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Fall Equinox At Kulkulcan

Kukulcan at Chichen Itza

Getting to see the fall equinox of KuKulcan at Chichen Itza must be one of the most impressive things on earth. The Mayans were so incredibly mathematically advanced that they build Chichen Itza to mimic their calendar. Each side has 91 steps, multiply that by the 4 sides, add the base, and what do you get? You got it â€" 365. That's how many days were in their calendar year. Twice a year, the serpent god, Quetzalcoatl makes his decent over about a 5 hour period and shows himself for about 45 minutes down the side of the steps. The shadow that is cast on the side of the northern staircase looks just like a snake descending to the bottom of the pyramid. There is a huge snake head at the bottom of the pyramid, and it seems as though the snake is descending right into it. How they were able to calculate this to the very second, no one has any idea. We just know that they were phenomenal astronomers. I often wonder if we were to use today's technology, would we be able to build another Chichen Itza of that magnitude and make it be that exact. Maybe so, but how long did it take them to build this one? There's a million questions we could ask about this unfathomable feat, but I'd rather go and watch it for myself! Chichen Itza is located about 3 hours from Cancun by bus. There are many guided tours you can take if you ever make it out that way!