It’s hard to believe it’s gone by so
fast, but my six months here in Palenque is almost coming to an end. After just one more week of monkey business,
I’ll do some sightseeing as I make my way up to Mexico City before flying to
the U.S. for Christmas.
The monkeys are still doing
well. Just a few weeks ago, we arrived
in the field to discover that one of the females named Kia had given birth to a
new baby, which was cute as can be.
While Kia has had an infant in the past, it did not survive, so we are
hoping that this new baby will be her first to make it to adulthood. The new baby is tiny and much grayer than
adult black howler monkeys. Most of the
time, it clings to Kia’s belly, but we have seen it climb onto her back and
even be carried by some of the other monkeys.
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| Mora, one of the howler monkeys we study |
The study’s main questions about how
monkeys navigate through the forest to find food will not be fully answered
until the data are analyzed at the end of the three year study. Still, after enough time following the same
groups, you start to notice how often they seem to use the exact same routes
between different feeding trees. These
memorized routes seem like they will make up a critical part of how the monkeys
navigate, although mental maps of feeding trees could also play a role.
When I am not in the forest with the
monkeys, I have been able to have some interesting experiences here in Palenque
and in the surrounding region.
Fortunately, my six months in Mexico included both Mexican Independence
Day and also Day of the Dead. Mexican
Independence Day marks the start of the Mexican War of Independence on
September 16, 1810, although the celebration occurred on the evening of the 15th
leading up to the 16th. The
town hall here in Palenque was all decked out in red, white, and green: the
colors of the Mexican flag. There were
live music performances and some political speeches that mostly fell beyond my
Spanish language abilities, but that seemed supportive of the ongoing teachers’
union strike and very much opposed to President Enrique Peña Nieto. Some of the people running this were wearing
ski masks; I am not positive, but I believe this was to show support for the
Zapatista movement that took place here in Chiapas. The ceremony culminated in the Grito de
Dolores that marked the beginning of the War of Independence: “¡Viva México!”
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| The town hall of Palenque on Independence Day |
Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) is
a colorful and joyful celebration to honor loved ones who have passed on. Even though it is about death, the atmosphere
is neither sad nor morbid. In the
central town square, each school in the area created an ofrenda, or altar in
honor of someone who has died. These
typically included photos, foods, candles, crucifixes, and marigold flowers. The festivities also included some
traditional Mexican folk dance performances, followed by a parade of Catrinas
and Catrines (people wearing skull makeup and fancy clothing). The whole holiday was very beautiful, and I
am glad I had the chance to witness it.
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| Día de Muertos ofrenda with a Catrina standing to the right |
On weekends, I have visited several
nearby Mayan ruin sites. As a day trip
out of Palenque, several other research assistants and I travelled east to the
Usumacinta River that forms the border between Mexico and Guatemala. A forty minute boat ride took us to Yaxchilan,
a ruined Mayan city located in an oxbow of the river. This site featured various temples, some exquisite
carvings, and an underground labyrinth.
We even got to see both howler monkeys and spider monkeys. After lunch, we continued to the smaller site
of Bonampak. The temples at Bonampak are
not as big as those at Palenque or even Yaxchilan, but the real treasure here
was the beautifully preserved murals. In
several rooms, the walls and ceilings are decorated with colorful paintings
depicting Mayan rulers, scenes of war, and other images of Mayan life. They were quite stunning to behold, and I am
shocked that this site is not better known.
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| One of the murals at Bonampak |
Last weekend, I ventured once more
to the Usumacinta River, but this time, I crossed over into Guatemala for the
weekend. After many hours on a bumpy road,
I arrived in the picturesque town of Flores.
Flores is located on a small island in Lake Peten Itza, connected to the
mainland by a bridge. The colonial
architecture and cobblestone streets gave it a nice atmosphere, and it is small
enough to walk all the way around the island.
While I enjoyed Flores, the main reason for my trip was to visit the
ruins of Tikal. Arguably the best known
ruins site, Tikal was a regional superpower for hundreds of years during the
Mayan Classic Period before collapsing of environmental degradation around the
year 950. In order to beat the crowds
and see more wildlife, I left in time to arrive not long after sunrise. Tikal did not disappoint. The temples were huge, and could be seen
poking out above the rainforest canopy from quite a distance away. In the main plaza, when you clap your hands,
it echoes off the steps of the temples to produce a sound like the call of the
quetzal. The wildlife was also quite
abundant, including howler monkeys, spider monkeys, raccoon-like animals called
coatis, and many birds such as the keel-billed toucan and the oscillated
turkey. It was an amazing place to
visit, so I’m glad I had the chance for this mini-vacation, and I’m looking
forward to seeing more of the region before heading home.
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| Me at the Temple of the Great Jaguar, Tikal |
