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Sight sea-ing in Mexico

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Catherine Deshayes

If you don't have sea legs then Mexico's newest tourist attraction may not float your boat - the country is gearing up to open the world's largest underwater museum in tourist mecca Cancun - and the first of 400 sculptures will be placed under the water off the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula next month...

Let's start with a little bit of history - a whopping 300,000 visitors currently head for the stunning marine and coral life in the West Coast National Park of Isla Mujeres, Punta Cancun and Punta Nizuc each year and the area has become a victim of its own success.

The sheer number of visitors is damaging the fragile coral reefs, so the country had to come up with a way to entice them away to other parts and to help the coral recover and regrow.

Hence the creation of the Subaquatic Sculpture Museum - the world's largest underwater museum is aiming to attract visitors away from the West Coast National Park and to the Yucatan Peninsula.

Four hundred figures in human form, made out of PH neutral concrete to encourage coral reefs and marine life to grow, will be placed under the water and no diver will see the same sight twice as, due to the growth, their appearance will constantly change with time.

The figures will include modern and traditional Mexican narratives and the final piece will be called ‘The Silent Evolution,' and will mix the coral growing elements with the concrete to show the passage of time.

There will be theme based galleries, such as an army of Mayan indigenous warriors and dream catchers based on messages in bottles.

The potentially coral-saving project will be overseen by famous underwater artist Jason de Caires Taylor, who created the world's first underwater sculpture park in Grenada, West Indies.

Jaime Gonzalez, Director of the West Coast National Park, said, "The underwater museum will draw many tourists, allowing us to give a rest to the natural reefs.

"It's like a restoration process and, by becoming healthier, the coral reefs will be more resistant to hurricane damage," he added.

Mr Gonzalez anticipates that by April 2010 there will be some 250 sculptures in the underwater museum. The total cost of the project is around £215,000.

Check out properties for sale in Mexico at http://mexico.themovechannel.com/

Picture by Laurence_grayson