Palenque, Mexico - August 8, 2023

[Martin Hash]

My wife and I put a deposit on a trip through Central America 3 years ago. It included touring several ancient Maya centers of power so I was going to write a book in the settings of each of the cities we visited; I thought step-pyramids and sacrificial alters make for stunning props in a plot narrative that switched back and for between ancient and modern times in the same place as the mystery revealed itself. Unfortunately, COVID hit then our granddaughter was born; we really didn’t think we were going to make the trip so I went ahead and used Google and YouTube to learn about those places, finishing the book during the hiatus. When we finally got to go, I was curious to compare my perceptions with the reality of the actual sites. At least, with online publishing, I could change the book if necessary.

Palenque was both more and less than I expected. The setting and magnitude of the place was impressive but the condition more primitive than I imagined. The “Temple of Inscriptions” which I mentioned in my book was the only building that matched the vision I had in my head, but that was enough. The Maya name for the place is Lakamha; “Palenque,” place of escaped slaves, is what the Spanish called it.



Campsite

After visiting Palenque, we needed to find a campsite. After some trepidation we found a bush camp before it got dark. On the plus side, there was a river, warm as bathwater but still cooler than the sweltering sun, and iguanas climbing the tree next to our tentsite. We could see a storm approaching; over the next hour sheet lightning filled the sky and the sound of thunder down out the road noise, even the staccato coughing of jake-breaks from the large trucks going by on the road nearby. Abruptly, the wind picked up from the south, gale force in magnitude, and we were forced to stake down the rainfly, just as the raindrops hit. Truthfully, I like the sense of personal isolation inside a tent that a downpour brings. Unfortunately, I got cramps from the day’s street tacos, and had to make a couple midnight runs, literally.