Meanwhile in Merida

Valladolid: Pueblo Magico

Friday we began our day with another day at the Centro Marista. That meant another full morning of playing soccer with a group of kids then instead of doing some arts and crafts, I helped teach some English classes to another group of kids. They were quite excited to learn about the days of the weeks and months of the year. Our weekend then started as we took an evening bus to a pueblo magico called Valladolid. It was founded in 1543 and built on top of an ancient Mayan city. We stayed at a nice little hostel called Casa Daniels. The hosts were very nice yet just a little awkward.

Saturday morning initiated the weekend with a gran adventure to Chichen Itza! It is one of the seven wonders of the world and it was totally (mostly) worth the ridiculously high entrance fee. We arrived pretty early so we beat the biggest rush and didn't have to wait in a huge line. As we entered, we were barraged by souvenir salesmen and tour guides trying to sell us their items or services. Upon passing the swarm of salesman, it opened up to a open field where we could see the large pyramid at one end and several other ruins scattered about. It truly was breathtaking, especially since it still wasn't super crowded. We split into a couple different groups and wandered around, seeing the different ruins, taking pictures and even doing some souvenir shopping. From Chichen Itza we ate lunch at a local restaurant and went back to the hostel. Many people wanted to simply rest but a small group of us decided to explore. Lily, Jake, Calvin and I visited a set of two cenotes, X'keken and Samula. Like most cenotes, they were gorgeous and contained nice cool water. In the evening time we then spent time just wandering around the city and exploring the pueblo magico.

Sunday was another adventurous day. We started the day off by seeing another set of ruins called Ek Balam. It was a little closer to the city of Valladolid. These ruins were a bit more fun because unlike those at Chichen Itza, we were able to climb on them! We spent those couple hours just going up and down all the ruins that were there. The tallest pyramid had a stunning view at the top. You could look around for miles and miles and see nothing but the tops of trees. Underneath the tree tops we knew there are some little cities but it appeared that we were in the middle of no where. After spending some time climbing and taking lots of pictures, we returned to the hostel in order to attend the 12 o'clock services of the local ward. There was around 12 of us so were made about one-third to one-fourth of the people in attendance. It was heart-warming to hear such pure and sincere testimonies from many of the members since it was fast and testimony meeting. It was also exciting because I had the chance to play the piano for the last hymn, "How Firm a Foundation", which is one of my favorites! Lily also ran into a guy that served her mission (what a small world!). After church, we went to another cenote near Valladolid. This one was probably the funnest so far because they had some places for cliff-jumping and a rope swing! We spent a good amount of time there then returned for some dinner before we caught our bus back to Merida.

Que bendecido siento la verdad por estar aquí en un lugar tan bonito y con otros voluntarios/amigos tan padres. Igual ha sido una gran bendición servir la gente aquí y hacer una conexión con ellos. Obvio que Chihuahua siempre será mi lugar numero uno en Mexico pero Yucatan le hace una buena competencia.