Chapter 45: Indiana Jones eat your heart out

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New years day we all parted ways, all heading off to our sites for work... but not before Kevin got a really bad case of food poisoning (luckily we heard that with some good medicine he was back on his feet a few days later). Laura and I headed towards my site in the mountains, San Cristobal de Las Casas. But we made sure to take the long scenic route. We started off by heading to the city of Villahermosa. This was only a 1 night rest stop, because, though its name may imply differently (Villa Hermosa = Beautiful City) it is actually not very pretty. So after an quick night of rest, we headed on to our real destination. Palenque .

We arrived at Palenque late at night (seems to be trend when traveling in Mexico). Initially we had decided to go to a place that was recommended in the Lonely Planet, but as we were riding the taxi there, the taxista recommended another place instead. We decided to take his advice and were really glad we did. The places name was El Panchan. It is actual actually a old hippie retreat that is centered around a restaurant/cafe. The food was delicious, the live music was really good... and it was all incredibly cheap.

After we had got a good night sleep and filled our stomach, we headed out to the ruins of Palenque, or as it was originally called Lakam Ha which translates to "Big Water". Lets just start by saying, for all there other faults, the Mayans really knew how to pick the locations for there cities. Lakam Ha exactly what comes to mind when you imagine a Mayan city. It is located in the middle of a jungle. In fact over time, the jungle has actually integrated itself into parts of the structures, adding to the effects. The ambiance is made even more dramatic when you hear howling monkeys screaming all around you.

From Palenque we headed over too Mizol Ha. This magnificent waterfall, also located in the middle of the jungle, that actually has a pathway that allows you to walk behind it. If you follow that path far enough you will find a cave with a small stream coming out of it that you can explore. The site also contained an area for swimming near the waterfall, but unfortunately our bus only made a 40 minute stop, and we were not able to partake.

But there would be swimming that day. Our next stop was Aqua Azul. This site was a serious of at least a dozen small waterfalls, flowing the the most surreal emerald green water I have ever seen (except in certain parts of Lake Erie... but I am pretty sure chemical waste was the cause of that). Luckily this stop was scheduled for three hours. So we had plenty of time to walk up and down the cascades, swim in the crystal clear (and freezing cold) mountain stream, and catch a bite to eat. A nice way to end a day.

After all this was done, Laura and I headed back to our little cabin in the woods for one last night before continuing on to San Cristobal. On the map they are not very far, but once again I forgot to take into account the hundreds of curves. 5 hours later, and a little car sick, we arrived at the place that will be my home for the next two years.

Spanish School Mexico

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