Chichen Itza, Florals + #H54F / My Monochromatic Life

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Happy Friday! Finally, the weekend, am I right? Gosh, coming back to work after a great vacation and that the weather here is just awful has made for a rough week. Plus I had to work late some days so I am pretty spent. With that in mind, I plan to keep this post short and to the point today. Sound ok?

The last major piece of our trip to Mexico was to see Chichen Itza ruins. This is something I have wanted to do for years but I have not been back on this side of Mexico for over 10 years. When we booked this trip this was really the only request I made. If you are not familiar, Chichen Itza is one of the biggest and most complete of the Mayan culture ruins and is one of the seven wonders of the world. I am sure you have seen a picture of the pyramid structure. You'll recognize it. I also knew that it is basically committing to a whole day because the ruins are more inland. A lot of people will travel to another Mayan ruin, Tulum, because it is significantly closer. However, it is much smaller than Chichen Itza. This took us three hours by a bus ride to arrive there. We booked the tour bus with a nicer, air conditioned, ride that provided snacks and a few other opportunities.

The three hours there actually flew by well. We got up really early and I would say for a solid hour of it one of the tour guides was providing a significant history. This was really fascinating as I must admit I know very little about the Mayans. So when we arrived there I felt like I had a good foundation to tour around. D and I also brought our tablet so we could watch movies to bide our time. When we arrived we already had tickets through the tour company so we did not have to wait in long lines. The downside was we only had two hours there total. One hour was a walking tour and one hour on our own. There was a rich history of information provided to us by our guide. Mayans knew an amazing amount about astronomy and numbers were very important to them. Fun fact: we were told that NASA would still list the Mayans as one of the most knowledgeable about astronomy. Crazy, right? The city was huge. So huge in fact we did not get a chance to see all of it. Also, it was insanely hot that day (95 degrees) and it was a little hard to stay focused on everything. We saw some of the major sites like the pyramid, known as Kum which means temple. This is the site you would be familar with. Also, the stadium where the infamous games were played. Think of it like soccer and Quidditch. They had to hit a ball through this hoop using anything but their hands. They are unclear of the winning or losing captain was sacrificed. They think either the loser was for, well, losing or the winner was as an honor. They suspect the game was played at equinox time and the sacrifice was an honor ot the Gods. Also at equinox the Kum has a unique feature. Snakes are carved throughout and the base of the staircase on the Kum. At each equinox, there is a time where a shadow is cast and it looks like the snake is slithering down the staircase. Wild! So much information was provided I cannot even tell it to you all, but I believe the trip was worth it.

After we left here we got some lunch and then we headed to the waterhole Ik Kil. Because Chichen Itza is inland they don't really have any rivers or lakes nearby. Most of their water was underground. They call them 'cenote.' Ik Kil is 85 feet below the ground and you can swim in it. It is completely untouched by man except they built a staircase so you can get down there. We had a brief period to run down and jump in. It was so refreshing and just fascinating. D and our other friend jumped off the 15-foot diving area and really enjoyed it.

Our last day we relaxed at the beach, which was nice for the last day and after a long day on a bus the day before. We decided to get dressed up for one final dinner and I saved my favorite for last. This gorgeous number I stumbled upon at Target and knew I needed it. I love a midi length dress. I am tall enough so I can typically get away with it and I am also a fan of this type of cut. This silhouette helps to create a shape, that frankly, I do not have on my own, curvier in fact. I also really love florals when they are combined with a darker base. I can't do crazy florals, it's not my deal, but a big floral pattern with a neutral base I fall for every time. It's cotton so pretty lightweight and I can easily get away with this in the future for work and dress up for a night out. I don't like to wear too bold of jewelry in Mexico. In the warmer months, I tend to favor more delicate touches. This Lilli Clasp necklace was a favorite of mine and was just enough sparkle to dress it up, as well as these old faithful heels. Seriously, I wore them almost every night. Finished up with a small clutch we were ready to celebrate our final evening in paradise.