It is a waterfall and ancient Maya temple at the source of a rushing mountain creek that later flows through the acropolis of the Maya city of Palenque. Its name is the Rio Otulum.
A view of the purple snails on a volcanic rock.
Out of curiosity, on the third week of August, 1970 . . . while I was on Georgia Tech’s first Barrett Fellowship, I hiked up the creek, wearing rubber sandals, to the source of the stream near the top of the mountain. I was fascinated by the thousands of purple snail shells on the bottom of the stream and so picked up a gallon plastic bag full of them. The Mayas made a purple dye from boiling the shells. Twenty years later, I made my new French soulmate a necklace out of some of the shells, so she would never forget me. Vivi is 1/4th Tamulte Maya. She still has it.
Here is view of the Rio Otulum as I was climbing up the mountain.
We have never been to Palenque. Don’t know if we will ever get there, but it has been on the bucket list for a long time. Nice that you made it there.
Mary Jane Parker Real Estate Broker*, *Retired mjparker.broker@gmail.com mjparker@mindspring.com 404-274-6319
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Hey Mary Jane
It is in the safe part of Mexico, which is controlled by the Zapatistas. It one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. Unlike most Mexican Mesoamerican sites, it is green year-round, but up in the mountains where the temps are cooler. Orange and lemon trees grow on the grounds of the city.
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Beautiful! Saw some great places in Guatemala,1963 went there with the baptist student union! My uncle visited me ,and told me there was shooting war going on, “The war of 100 colonels” As the cia called it. Gave me permission to stay the summer,but be careful! Almost got killed by army one day,and by mayas another! Miraculous ,saved at last minute in both episodes!
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While on the fellowship, I actually was covertly make contact with three MAYA FLN guerilla training camps and one Marxist training camp in the mountains of Michoacan – on a mission from the Office of Naval Intelligence. In each camp, they assigned me an attractive, female guerilla, who knew some English. At the time, I did not know that all of my Native American DNA came from Southern Mexico. Perhaps the Mayas sensed this and treated me like family. I was sincerely in support of their complaints and described them positively to the ONI. The Marxist camp was made op primarily of idealistic college students – many of them female. They were not communists, but relatives or friends of college students murdered by the government in the Tlatilolco and Politecnico Massacres. Most of these students would be dead also within six months.
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Yes Richard, I think there was a lot of murder on both sides! I know tlatlatico bothered my uncle a lot, but he felt many “students were paid communist actors!” I left feeling the govt. was using Baptist missionaries for intel Uncle Merle found me in a small village with no problem! Someday before I die I’ll ask the CIA. I know before he died uncle had soured on some of our activities! Not what they appeared to be!
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My purpose was non-violent. War Hawks were pressuring Nixon to start another Vietnam in Central America, Naval command was dubious on that idea. Since I was a Native American, already had a fellowship in Mesoamerica and was a guest of the Department of Foreign Relations in Mexico, I would have a plausible reason for being anywhere in the region.
The FLN became the Zapatistas. The Moreno Party is the political outgrowth of the Zapistias. It now is the dominant party in the Mexican Federal Government. As you might have gathered, the Nixon administration read my report – we didn’t get involved. However, undoubtedly, some Navy Captain’s and Admiral’s names were on the report, not mind. As a result of this report, I never wore a Navy officer’s uniform after graduation and instead, was awarded several more interesting assignments- the last of which became several plots in the X-files TV series. LOL
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