Beach bunnies of Cancun, get off your backsides. The beaches may be beautiful, but there’s much more to Mexico than sand and sun—there’s history. Not the kind you read about; the kind you climb about. Long before college kids on spring break came here to worship the sun, native tribes in Mexico built pyramids to do just the same thing. Of course, they did it a little differently—instead of bathing on beach towels, they sacrificed virgins. To each his own. Today, the Aztecs, Mayas, Olmecs and other tribes are all but gone—perhaps sacrificing all those virgins wasn’t really such a hot idea. Still, the pyramids and other ruins they left behind give you a chance to be buff, not just brown. These pyramids are meant to be climbed, as they were by the high priests during religious rites— you really had to be in shape to be religious back then. For about $5 you can wander through the Mayan ruins at Tulum, 75 miles from Cancun, including the Temple of the Frescoes, complete with intact wall paintings from the 13th century. The Castillo stands as an early example of multiple-use architecture, having been both a temple and a fortress. No conflict there—spirituality and violence were much more intertwined back in those days. (http://travelcia.com/beaches-islands/first-timers-in-cancun-travel-tips/) The centerpiece has to be the Temple of the Descending God, the largest building on the site, which has carved depictions of a winged deity in flight. And don’t totally sweat it: Tulum also has a beach.
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