhere...
One of the advantages of doing the day trips arranged by the school is that the transportation is good and easy. No fuss no muss. Their van is a large Dodge that seats about 15 people. It's only a couple years old and has air conditioning. The roads from Antigua to Mixco Viejo are good most of the way -- divided highway between Antigua and Guatemala, then north on another good, but smaller road. We stop in the town of San Pedro Sacatapequez, which is a colorful village with a lot of small vendors selling various handcrafted items, including the wildly colorful shirts and dresses that the local Mayans wear. I picked up a couple of handpainted crosses for myself -- beautiful glossy designs of natives holding hands under the palms.
30 minute pit stop over, we're back in the van, continuing our trek northward, roughly running along the Motague River. A few miles north of the town, we turn off onto a much rougher but more scenic road. The dirt road carries us through the jungles and mountains, up two hills for every one we go down, around narrow curves. The last few miles seem to take forever as the van driver dodges puddles the size of Lake Superior and potholes that put some canyons to shame. It's either a testament to the driver's skills, or to the power of the plastic Jesus glued to the dashboard, but the axle never broke and nobody had to get out and push or throw rocks under the tires. Eventually we reached the plateau that's home to Mixco Viejo...
Why Mixco Viejo Matters...
Mixco Viejo was an important Mayan city. At the time of the Spanish invasion in the 1520s, Mixco Viejo was an active city and was the capital of the Mayan Pokomam state. It was also a fairly young city, having been built sometime around the year 1200 A.D. Military strategists would probably be most impressed by the city's setting because it seems to have been designed with natural defense as its foremost goal. The city is built on neighboring hilltops with deep ravines -- there's no easy way for an attacking army to approach the city.
Like I said, Mixco Viejo isn't as large or extensive as huge Mayan cities like Tikal, Chichen Itza, or Copan, but it is well preserved, has a stunning setting, and is very impressive nonetheless.
Walking Around the Site...
Start your day by checking out the enormous relief map of the site. This map pinpoints major structures and gives you an appreciation for just how well the city was laid out in relation to the terrain. One of the great things about visiting most Mayan sites is that you are usually welcome to climb the ruins and walk around just about anywhere, so start climbing and walking!
You could either start or end your visit in the site's small museum. Inside are displays showing various relics and art works found at the site. Unlike most Mayan sites, the artists of Mixco Viejo did more frescoes and paintings than they did sculptures. The less durable nature of their media means that there are fewer pieces of artistic value here than in most Mayan sites. The museum includes some displays explaining the history of the site and the archaelogical activities that took place during its restoration.
Architecturally, Mixco Viejo is much less interesting than most other Mayan sites that I've visited. The buildings in Mixco Viejo are much smaller than the huge edifices of other Mayan sites. The most famous buildings in Mixco Viejo are referred to as the twin temples. These are flat-topped pyramids that are only about 100 feet high. Contrast these small squat buildings to the enormous and extravagant pyramid El Castillo in Chichen Itza and you can see why I don't find the architecture of Mixco Viejo to be that impressive. But there are still very impressive structures...
I thought the twin ball courts of Mixco Viejo were very impressive, even though they still come up short when compared to those of Chichen Itza. The ball courts at Mixco Viejo are sunken into the ground and you walk along the tops of the courtside walls or you can walk on the court itself. The stone ring at mid-field is still intact and bears an ornate carved snake head along its top.
I'm always fascinated by the ball courts at Mayan sites and I wonder exactly how the game was played. I have heard stories about the incredible strength and endurance needed to play the game, and I've been told that death was on the line for every game, although whose death it is seems to vary depending on the teller of the tale. Some people say that the loser dies. Others say that the winner is allowed to sacrifice himself for the glory of the Gods. And you thought NFL players were overpaid...
At the city's central plaza is a towering tree that reminds me of the old Wye Oak back in Maryland. The plaza and tree were a popular resting spot and several visitors had laid out blankets and were doing a picnic lunch under the shade of the tree. We also chilled out there for a while, and also found that the place was a perfect place for shooting some pictures of the whole site and its stunning backdrop of towering mountains and the canyons that surround the city.
You Da Mayan!!!
I always recommend hiring the Mayan guides at just about any Mayan archaelogical site. Our guide at Mixco Viejo was a good-natured guy, about 50 years old, who told us some great stories about the city. He said that the city's natural defenses enabled it to hold out against the Spanish invaders for quite some time. The Spanish armies of Don Pedro de Alvarado laid siege to Mixco Viejo for more than seven months without making a dent in the Mayan resolve. Somehow, the Spanish figured out that the Mayans had tunnels into the city through which they could bring supplies, circumventing the siege. The Spanish were eventually able to defeat the city through guile -- but not through direct force. They evidently found one of the hidden tunnels that led into a stronghold and, holding their shields held in front of them, were able to move forward through the tunnel and into the city.
The best story about Mixco Viejo took place well before the arrival of the Spanish. Once upon a time, the king of Iximche (near Lake Atitlan) wanted to form an alliance with the king of Mixco Viejo so he sent one of his fairest young maidens as a bride for his neighboring ruler. The king of Mixco Viejo evidently found the young woman to be absolutely ravishing -- so he ate her! The king of Iximche went bonkers and declared war on Mixco Viejo...a war that claimed far more Iximche lives than Mixco Viejo lives due to the city's natural defenses.
By the way, Mixco Viejo is the spanish name for this site. The Mayans call it Saqik'ajol Nimakaqapek. (Try saying that five times fast!)
Easy Day...
If you're spending some time in either Antigua or Guatemala City, I definitely recommend a day trip out to Mixco Viejo. It's a wonderful small Mayan site that's just too close to the country's urban centers to be by-passed. If you're taking classes at one of the language schools in Antigua, you can probably arrange a trip through the school. If you're in Guatemala City, I would recommend stopping in at the Inguat office on Avenida 7 at Avenida del Ferrocarril. But be advised, tours to Mixco Viejo are probably not common (there were surprisingly few people there), but the Inguat guys can probably set you up if anybody can. Even if the tour operators don't work out, the site is close enough to Guatemala City and cab fares are cheap enough (especially if you split it with a friend) that it's not unreasonable to think about hiring a taxi for a few hours to take you out there. In any case, the site is a fascinating glimpse back in time and across cultural boundaries and is one of the best things to see close to Guatemala City. Don't take my word for it though, see it for yourself!
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Students
Best Time to Travel Here: Mar - May
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