Piero, The Pyramid and Mayan Romance


Funny things happen when you travel. Inhibitions loosen, the stars align and stuff unfolds. I've written about the Mayan magic that seemed to float through the air during the spring solstice in Mexico but I didn't even touch on what happened at Chichen Itza. This sacred pyramid is an iconic Mayan landmark, watching the sun's shadow, in the guise of the feathered serpent god Kukulcan, creep down the pyramid's steps was a an otherworldly experience that I'll explore in my next post. For now, I'll discuss the other kind of magic I witnessed. His name is Piero. As crowds gathered to watch the sun descend, a woman shouted, "there's a living god walking!" My group turned to gawk at Piero, pictured above, bronzed skin rippling, wavy hair blowing.  Clearly, he was used to being admired and he seemed to  pointlessly stroll past us several times. But we were there to see the sun's shadow descend over Chichen Itza so we rushed closer to the pyramid. We snapped pix and stared at the spectacle. Until we realized there was another spectacle evolving.

There was Piero, talking to a member of our group, whom I'll call Polly.  The sun had descended, the crowds were scattering but there was Piero, still talking to Polly. When she returned to our fold, dazed and starry-eyed, she had only his name and a vague story about him living in New York but headed to Columbia because of a green card situation. Of course he was Italian. Of course he wanted to see her. So what does a group of journalists do in this kind of scenario? Research! In five minutes we had his profession; model, of course. And the fact that he had been on Big Brother Barcelona. Now how's that for a meet cute? Italian model woos American girl during the Mayan solstice in Mexico. They're's still texting each other and he's back in New York but none of us are holding our breath for a stateside romance. Travel romance often loses its luster in the everyday glare of real life. But it's always fun while it lasts. Do you have any travel romance stories?

Comments

A Cuban In London said…
Fantastic experience! Methinks Piero is a bit of a womaniser. He probably has his speech rehearsed down to a T. :-)

Sorry to hear about your run-in with the Murdoch empire.

Greetings from London.
July 5, 2012 at 6:34 AM
Fly Girl said…
Cubano, oh he's clearly a womanizer but meeting a womanizer while traveling is always more interesting than in daily life.
July 5, 2012 at 7:35 AM
Ekua said…
When I first saw this picture, I was wondering why you photoshopped a model into a picture of Chichen Itza. What a funny story though, and so hilarious that he was just walking around a wonder of the world like this.
July 8, 2012 at 9:59 PM
Fly Girl said…
Ekua, that's hilarious. I don't even know how to photoshop but I can see why that thought came to you. You can see how surreal the situation was.
July 9, 2012 at 6:43 AM
kate said…
That picture makes me laugh and I'm not quite sure why. Maybe it is just how unlikely a photo it is, or maybe it's the way he is unabashedly staring into the camera.

Can't wait to hear more about your trip to Chichen Itza - I visited when I was a child but would love to go again some day soon.
July 11, 2012 at 10:41 AM
Fly Girl said…
Kate, it is a really absurd photo on a lot of levels, I agree!
July 11, 2012 at 10:54 AM
Andrew Graeme Gould said…
I'd missed this one, and I'm glad I've come back and found it, as it's most amusing! So when will you be writing the short story? (If not the novel!)
August 8, 2012 at 9:56 PM
Fly Girl said…
Andrew, it is a most amusing story, perhaps a short story is in order. Thanks for the nudge.
August 8, 2012 at 10:02 PM
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