Our Shore Excursion To The Chichen Itza Mayan Ruins (Monday, August 27, 2012)
Channel: 54spiritedwill54
Date: 2012-09-19

Watch in high quality (480p).   It was finally our first shore excursion this day off of the Carnival Elation.  We would be seeing the Chichen Itza Mayan Ruins!  Chichen Itza is located in the eastern portion of Yucatán state in Mexico.

In this video, it shows us dock at the port of Progreso, Mexico.  We then debarked the ship  around 8 a.m. and then went on our shuttle tour bus. The ruins was over 2 hours drive away from the port.  Our guide, named Carlos, is very entertaining and friendly!  He was our "history teacher" lol.  He also showed us the map of the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico and also told us the plan/itinerary for the day while on the way.  

After about 2 hours, we came to a pitstop area, very nice and welcoming!  We also did a bit of souvenir shopping.  It was around 10:30 a.m.  Then just a few minutes more down the road, we finally reached the entrance of the Chichen Itza Mayan Ruins!  

We walked through the souvenir shopping areas and then finally saw the main ruin:  The El Castillo pyramid!  We also clapped in front of the pyramid and heard like a  "chirping echo" if you can hear it closely.  It's pretty cool!  Our group then proceeded in and around the ruins, including seeing the Great Ball Court. 

Then nearing 1 p.m., we started to head back, walking pass through the souvenir shops once again.  I actually wanted to see their souvenirs but there just wasn't enough time since we had to head back to the tour bus by 1:10 p.m. and the drive was 2+ hours back to the cruise ship.

We saw some nice views during the 2+ hour bus ride back to Progreso, Mexico.  There was even a Walmart!  Carlos also talked about what was Mexico's biggest industry was.  Tourism is indeed number 2 on the list.  Shortly after, we finally saw our ship once again docked in the distance.  As we approached the coast, the water was so beautiful along with the palm trees on the beach.  If only we had more time so I can actually get off and go on the beach!!

By around 3:30 p.m., we then boarded back on the Carnival Elation.  Then it was just passed 4:15 p.m. and we were now departing from Progreso, Mexico.

At around 7ish p.m., we had dinner again at the Imagination dining room.  This time was very interesting since the crew danced with some people around the dining area.  My sister danced as well!!  Go sis!!

After dinner, we headed to the Atlantic Deck and we did some shopping around the Fun Shops.  (not shown in video).  Then afterwards, we went into the Mikado Lounge to see a dance class, despite the ship being quite rocky once again this evening!

To end the video, it shows us go to Tiffany's Restaurant for a late night snack at their 14-hour pizzeria.  But before that, I filmed the sounds and creeking sounds the ship is making due to the rough seas in motion!  Pretty scary!  I also filmed the moon outside our stateroom window.  It was really moving.  When we got to the Tiffany's restaurant, not much people were there.  I got a pepperoni piece.  It was already almost 10:45 p.m. at the time.  There was also something that fell on another table due to the severe rocking of the ship.  After the snacking, we saw the map of where our ship was going/went.  It was a path.   We then ended the evening from there.  Well, one shore excursion down, one more to go, which was Cozumel, Mexico!

***A bit of info about the Chichen Itza:  It was one of the largest Maya cities and it was likely to have been one of the mythical great cities, or Tollans.  The city may have had the most diverse population in the Maya world, a factor that could have contributed to the variety of architectural styles at the site.  The ruins are federal property, and the site's stewardship is maintained by Mexico's Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia. The land under the monuments had been privately-owned until 29 March 2010, when it was purchased by the state of Yucatán.  Chichen Itza is one of the most visited archaeological sites in Mexico; an estimated 1.2 million tourists visit the ruins every year.

The New Seven Wonders of the World were announced on July 7th, 2007 in Lisbon, Portugal after seven years of publicity and promotion.
  
* Chichen Itza, Mexico *
* The Great Wall, China 
* Petra, Jordan 
* Christ Redeemer, Brazil 
* Machu Picchu, Peru 
* The Roman Collesseum, Italy 
* The Taj Mahal, India