Sky People (28 page)

“No more than two or three minutes.”

“Can you describe the craft?” I asked.

“It was like two plates glued together.” He picked up two plates from the table demonstrating the craft he encountered. “There was a rounded bump on the top. It was a dull silver, but it faded in and out. At times it was a bright white ball and then it became a silver disk. It put off strange blue sparks at times. It made no sound, but it made the hairs on my arms stand up.”

“After it was gone, what did you do?”

“I ran to the field and I called for Trueno, but he was gone. I think the aliens took him.”

“Why do you think the UFO took your dog?” I asked.

“Because I looked for him all day and he was gone. The next morning, the ball of light appeared and so did my dog. They brought him back.”

“Did you notice any difference in the dog’s behavior?” I asked.

“He was ruined. He was unable to bark. But when the UFO returned he ran to the fields and waited looking at the sky. I am very worried about him. He is a good dog. He doesn’t deserve this kind of life.”

“Have you taken him to a veterinarian?”

“I took him to the animal doctor. At first, he saw no reason why he did not bark, but when he x-rayed him, he discovered that his voice box had been removed.”

“You mean, someone performed surgery and removed his larynx?”

“I think that is what he said. He said it was perfect surgery. At first, I thought he was too scared to bark. Now I know these demons took Trueno’s bark. They ruined my dog and he will never be the same. He was a good dog. He protected the cattle. He knew when one was missing, and he would find it and bring it home.”

“Have you seen the craft again?”

“It came every morning for several weeks and finally it came no more. I was hoping that once the UFO left, Trueno would quit being so afraid, but so far, he will not leave the house. What kind of people would do this to a dog?” he asked.

“I really don’t know. What do you think?”

“I think they are the worst kind of animals. They have no respect for life. They take a man’s dog and remove his voice box, probably because his barking irritated them. I wonder what other things he had to endure at their hands.”

“What do you plan to do with Trueno?” I asked.

“My daughter is soft-hearted and has always loved him. She will take good care of him. It is hard. He knows he has a job
to do, but he is too afraid to do it. If a human lost his voice, he could either rationalize his loss and accept it, or be sent to a hospital. But for a dog, it must be much harder. They cannot think and rationalize. Therefore, it must be very hard for him.” He paused for a moment, and then looked at me. “If those aliens would do this to a dog, what do they do to humans?”

As the evening turned to night, Manolo and I said goodbye to Angel, who invited us to return for dinner the next night. Over the next few years, I have continued to visit Angel and his family. Trueno died in 2010 at the age of fourteen. He is buried on the property and remains a reminder of the fateful encounter.

W
hen I am at home in Montana, Trueno often comes to mind. Good ranch dogs are highly valued here. It is rare to see a rancher without a dog. Whereas there have been several accounts of cattle mutilations in the state, I have yet to hear of a UFO abduction of a dog, although I have heard of attempted abductions on rare occasions. After hearing Trueno’s story, I wonder if there is a race of aliens who conduct experiments on Earth’s animals and we just do not hear about it
.

I
n 1776 Fray Ramon de Ordonez y Aguiar began writing
A History of the Creation of Heaven and Earth.
In the book, the padre attempted to explain the existence of the ancient Maya city Palenque, suggesting that a race of people appeared out of the Atlantic, guided by a distinguished leader named Votan
.

Another account reported that Votan traveled from a distant planet called Valum Chivum to Earth and built a tower. Beneath that tower was a place that allowed him to travel back and forth between his planet and Earth
.

Although not the first white men to see Palenque, Stephens and Catherwood are credited with establishing the most detailed and accurate survey during their twenty-eight-day stay. They left reluctantly, promising to return. They did not know that beneath the Temple of Inscriptions lay King Pakal. It was not until the summer of 1952 when Alberto Ruz, director of research at Palenque for Mexico’s Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH), discovered Lord Pakal’s tomb
.

In 1968, Erich von Däniken published
Chariots of the Gods.
In the book, he suggested that Pakal, who reigned sixty-eight years over the ancient city, was an astronaut. Reproducing a drawing of the sarcophagus lid, he compared Pakal’s pose to that of Project Mercury astronauts in the 1960s, interpreting drawings underneath him as rockets and offering it as evidence of an extraterrestrial influence on the ancient Maya city
.

As I walked the site, I met a vendor who took pleasure in repeating von Däniken’s interpretation of Pakal’s sarcophagus
to unsuspecting tourists. As he approached me. I questioned him about the veracity of his story and if he really believed that Lord Pakal was an astronaut. In this chapter, you will read his response
.

On my second day in Palenque, I met Manolo for breakfast at 6 a.m. I contracted him on a day-to-day basis, as I had made no previous arrangements for a driver or a guide. After a hearty breakfast of eggs, potatoes, and bacon, Manolo offered to show me around Palenque town before making our way to the ancient city. Palenque was a hot, humid, one-purpose town. Its days as a sleepy little village described by Stephens were far behind. A string of restaurants, hotels, and camping spots on and around Avenida Juarez, the main thoroughfare, and along La Canada, a popular tourist destination west of downtown, served a variety of travelers visiting the ruins at Palenque.

After the tour, we arrived at the Palenque ruins a few minutes before the site opened. Unlike Stephens’s introduction to the site, visitors were exposed to a chaotic environment. There were vendors of beverages, fruit, and souvenirs. Buses and minivans created a major traffic jam. Parking was limited and many tourists ended up parking a mile away and walking to the entrance. Maya men dressed in white cotton shirts that contrasted with their dark skin waited for the travelers, offering tours in a dozen different languages. Women and children sat with coolers along the sides of the parking lot, calling out “Agua, Fresca, Coca, Squirt.” A Lacandon Indian in his traditional dress hawked bow and arrow souvenirs, decorated with the iridescent feathers of the rapidly disappearing green parrot.

It was 8:30 a.m. and the heat was already oppressive. Manolo and I entered the UNESCO World Heritage site, passing through a hundred yards of ancient forest before arriving at a clearing. The city was perched on the first rise of the Tumbala Mountains. The high canopy jungle was as awe-inspiring as the ruins themselves, but there was a tranquility that was even more powerful. The multi-tiered tombs of King Pakal and his mother, the Red Queen, rise steep and white amid all the green. A long palace had at its center a tall tower for astronomical observations.
In the distance, I saw a tree-smothered hill, a temple that had yet to be cleared of trees and brush. Backed by mountains and surrounded by thick forest, the limestone buildings gleamed as the first rays of the morning sun fell upon the site. I watched the mist wrap around the pyramids and rise. Howler monkeys screamed, poisonous snakes skirted into the underbrush, and leafcutter ants made wide trails through the dense forest. I saw fire ants throughout the site. Black scorpions sunned themselves on the pyramid; spiders as big as a hand dropped from trees onto unsuspecting visitors.

Although 500 buildings in Palenque have been identified, more than eighty percent of the city remained covered by rainforest. As I wandered the grounds, I often found a place to sit and admire the exquisite architecture, and enjoy the uniqueness and isolation of the place despite the crowds. This site had it all. Steep pyramids, ruined palaces, temples, and residential areas that still retained some of their original paint peeked out from among the moss. As I sat under a tree and watched the visitors, the same Maya vendor I had met the day before approached me. He showed me a leather painting of Pakal’s sarcophagus and explained in English that Pakal was actually an astronaut. “Pakal was able to travel back and forth from the Earth to other planets,” he said. “The old ones come here to honor him.” He held up the leather painting again and began to explain to me the spaceship where Pakal sat. It was a regurgitation of von Däniken’s theory.

“Who are the old ones?” I asked.

He pointed to the sky again. “The Sky Gods. The men from the sky.”

“Are you saying that Sky People visit Palenque?”

“Sí.”

“Have you seen them?”

“Sí
. Two times.” He pointed at the sky and made a sweeping motion with his arm, illustrating the movement of the UFO across the sky. “My friend, he saw them land one night. He was a night security guard. But he no longer works as a guard. He scared (sic).”

“Did he tell you why he was afraid?”

“Spirits of the old ones come to Palenque. Most Maya would never spend the night here. But he was Mexican, and he ignored the warnings about the spirits. He saw them. They came from the sky and landed in the plaza. They entered the Pyramid of Inscriptions and disappeared. He ran away and never come back.”

“Did he describe them to you?”

“They glowed. They were white. Tall and white. Spirits.”

“Did he describe the spacecraft?” He appeared puzzled. “Did he describe the UFO?” I repeated.

“Sí
. It was round and looked like a hat. A flat hat. It was silver. It smelled awful. Like hell smells. He tasted metal. It made him sick. His head hurt and he got dizzy.”

“Do you think your friend would talk to me?” I asked.

“He moved to Cancun. I don’t have an address. But he told me that the Sky Men have magic. They can appear and disappear in front of your eyes. He was worried that their magic was evil. He said they could be sent by the Devil as a warning.”

“A warning?”

“Yes. To tell him he should leave Palenque.” The young man stood. “Sorry, Señora. I must get back to my post. The tourists, they come.” I watched as a tour group of Polish tourists approached the vendor area.

“Thank you for talking to me,” I said. Before leaving Palenque that day, I saw him again. I overheard him talking to tourists about Pakal, the astronaut. There was no question that entrepreneurship was alive and well at Palenque even if it meant exploiting the culture.

A
s I continued my exploration of the site with Manolo, it was not difficult to wonder why and how this great city was built. The Hopi said that in old days there was a red city to the south inhabited by people with all the great knowledge. Perhaps that great city was Palenque; archaeologists reported that the city was once painted red. On the other hand there are those who
say that Palenque was built to hold all the great knowledge of the world and was to be a place of study not inhabited by people. Once completed, however, the builders violated their trust and occupied the city
.

The more time I spend at Palenque, the more I believe that this city holds great knowledge, but the contemporary world does not know how to access it. It is a mystical, magical place and arguably the most spiritual of all the ancient Maya cities in Mexico. When Stephens left Palenque, he promised to return but never did. When I left Palenque, I knew I would return again and again. Unlike Stephens and Catherwood, I kept my promise
.

P
eople who have been abducted by UFOs are usually called “abductees” or “experiencers.” Due to a lack of physical evidence, the majority of scientists and mental health professionals dismiss the phenomenon as fantasy-proneness, false memory syndrome, sleep paralysis, psychopathology, and a variety of environmental factors. Dr. John E. Mack, a respected Harvard University psychiatrist, devoted a substantial amount of time to investigating such cases. He found that, in the most compelling cases, his patients suffered from post-traumatic stress syndrome. As he noted, this would imply that his patients genuinely believed that they remembered their abductions
.

In this chapter you will read stories about abduction from villagers who lived near Palenque town
.

One of my favorite places to stay in Palenque is the Chan-Kah Resort Village. Located between the town of Palenque and the ruins, it’s a grouping of
casitas
, or small houses, surrounded by a tropical forest. Staying there allowed me to get up early and arrive at the site ahead of the crowds who invaded the ancient city by the busload by 10 a.m.

On my third visit to Palenque, I was unable to locate Manolo, so I hired a guide named Pax. A full-blood Maya, Pax was a small, wiry man, who spoke near-perfect English as he ushered me around the site. His back was slightly hunched and he walked with a definite limp. He told me he had been working at the Palenque ruins for almost forty years and that it was getting more difficult to obtain clients because of his age. As we slowly
walked the grounds, I asked him about Pakal, the ancient king, who gained fame as an ancient astronaut. He laughed and asked me if I believed in the ancient astronaut theory. I was surprised at how knowledgeable he was about the theory and the works of Erich von Däniken.

“He was just a white man who came up with a way to make money,” he said. “For some reason, the white man always wants answers that suit their beliefs. If von Däniken accepted the fact that the Maya built the cities unaided by extraterrestrials, then that would mean our civilization was more advanced than the white man. That would never do for a race who believe they are superior. So he provided an answer that was acceptable to the world of the white man. People grasp onto things that make them feel they are superior.”