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Ancient underground waters, Ciancan.

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Ciancan is a natural reserve stretching across the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico.

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It covers an area of approximately 5,300 square kilometers

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and encompasses tropical forests and a barrier reef facing the Caribbean Sea.

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The ancient Mayan civilization flourished in these forests.

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There is a pyramid amid the forests of Ciancan.

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According to the ancient Maya legend, only the ever-stretching sky and sea existed at the beginning of time.

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All was quiet. Out of water, God created the land, creatures and man.

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Ciancan means where the sky begins.

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The Mayan people believed God lived in a place deep in the jungle.

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This is a cenote, a waterhole reflecting the sky above like a mirror.

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It is worshipped as a sacred place and valued as a precious water resource.

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People would make sacrifices to the cenote and pray for rain during periods of drought.

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The waters beneath were worshipped.

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The transparency of the cenote's waters reaches 50 meters.

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A mystical world made of countless stalactites greets the eye about 300 meters ahead.

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This place at one time was the seabed.

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The shell fossils indicate its past.

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Rain eroded the porous limestone layers and formed the stalactite caves.

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As the Ice Age came to an end, the underground water level together with the sea level rose

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and the stalactite caves were submerged beneath the water.

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The cenote is connected to another cenote.

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Still further ahead, the water becomes murky.

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Seawater is flowing in.

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The cave eventually connects to the Caribbean.

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The springs of Ciancan connect the forest and the sea.

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It's spectacular world heritage where the gods once lived.