Hi there my Steemian friends and followers!
I prepared something special for you today as I would like to show you a photo collection that I compiled from my photos taken in Yucatan cenotes.
I have already published a few posts about cenotes here on my blog so some of you might already be familiar with this geological term but for those who are not, let me first explain what a cenote is.
A cenote is basically a sinkhole that was created when a limestone bedrock collapsed and thus exposed (fully or partially) some underground water. Cenotes are usually associated with Mexico´s Yucatan Peninsula but they can be actually found in many other places all over the world.
The term "cenote" was derived from the ancient Yucatec Mayan word "tsonot" (meaning "place with access to groundwater") and the Yucatan Peninsula is also home to by far the highest number of cenotes in the world (there are more than 6,000 cenotes just in this little part of Mexico alone) so let me dedicate this post to Yucatan cenotes exclusively.
As some of you know, I was privileged to spend almost 2 years of my life on the Yucatan Peninsula where I got to visit a lot of cenotes and I must say I really fell in love with most of them. There are several reasons why cenotes are so popular.
The water in cenotes is usually very clear (as it comes from rain water that is slowly filtered by the ground) and significantly colder than the super warm Caribbean Sea, making it a perfect place to refresh yourself and hide from the scorching Yucatan sun.
Cenotes are also surprisingly rich in wildlife. They can be home to anything from various fish species, fresh water crabs and frogs to turtles and even crocodiles. That is also why cenotes are very popular with scuba divers and snorkelers.
Cenotes have been attracting fans of history and archaeology too. Surveys have found out that many cenotes used to be considered sacred by the old Mayans. According to some experts, there even was "Cult of the Cenote", a legendary tradition observed by the old Mayans that included human sacrifices. Chosen people as well as jewels and other precious objects used to be thrown in the cenotes to please Chaac, the old Mayan God od Rain. I must say that the atmosphere of some of the cenotes that were used for these purposes (for example those in Chichen Itza) is really special and very eerie actually.
Cenotes come in many different shapes, sizes and depths. Some of them look like caves while others resemble large, circular lakes. Some cenotes have become true tourist hotspots as they are massively promoted by local tourist offices and it is almost impossible to enjoy them without being surrounded by crowds of people. On the other hand, there are secluded, yet stunningly beautiful cenotes that you can have just for yourself most of the time. There are cenotes that have been discovered just recently and are yet to be open to public. And I am sure there are also many cenotes that haven´t been discovered at all, keeping their mysteries for millennia.
In my opinion, cenotes are amazing mysterious places conjured up by Mother Nature herself and we should do all we can to protect them and keep them in the conditions we found them.
Without further ado, here is a random selection of photos that I took in Yucatan cenotes.
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I hope you enjoyed this little photo collection. I wanted to put captions to each of those photos so that you could know where they were taken but unfortunately, I don´t remember all those names. I do know, however, that there are photos from Cenote Ik-Kil, Cenote Azul, Cenote Yax-Kin, Gran Cenote, Cenote Yax-Chen and Cenote Kaan Luum.
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