Mexico 2007-08

The day after Christmas my parents and I boarded a plane and left our White Christmas behind to travel to Chiapas, Mexico. There in the high mountain village of El Pozo we constructed a school. After living for a year in Mexico and visiting every summer and Christmas for three years, it almost seemed like coming home. Riding over the many topes, or speed bumps, that are so prevelent in Mexico jolted back memories of my stay in Monterrey. It felt good to be back among such warm and friendly people. In El Pozo the villagers had next to nothing, and yet they were willing, prepared, and even eager to share what little they had with us. They prepared quite a party for our arrival, including a dinner of chicken soup served to us on makeshift tables. It cost them nearly two months salary to prepare that meal. Many of the villagers did not speak Spanish, but Tsotsil, their indigenous language. After our stay in the village we traveled to the ruins of Palenque, Yaxchilan, and Bonampak. From the tops of the ruined pyramids you can see how the jungle stretches on and on. I wondered how many strangled ancient cities remain covered and choked by the merciless jungle, inhabited only by the sleek jaguar and the screaming monkeys. We traveled by boat down the Ucumacinta river that marks the border between Mexico and Guatemala in order to reach the ruins of Yaxchilan. The ride was made more exotic due to persistant rain and low hanging mist. It did make our wanderings around Yaxchilan enjoyable however, since we were almost the only people there, and the rain had slackened. We also convinced our boat driver to let us hop off on the Guatemala side for a few minutes. So now I can say I have been to both Bolivia and Guatemala illegaly! All in all the trip was an incredible way to spend Christmas break, even if it was a departure from my usual Christmas break agenda---sleeping, skiing, and wild six-wheeler activities in the snow!