Bernal was 8900' in elevation and we headed downhill from there to the ruins of El Tajin. Before you enter the UNESCO site, you see a 60' pole with ropes draped on it.
This colorful character was a player in the Voladores of Papantla, a display of a ceremony we watched.
Men climbed the pole to this pipe structure at the top.
Four of the Voladores of Papantla swinging around to the ground while the man on top continues to play the flute and drum.
Four of the men sat on the pipes, tied ropes around their waists and they all twirled the pipe structure with their feet, winding the ropes along the top of the pole. Once the ropes were wound, they fell off backwards and upside down and began to swing out and around while the fifth man played a tiny flute and drum. They swung further out and down as the ropes unwound until they were nearly at the ground. They sat up and swung their feet under them to land again on the ground. Looked like fun!
Almost done.
All back down safely. And they don't have any safety net and don't tie off while climbing up or down.
A local man in traditional dress. The baggy white pants and tops seemed to be worn only by the older generations.
The roads into the ruins have been taken over by vendors. All the stalls sold the same things. Vanilla is a local product here but I passed up the chance to buy any as I can't bake in the van. There's also a chile spice mix called Tajin that I bought later.
Inside El Tajin ruins, I spied this little cubby hole entry into the back side of one of the stone structures.
These walls with the beveled edges are unusual and this one went for a long ways.
These reddish barked trees looked much more impressive in the sunshine but we had a cloudy day to wander these ruins.
Jason in front of one of the many ruins at El Tajin.
Pre-Aztec ruins, these have been protected since they were uncovered again.
This Temple of Niches is unique in the pyramid structures uncovered in Mexico. It's in wonderful shape and is an icon of this set of buildings at Tajin.
This one patch of the stones had a blue color to it. None of the signage was in English so we had no real explanations for anything here.
The stairways crumble into piles of stones.
Karen in front of the Pyramid of Niches.
Jason among the ruins of El Tajin.
One of the 17 ball courts at El Tajin. The stones at the ends and center of these courts are inscribed with symbol that indicate the losers were killed, often by beheading or stabbinb. These were life or death games.
A dispay of of symbols at the entry.
El Tajin temple ruins.
You are no longer allowed to climb on these stairs or structures at all.
After Tajin, we headed to Tequisquipan, where this monument indicates the geographic center of Mexico.
Karen in front of the monument,a giant pendulum.
The actual pendulum.
We actually drove trough a town called Yolotepec so we had to stop for a photo
The actual pendulum.
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