This weekend was our first extended excursion with all of us here in Mexico. We all piled into a nice van-bus thing and headed off to see come caves and ruins. Our first stop on Friday was at the cave in Loltun. It was a pretty neat cave. It was huge and had beautiful columns, stalagmites, and stalactites. And the air was nice and cool: free AC is always a plus in Mexico! :)
The cave used to be filled with water, and the floor definitely showed that. There were bumps and ridges all over, which is not great for a stumbling person like myself. It was all ok and I made it through without any accidents. At one point, we walked under some holes in the ceiling, and we heard squeaking above us. The little bats weren't happy that we were making noise, but they we apparently too tired to fly at us! We climbed up the Grand Canyon- in the cave. And we stood in pitch black darkness. Silly me tried to walk around, and I ran into a rock, a big rock! Then we had to climb up a big stairway to get out. Luckily, we got to rest in the van afterwords on our way to Kabah.
Kabah is a Maya ruin site, and it's pretty neat. The area that we visited was all raised up on a platform, so I had to climb some more. It was pretty, and well restored. Since we've been studying Mayan architecture in both my Civilization class and my Art and Architecture class, it was fun to figure out what each space was used for, and who it was built for. Who needs guides when you have the knowledge? (!e also found out that guides like to make stuff up!) We had a short class on the lawn before the big stairs, then we wandered around for a while.
We hopped back into the van and headed to Sayil, another ruin site down the road a ways. At Sayil we saw our first example (I think) of a Sacbeh, which is a raised platform for the rich and influencial to walk on. They usually connected different residential or temple compounds together, and they weren't available for everyone to used. Here, the Sacbeh (don't ask me how it's really spelled) wasn't excavated much, so it was basically a path in the ground. But it was neat to see.
After Sayil, we headed to Labna, which was pretty close by. In Labna, there was an elevated Sacbeh which was fully excavated. It was a few feet higher than the ground, and it connected someone's palace and temple to their extended residential units. Those Maya were rich! In many of the sites we've seen, the temples, even huge ones, have been private alters for a family, not for the whole community. It's amazing to think that one family would build a temple for their use. Although what the definition of a family was is likely different than today's definition.
Each of the 3 sites had similarities, which makes sense since they were all built around the same time period, the same nation inhabited them, and they are in a close radius to each other. However, there were strong differences too. I'm glad I know something about Maya Civ and Architecture because I was able to identify those differences.
We also went to Uxmal on Sunday. We went there a few weeks ago, unplanned, but it was great to go back. I understood so much more than I did the first time. And they had finished restoring the side of one of the big pyramids, so we could climb up it!! It was amazing!
On Friday night we went to Kiuic. I'll talk about this in another post...
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Volunteering...and speaking Spanish
One of my goals this semester was to improve my Spanish (obviously). However, a few weeks ago, I noticed that in the house I rarely have a chance to speak it. And my internship is working with my program director, Valerie. So again, very little Spanish exposure. So I talked with Val about volunteering somewhere so I could have the chance to use my Spanish.
She looked around and found a guy at the Mexican office for Urban Development and the Environment. We met with him last week about what I could do with them. Today I was supposed to go to their office at 9am, and then we were going to the coast to check out some conservation projects that are going on. So I grab a pb&j, skipping the wonderful breakfast of pancakes, and leave the house at 8am. I had to walk several blocks, then find a bus to take me downtown. Right after I got off the bus, about 1 block away from the office, I got a call from Claudina, who is second in command at the house. Chema, the guy from the office, had called and said the trip was canceled, and that I shouldn't come down.
I was bummed! But I got the chance to travel around Merida all by myself, and I didn't get lost or anything. I hope that next week they'll be something for me to do! Anyways, since I talked to Val about not using my Spanish, I've been using it a lot more. On Tuesday, one of my class assignments was to go to the bus station, get a ticket to a town called Muna (about an hour away), and find someone on the street to interview. We had partners, and Keith and I found a nice little old lady to talk to. Intense Spanish....but I'm really happy because I can understand and speak it clearly. Even if I have a Gringa accent, I still get compliments from some people about my speaking skills. That just makes my day!
I'm actually a little worried that by the time I get to the US, I may try to order food in Spanish. I was thinking about my dentist the other day (my jaw keeps popping, which can't be good). I thought I should tell the dentist about my jaw and its annoying habit of popping. I thought to myself "Dang, I don't want to do that, it's going to be hard. I don't know how to say that in Spanish." Then I thought, "Wait, I'll be in the US. I can talk in English!" It made me laugh!
She looked around and found a guy at the Mexican office for Urban Development and the Environment. We met with him last week about what I could do with them. Today I was supposed to go to their office at 9am, and then we were going to the coast to check out some conservation projects that are going on. So I grab a pb&j, skipping the wonderful breakfast of pancakes, and leave the house at 8am. I had to walk several blocks, then find a bus to take me downtown. Right after I got off the bus, about 1 block away from the office, I got a call from Claudina, who is second in command at the house. Chema, the guy from the office, had called and said the trip was canceled, and that I shouldn't come down.
I was bummed! But I got the chance to travel around Merida all by myself, and I didn't get lost or anything. I hope that next week they'll be something for me to do! Anyways, since I talked to Val about not using my Spanish, I've been using it a lot more. On Tuesday, one of my class assignments was to go to the bus station, get a ticket to a town called Muna (about an hour away), and find someone on the street to interview. We had partners, and Keith and I found a nice little old lady to talk to. Intense Spanish....but I'm really happy because I can understand and speak it clearly. Even if I have a Gringa accent, I still get compliments from some people about my speaking skills. That just makes my day!
I'm actually a little worried that by the time I get to the US, I may try to order food in Spanish. I was thinking about my dentist the other day (my jaw keeps popping, which can't be good). I thought I should tell the dentist about my jaw and its annoying habit of popping. I thought to myself "Dang, I don't want to do that, it's going to be hard. I don't know how to say that in Spanish." Then I thought, "Wait, I'll be in the US. I can talk in English!" It made me laugh!
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Things I've learned so far...
Tonight I'm going to make a list of some of the interesting things I've learned so far while in Mexico. Enjoy!
1. Just to get this out of the way- seriously, don't drink the water. Make sure you get bottled water, so you may just have problems.
2. Police carry huge guns with them at all times, so be sure you don't offend the policemen!
3. Speedbumps are everywhere. Riding in a vehicle is just a constant game of breaking and accelerating. And even with all the speedbumps, people still drive too fast!
4. Pedestrians have no rights. You look before you cross the street, or you hope you have great insurance.
5. Baggers at places like Wal-Mart or Super Bodega must be tipped, a peso per bag. That may be their only source of payment, and if you forget, they'll start chattering at their coworkers in Spanish- probably talking about the cheap Americans.
6. Coca-Cola is the king of pop. It's cheap, only about 40-50 cents for a bottle. Good luck finding Pepsi!
7. Hammocks are one of the most comfortable pieces of furnature in the world.
8. Being on time is rediculous to many Mexicans. Late is the norm, so bring a book with you wherever you go.
9. Americans tip way too much. In Mexico, a good tip is 10%, and it's normally 8%. However, if you eat at a restaurant geared towards tourists, they'll automatically add a 15% tip to your bill.
10. If a Mexican speaks English, they'll usually want to practice with you. This can make practicing my Spanish hard!
11. Little old ladies are incredibly nice! They'll also talk your ear off, so be prepared to listen (and let's hope you can understand the rapidfire Spanish.)
12. Cashiers will ask you for change if you don't give them exact change. It's also difficult to find a place that will cash a $500 bill (about $35-$40 USD).
13. People love to talk about Obama. If you say you're from America, you may just hear them say somthing like, "Oh, Obama. Yay!" in broken English.
14. Some people need to learn how to respond to emails. You know who you are...
15. Climbing ruins means your rump is going to hurt the next day, but it's worth every steep and crumbling step.
16. God has created amazing sights in the world. Find a cenote and you can see the wonderful creations.
17. Flamingoes are noisy birds. They chatter like seagulls.
18. Pirates are harder to find than you think, even on a pirate ship. And no, Johnny Depp wasn't there. :(
19. Buses are amazing. They are the best way to get around town, and they're cheap. Plus, you almost always have a bus story to tell after riding on one. The US needs more buses!
20. Mexico is...(speechless) I can't begin to describe how awesome it is to live in such a beautiful country. No doubt Mexico has serious problems, but it's so easy to forget that while living in Mérida. It's like another country althogether.
1. Just to get this out of the way- seriously, don't drink the water. Make sure you get bottled water, so you may just have problems.
2. Police carry huge guns with them at all times, so be sure you don't offend the policemen!
3. Speedbumps are everywhere. Riding in a vehicle is just a constant game of breaking and accelerating. And even with all the speedbumps, people still drive too fast!
4. Pedestrians have no rights. You look before you cross the street, or you hope you have great insurance.
5. Baggers at places like Wal-Mart or Super Bodega must be tipped, a peso per bag. That may be their only source of payment, and if you forget, they'll start chattering at their coworkers in Spanish- probably talking about the cheap Americans.
6. Coca-Cola is the king of pop. It's cheap, only about 40-50 cents for a bottle. Good luck finding Pepsi!
7. Hammocks are one of the most comfortable pieces of furnature in the world.
8. Being on time is rediculous to many Mexicans. Late is the norm, so bring a book with you wherever you go.
9. Americans tip way too much. In Mexico, a good tip is 10%, and it's normally 8%. However, if you eat at a restaurant geared towards tourists, they'll automatically add a 15% tip to your bill.
10. If a Mexican speaks English, they'll usually want to practice with you. This can make practicing my Spanish hard!
11. Little old ladies are incredibly nice! They'll also talk your ear off, so be prepared to listen (and let's hope you can understand the rapidfire Spanish.)
12. Cashiers will ask you for change if you don't give them exact change. It's also difficult to find a place that will cash a $500 bill (about $35-$40 USD).
13. People love to talk about Obama. If you say you're from America, you may just hear them say somthing like, "Oh, Obama. Yay!" in broken English.
14. Some people need to learn how to respond to emails. You know who you are...
15. Climbing ruins means your rump is going to hurt the next day, but it's worth every steep and crumbling step.
16. God has created amazing sights in the world. Find a cenote and you can see the wonderful creations.
17. Flamingoes are noisy birds. They chatter like seagulls.
18. Pirates are harder to find than you think, even on a pirate ship. And no, Johnny Depp wasn't there. :(
19. Buses are amazing. They are the best way to get around town, and they're cheap. Plus, you almost always have a bus story to tell after riding on one. The US needs more buses!
20. Mexico is...(speechless) I can't begin to describe how awesome it is to live in such a beautiful country. No doubt Mexico has serious problems, but it's so easy to forget that while living in Mérida. It's like another country althogether.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Campeche Photos
Here are some pictures from our awesome trip to Campeche. We did so many things that it's impossible to post all of the pictures, but here are some highlights.
This picture is a view of the city of Campeche and the ocean. I took it form the top of the San Miguel Fort on top of a huge hill on the outskirts of town. It was a stunning view, and the picture just doesn't do it justice.
Here is a picture of our hostel room. I was a little nervous about the hostel, since I had never stayed in one before, but it was a great place to stay. It was only about $8 to spend the night, and our room was clean and the place was nice. It was hot, but in Mexico you just have to deal with that! I loved having a balcony in the room, and the hostel was just a neat place to stay. Oddly enough, there were several older people who were staying there.
Here is a picture of the gang of scallywags aboard their ship, El Lorencillo. From left to right: Captain Serpiente (Sara), Pegleg Muerte (Me), Skully (Erin), and Bootie Snatcher (BS, or Myra). We probably enjoyed the whole pirate thing a little too much...I even found some nice eye patches while in Campeche. Man did we have some fun with those! (we really did look like dorky Americans!)
This is a gorgeous picture of the sunset on the ship. We were lucky to pick the evening time, and the sky was amazing. I have never seen a sunset over the ocean, so watching it while out on the ocean was simply amazing. And some people think there is no God.... I have many other sunset pictures, and each one is prettier than the previous!
Finally, here is the pirate ship. This was the one touristy thing we participated in. We hit museums, markets, and even a botanical garden, but this was the one attraction we just couldn't miss! It was worth the (less than) $10 we spent to ride on it.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Campeche
This weekend, Sara, Erin, Myra, and I went to the city of Campeche. It's a beautiful city on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The town was built during colonial times once the Spanish conquered Mexico, and the architecture is really neat. The downtown has been restored very nicely, so it really felt like I was taking a step back in time.
Campeche used to be a huge trading port, even larger than Mérida. Because of this, it attracted many pirates and was attacked often. There are 2 large forts around the city which give amazing views of the ocean and the city. In the center of the downtown, there are huge walls and forts as well. It's pretty neat to see the city form on top of a fort. I have a ton of great pictues....it was almost hard to take bad photos!
The town isn't really geared towards tourists, but we did find one cool tourist attraction: a ride on the pirate ship "El Lorencillo." We took a ride in the evening, as the sun was setting. Watching the sun set on the ocean is amazing, especially if you're on a pirate ship. Arg!
We spent most of our time there walking around town and wandering in and out of museums and such. When your entrance to the museums is only 40 cents or so, it's nice to head inside and take a look. (Since we've arrived, the pesos has taken a nosedive. It works out well for us, but it's having devasting affects on the Mexican economy. Hopefully it won't fall further...)
We stayed in a hostel, which was a first for me. It ended up being a nice place, and it was clean, so all was good. It was located on the main square and our room had a nice little balcony. We could also go up on the roof and hang out. We didn't even have to share our room with anyone because there were 4 beds and 4 of us. Other than the room being pretty hot, we were happy with our choice of hostel.
We ended up getting tickets on a really nice bus line: air conditioned, huge seats, free beverages, 2 bathrooms on the bus, nice tvs. Definately going to check out that bus line for future trips! On the way back to Mérida, our bus got searched. Mexico is having a really bad drug problem (almost a state of war between the police and the drug lords) and even though the problem isn't happening in or near the Yucatan (I'm safe! Don't worry!), they're still being vigilant. Those who had checked luggage had to get out and do something with it. None of us checked out backpacks, for which we were greatful. Even though getting stopped by the police is freaky (they all carry HUGE guns, even if they're just patrolling the streets!) it makes me feel like something is being done to counteract the drug problem.
Campeche used to be a huge trading port, even larger than Mérida. Because of this, it attracted many pirates and was attacked often. There are 2 large forts around the city which give amazing views of the ocean and the city. In the center of the downtown, there are huge walls and forts as well. It's pretty neat to see the city form on top of a fort. I have a ton of great pictues....it was almost hard to take bad photos!
The town isn't really geared towards tourists, but we did find one cool tourist attraction: a ride on the pirate ship "El Lorencillo." We took a ride in the evening, as the sun was setting. Watching the sun set on the ocean is amazing, especially if you're on a pirate ship. Arg!
We spent most of our time there walking around town and wandering in and out of museums and such. When your entrance to the museums is only 40 cents or so, it's nice to head inside and take a look. (Since we've arrived, the pesos has taken a nosedive. It works out well for us, but it's having devasting affects on the Mexican economy. Hopefully it won't fall further...)
We stayed in a hostel, which was a first for me. It ended up being a nice place, and it was clean, so all was good. It was located on the main square and our room had a nice little balcony. We could also go up on the roof and hang out. We didn't even have to share our room with anyone because there were 4 beds and 4 of us. Other than the room being pretty hot, we were happy with our choice of hostel.
We ended up getting tickets on a really nice bus line: air conditioned, huge seats, free beverages, 2 bathrooms on the bus, nice tvs. Definately going to check out that bus line for future trips! On the way back to Mérida, our bus got searched. Mexico is having a really bad drug problem (almost a state of war between the police and the drug lords) and even though the problem isn't happening in or near the Yucatan (I'm safe! Don't worry!), they're still being vigilant. Those who had checked luggage had to get out and do something with it. None of us checked out backpacks, for which we were greatful. Even though getting stopped by the police is freaky (they all carry HUGE guns, even if they're just patrolling the streets!) it makes me feel like something is being done to counteract the drug problem.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Address
I figured I should probably put up my address, since I love to get mail!
Here it is:
Calle 20 # 112 X 31
Colonia Mexico 97128
Merida, Yucatan
Mexico
Stamps for mail sent to Mexico can be purchased at the post office easily. It's 72 cents to send a letter, and likely less to send a postcard. I accept any and all forms of mail. :) It's always exciting when someone finds you and tells you there's mail waiting on the table! And if you post your address or email it to me (spanishjen@gmail.com), I'll eventually send you a postcard. Once I get some and go to the post office...
Here it is:
Calle 20 # 112 X 31
Colonia Mexico 97128
Merida, Yucatan
Mexico
Stamps for mail sent to Mexico can be purchased at the post office easily. It's 72 cents to send a letter, and likely less to send a postcard. I accept any and all forms of mail. :) It's always exciting when someone finds you and tells you there's mail waiting on the table! And if you post your address or email it to me (spanishjen@gmail.com), I'll eventually send you a postcard. Once I get some and go to the post office...
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Trip Planning
This weekend is our first weekend of free travel, and I've been busy planning a nice little trip. Four of us are planning on going to Campeche this weekend. Campeche is the capital city of the state of Campeche, which is the state next to us. We'll be taking a 2 1/2 hour bus ride on a nice first class bus (gotta love those cheap bus tickets!). And I'll be staying in my first hostel- the Monkey Hostel on the main square in Campeche. Should be interesting!
Campeche is an old colonial city that has been kept up fairly well. It's a city on the coast of the Gulf, and it was also the site of pirate attacks back when pirates ruled the Caribbean! I'm looking forward to finding some piratey souviners for people back home. We're also hoping to take a ride on an old pirate ship, but right now we're not sure of the costs of doing that. At any rate, our trip should be very interesting. The only negative part is that there's no beach to hang out on. Oh well...I'll be seeing enough beaches while I'm down here!
On another note: it's started to get hot and pretty humid here in the past few days. Since we've been here, we've been in a cold spell, which is highly unusual in Mérida. But (kind of sadly) the cold spell is over, and the sticky season has begun. Last night I slept in my hammock all night long, for the first time. It's been too cold to sleep in it a night until now. And even though I had a little bit of trouble getting comfortable, I slept well. It's a good thing that I can sleep in a hammock because in 2 weeks we're going to a village, and we have no other options. We'll have to sleep in a hammock! Bring it on!
Campeche is an old colonial city that has been kept up fairly well. It's a city on the coast of the Gulf, and it was also the site of pirate attacks back when pirates ruled the Caribbean! I'm looking forward to finding some piratey souviners for people back home. We're also hoping to take a ride on an old pirate ship, but right now we're not sure of the costs of doing that. At any rate, our trip should be very interesting. The only negative part is that there's no beach to hang out on. Oh well...I'll be seeing enough beaches while I'm down here!
On another note: it's started to get hot and pretty humid here in the past few days. Since we've been here, we've been in a cold spell, which is highly unusual in Mérida. But (kind of sadly) the cold spell is over, and the sticky season has begun. Last night I slept in my hammock all night long, for the first time. It's been too cold to sleep in it a night until now. And even though I had a little bit of trouble getting comfortable, I slept well. It's a good thing that I can sleep in a hammock because in 2 weeks we're going to a village, and we have no other options. We'll have to sleep in a hammock! Bring it on!
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