September 16th was Independence Day here, so we went to church the night of the 15th and there was no class on the 16th. I now know how the Mexican national anthem goes, and when I see red, green, and white (colors of the Mexican flag) together my mind doesn't automatically think of Christmas. Independence Day here made me feel quite homesick for the United States, as being a foreigner at the celebration of another Country makes one feel a little out of place.
This past week was exam week at La Universidad Modelo, which meant that I was (for the first time since coming here) very busy with homework. Writing 3 exam papers and studying for 3 in-class exams in less than a week was a bit of a challenge, but it feels good to be done with everything for now.
On Monday the Calvin group went to two different Mayan ruin sites, Dzibilchaltún and Chichén Itzá. Monday was the day before the autumnal equinox, and both sites have different phenomena that show up on the days surrounding the equinox. We did get to see the sun shine through the door of the temple at Dzibilchaltún, which required required waking up very early (about 3 AM) so that we could be at the site in time for sunrise. Unfortunately, the cloudy sky at Chichén Itzá prevented us from seeing the shadow of Kukulkan (the serpent god of the Maya) descending the stairs of the pyramid, but we did have fun exploring the ruins.
I finally saw a tarantula when we went to Dzibilchaltún. Our bus driver told me that I shouldn't be afraid of them, that the are soft and fuzzy like "un gatito" (a kitten), but I decided against finding out for myself. It was really cool to see Chichén Itzá after reading about it and seeing pictures of it in history and travel books. There were a lot of vendors selling trinkets, jewelry, and t-shirts at Chichén, and I did end up buying a small "Chac Mool" statue that is shaped like some of the ruins there.
Me at Chichén Itzá
The ball court at Chichén Itzá
Mini Chac Mools
Dzibilchaltún - Here comes the sun!
It's kind of hard to see what happened in a photo...
The sanctuary at El Divino Salvador before a Sunday service
I just sent the link to your blog to Mr. Guevara and while doing so once again looked at the photos. The photos of the ancient ruins are spectaular! Thank you for posting them. Thanks also for offsetting the scary temmple stuff with the sancuary photo.
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