Travels thru Life: 7/4 -- Copan

We started our day at Copan. The site runs through the whole valley, and probably supported 40,000 people in its heyday. The official park is only a small piece of the city and relatively little has been excavated. There are lots of rock mounds everywhere and a our guide, Fito, showed us how to determine when a mound is more than just a pile of rocks. If you see a few rocks stacked like a wall or several rocks whose bases look like they are lined up, that identifies a the edge of a building.

Look for the neat rows that indicate this pile of rock used to be more.

The first discovery of Copan came in 1898, and the city of Copan Ruins grew up around the original diggings. Now the site of the revealed ruins is located a couple miles away. The site was occupied through 16 kings, the last of whom was coronated in 768. We saw a large coronation site, an amphitheater, and the main plaza which sports stone stairs with about 2000 Mayan hieroglyphs, the most of any Mayan site. Copan is not the largest Mayan community, nor are the temples the most impressive. What makes it special is the art, which is the best in the Mayan world.

Like Ta Prohm in Cambodia, the trees are
trying to take over.

A crocodile at the coronation site.

The 16th king's coronation. It was a time of
unrest apparently, as he had 3 coronations.

A block from his 3rd coronation showing his justification for
the role. He is on the right middle, his father is behind him and
around the rest of the block, each predecessor is shown in order
til the 1st king, middle left, who hands him the scepter of rule.

These steps have about 2000 hieroglyphs on them,
the most in the Mayan world.

We climbed up a couple pyramids. This one was challenging
to come down -- steep, narrow steps,

Partial view of the grand plaza

After lunch in the village, we had some time to explore and we stopped in a souvenir shop in the main square where I found a necklace that exactly matched the color and design of a bracelet I had bought in Mendocino several years ago. I had thought it was done by a local artisan there, but if so they are now marketing their wares in Honduras!! Of course I bought it.

Back at the hotel, and before our horseback ride, Luis led us up a hill across from our hotel to another site from the same city, which is being excavated now. Unfortunately, they built at least 2 structures on unstable ground and they could only be restored if they were moved elsewhere. Apparently, one member of the household was a pretender to the 16th crown, so some things were pretty elaborate. However, he does not seem to have had time to finish his stone portrait.Back at the hotel, and before our horseback ride, Luis led us up a hill across from our hotel to another site from the same city, which is being excavated now. Unfortunately, they built at least 2 structures on unstable ground and they could only be restored if they were moved elsewhere. Apparently, one member of the household was a pretender to the 16th crown, so some things were pretty elaborate. However, he does not seem to have had time to finish his stone portrait.

Collapsed building built on top of a fault

Luis telling us about the ruined temple

Description of what the rubble would have looked like and
what happened to it.

Apparent pretender to the throne -- replica of
detail from collapsed temple. The original
was never completed

Several of us chose to go on horseback to a typical village at the top of a nearby hill. My horse was determined to be first (not my idea) and worked at passing everybody in front of me. Then he would slow down until another rider came close and our speed would pick up. The same thing happened on the way back down. Fortunately, I can be ok in a solitary mode. I could sort of hear several conversations between other riders going on behind me, but on Speedy Gonzales, there was no reasonable way to participate. I tried to take a few photos as we went, but that was definitely a challenge,

At the village, we met two of the 6 local kids who have gotten scholarships to a wonderful nearby school that they can attend through high school. Their day is pretty long though. They get up a 4 am and leave at 5am to walk 4km to a bridge where a car meets them to take them to school. They reverse the process in the afternoon, getting home at 4:30pm where they have time for homework and friends before an early bedtime. The rest of the village children attend a one-room school for grades 1 to 6, which is as far as most of them go. Early marriage and pregnancy is common here. Although education through 6th grade is mandatory in Honduras, there are villages without schools, so the mandate is not well enforced.

Milton, one of the scholarship students

We met two families: the first had many challenges and the second is doing much better. In the first, the matriarch's husband died 37 years ago and most of her many children have died too, including a daughter who left a now 2 year old daughter last year whom the matriarch is now responsible for. Her mud brick house next door to this one collapsed last year due to seasonal rain impacts on the brick so she now lives with her son, his wife, and kids. There is a running water outside, and an outhouse. Kitchens are separate and wood fired, which leads to shortened lives for many women, who inhale the smoke. An effort was made to provide better ovens to some groups, but after learning how to use them, people went back to the old ways because it was more familiar.