HISTORY LIVES IN CHIAPAS
Mayan culture, traditional ways flourish in southern Mexican state
Mexico's southernmost state barely registers with those of us seeking a sunny break. Without the easy familiarity of resorts like Puerto Vallarta or Cancun, plus a longer travelling time to get there and less English spoken by locals, Chiapas takes more effort, but the payoff is grand — rich, authentic Mexican culture at every turn in the road.
Begin in Tuxtla Gutierrez, the state capital and home of the Marimba Museum as well as the Marimba Park, one of the most popular places in town. It's thought that African slaves brought the marimba — a type of xylophone made from wood — to Mexico, but it's so ingrained in the lives of Chiapans that they're credited with perfecting it. Watch couples dance to the lively and distinctly Chiapan beat of multiple marimba players on Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday evenings at seven.
Across the street at the Marimba Museum you'll see dozens of styles of marimbas and an audio kiosk where you can hear famous pieces performed by different players. Better yet, hit the road and listen for the melodic sounds of marimba carried on warm evening breezes at public parks across the state and especially in Comitan, San Cristobal de Las Casas, Chiapa de Corzo, Tapachula and Palenque.
Between the modern city of Tuxtla and the colonial town of San Cristobal in the Chiapan highlands are Tzotzil Mayan communities that have kept their traditional ways, musical and otherwise. A must-see is San Juan Chamula with its bustling Sunday market.
Women wearing shaggy black wool skirts sell everything from fresh produce and spools of yarn to cheap plastic toys and household items. Prosperous looking Mayan men favour white wool, worn in long, leather-belted tunics over crisp white shirts and pants.
Don't overlook Chamoula's modest, white-plastered church built between 1522 and 1524. More Mayan temple than Catholic church, thousands of candles flicker in the darkness and families sit on the floor praying and sometimes performing a mix of rituals. These involve drinking Coca-cola (burping is believed to expel evil spirits), sacrificing a live chicken, and rubbing pox on their bodies (pronounced `posh', it's moonshine made from maize).
“They come to the temple when they have a problem,” explains Nichim tour guide Ramses Borraz Balinas. “It could be someone is sick, your sheep are sick, maybe you have a bad neighbour.”
From Chamula, it's an eight kilometre walk past sheep farms, fields of kale, and surprisingly large, modern houses to the Tzotzil community of Zinacantan, where women contribute to the local economy by weaving. Entering town, you'll see colourful skirts and blouses hanging from shop doors. A tour here can include lunch in a weaver's home, where you can watch young women kneeling at looms (girls start weaving about age 10) and purchase some of their beautiful creations. Lunch includes pureed-corn soup punctuated with chunks of pork, along with endless stacks of tortillas.