A Visit from my Parents

About a month ago, my parents visited me here in Palenque.  Since they were taking a two week vacation in the Yucatan Peninsula, we figured it would be a great chance for them to see me and the place I am currently living.  So right before one of my weekends, they made the drive from the coast to inland Chiapas, a drive that was more interesting than they’d hoped for due to Hurricane Earl passing through the area.  Despite the weather, they arrived safely in Palenque on a Thursday night, and we spent the next few days sightseeing in the area.

The next day, the three of us went to see the archaeological site of Palenque, my second visit to the main ruins.  The gigantic structures, with names like the Temple of the Inscriptions, the Temple of the Red Queen, and the Palace, were as impressive as ever.  Since the last time I had visited the ruins, there was actually a new archaeological discovery announced regarding the Temple of the Inscriptions.  This pyramid is notable for the 1952 discovery of the well-preserved, ornately decorated tomb of the king Pakal the Great, who ruled over Palenque from the year 615 to 683.  Just recently, scientists discovered a small opening under the tomb that connects to an underground passageway filled with running water.  I’m excited to hear what more they discover about it.

Temple of the Inscriptions

As my parents and I continued around the ruins, we saw both places I had seen last time as well as areas that were new to me.  The ruins include an extensive Palace where the aristocrats once lived, a ball court for an ancient Mesoamerican ballgame that sometimes ended in human sacrifice, a pyramid where a French count once took up residence, and a pressurized aqueduct that carried water through the city.  After seeing the ruins, we also visited the nearby museum that has some of the artifacts excavated from the ruins, as well as a reconstruction of the tomb of Pakal.

The next morning, I took my parents for a hike through the forest where I do fieldwork.  While we got there early with the goal of finding monkeys, we unfortunately didn’t see any.  We did hear a few groups howling in the distance, though.  After continuing down the main trail farther than I go for research, we made it to Templo Olvidado: the Forgotten Temple.  This ancient Mayan building stands on the top of a hill in the middle of the forest.  Since there were no other tourists at that time, it was a nice, tranquil spot, with only the sounds of the birds and insects.

My parents and I in Palenque National Park

Once we had finished with the forest, we went to Aluxes Ecopark.  Although they brand themselves as a wildlife rehab center, I would describe the experience as being like a zoo of animals native to Mesoamerica.  Although I felt bad for many of the animals’ rather small exhibits, it was nice to get to see some of this regions’ wildlife that I am unlikely to see in the wild, such as jaguars, tapirs, and manatees.  Even though it wasn’t in the wild, my parents got the chance to see some howler monkeys here, as well as spider monkeys that are found in other parts of Mexico.

Black jaguar at Aluxes

In the time since then, research has been going well.  One week, the Balam group seemed like it was about to merge with the neighboring Templo Olvidado group, but then when I observed them again this past week, everything was back to normal.  In the Pakal group, we were sad to discover that one of the babies has disappeared, but fortunately the other two infants in the group seem fine.  There has also been quite a bit of turnover among the human primates on this project.  Three of the other research assistants left in the past couple weeks, and five new ones arrived, bringing the total number up to seven.  There are now quite a few new people to get to know over the remaining three months here in Palenque.