First we lay on the beach for a while and got drinks at the restaurant. Karle and Josh did a little snorkeling in the ocean too. Then we spent some time across the street in the cenote.
On the way we saw an iguana
1.28.2010
Casa Cenote
Today after eating breakfast we packed up the car and decided to check out Casa cenote which is about 10 minutes from our house. We had heard good things about it, like it's pretty much on the beach. This was kind of confusing to me b/c it seems like cenotes are usually in the jungle. It turns out this cenote is located at the mouth of a river that runs right into the ocean. That makes the cenote water a little salty. Usually, the water is very clean, fresh water.
First we lay on the beach for a while and got drinks at the restaurant. Karle and Josh did a little snorkeling in the ocean too. Then we spent some time across the street in the cenote.
On the way we saw an iguana
First we lay on the beach for a while and got drinks at the restaurant. Karle and Josh did a little snorkeling in the ocean too. Then we spent some time across the street in the cenote.
On the way we saw an iguana
Coba Ruins
On Wednesday the sky was gray and it was drizzling just a little when we woke up so it was not a good beach day. We decided to use the day to visit the Coba Mayan ruins that are about 40 minutes from our house. The site is pretty large and it is a pre-Columbian Mayan city dating from 300 BCE to about 1,500 AD. That's old!
On the way we stopped to see the coatimundi again b/c Karle really wanted to see them. Here are some pics. I warned the boys that these guys were not super friendly as far as pets go. They both got a couple scratches that drew a little blood from them.
At the ruins we rented bikes to get around. It worked well b/c we could get ahead of large tour groups and had lots of places to ourselves.
Alyssa's funny shoes
This is a picture of the largest pyramid, Nohoch Mul. It is the only pyramid that you can still climb in the Yucatan so of course we climbed it.
The dog that seems to live on TOP of the pyramid
The descent down the pyramid
On the way out of the ruins Karle and Alyssa decided to try the zipline. The zipline took them right over a crocodile infested lagoon. We could actually see all of the crocodiles, it was pretty creepy. Unfortunately my camera's battery died right then so I have hardly any pictures. But they said it was awesome!
Alyssa looking a tad bit nervous
By late afternoon it had cleared up a little and so we went to the beach for a couple hours. Then we were invited to Jennifer and Evelyn's house for dinner. They invited their Bible student Tania and her husband and 2 kids over for dinner. Tania's husband's name is Fabritzo and he is Italian. He is not super happy about Tania studying so they wanted to break him in a little with good food. They set up a beautiful table outside for the 10 of us and made pork ribs, mac 'n' cheese, salad, and homemade bread. Everything was delicious and Fabritzo seemed to like us!
On the way we stopped to see the coatimundi again b/c Karle really wanted to see them. Here are some pics. I warned the boys that these guys were not super friendly as far as pets go. They both got a couple scratches that drew a little blood from them.
At the ruins we rented bikes to get around. It worked well b/c we could get ahead of large tour groups and had lots of places to ourselves.
Alyssa's funny shoes
This is a picture of the largest pyramid, Nohoch Mul. It is the only pyramid that you can still climb in the Yucatan so of course we climbed it.
The dog that seems to live on TOP of the pyramid
The descent down the pyramid
On the way out of the ruins Karle and Alyssa decided to try the zipline. The zipline took them right over a crocodile infested lagoon. We could actually see all of the crocodiles, it was pretty creepy. Unfortunately my camera's battery died right then so I have hardly any pictures. But they said it was awesome!
Alyssa looking a tad bit nervous
By late afternoon it had cleared up a little and so we went to the beach for a couple hours. Then we were invited to Jennifer and Evelyn's house for dinner. They invited their Bible student Tania and her husband and 2 kids over for dinner. Tania's husband's name is Fabritzo and he is Italian. He is not super happy about Tania studying so they wanted to break him in a little with good food. They set up a beautiful table outside for the 10 of us and made pork ribs, mac 'n' cheese, salad, and homemade bread. Everything was delicious and Fabritzo seemed to like us!
1.26.2010
pictures of our guests
Karle and Alyssa have arrived! They were scheduled to get here at 11:30am which is awesome b/c it still leaves us the whole day practically. Their plane got here 15 minutes early! It was great.
We stopped in Playa Del Carmen for some fish and shrimp tacos, then stopped at the grocery store, and headed home. Alyssa was very happy to see Finley.
Then we went to catch the last 1/2 hour of happy hour on the beach. We almost had to talk Karle into it b/c he was so tired but they both woke up as soon as they saw the beautiful ocean! After a Margarita we went for a walk.
More later
We stopped in Playa Del Carmen for some fish and shrimp tacos, then stopped at the grocery store, and headed home. Alyssa was very happy to see Finley.
Then we went to catch the last 1/2 hour of happy hour on the beach. We almost had to talk Karle into it b/c he was so tired but they both woke up as soon as they saw the beautiful ocean! After a Margarita we went for a walk.
More later
1.24.2010
Say-No-Tay
I haven't posted b/c we have actually been really busy! Who knew we could be so busy when we don't even have jobs!
Let's see, Friday was actually another fun day. (Hey, we did lots of spiritual things the day before) and we went out to breakfast. Before going to breakfast we packed up all our snorkel gear b/c we planned on biking to a cenote and swimming after a late breakfast. A cenote is a Mayan word that describes a sinkhole filled with fresh water. All over the Yucatan there is a system of underground rivers and there are areas where rivers are exposed by the sinkholes and it creates an awesome place to swim and snorkel b/c it's very clean water. It's clean b/c the underground rivers keep the water flowing (people scuba dive the underground rivers, often going from cenote to cenote and there are lots of caves to explore.)
Anyways, I tried to take pictures that showed all of this. Here is cenote Escondido where Josh and I biked to on Friday.
Josh getting into the water
scuba divers who surfaced while we were there
a scuba diver at the bottom of the cenote
This one is for Julie, fish nibbling at my FEET
So anyways, it was very relaxing and we stayed for a few hours (we had to pay $3 to get in). We stopped to get a Michelada on the way home. Its a beer served with a salted rim glass and ice cubes, lime, and assorted spices. It's a Mexican thing.
The next day we went out in service and got sticky and hot and so Carla, Josh, and I decided to check out another cenote before the meeting at 4:30pm. This one is about 15 minutes from our house driving. We actually liked this one better than Escondido.
Carla and Josh still chewing their lunch
I forgot to mention that dinner went really well with Francelia and Carla. I made a potato leek curry soup with cauliflower and shredded chicken and we also made open face avocado, tomato, and cheese sandwiches. We got to know Carla's "story" (we already knew Francelia's) and it was very interesting. I won't post her private details on here but I will say that she is an encouragement to us. Josh and I think of her as out mother down here. I don't think she minds us saying that since her oldest daughter is 33 years old (my age).
BTW mom, Carla would love a roomate. :)
The meeting went great. Jennifer and Mike Richards were visiting from Louisiana so Mike gave the talk for us. (We got your "hello" Brooke and Eric!) They spent 2 months in Tulum a couple years ago so a lot of people were very happy to see them again. A big crowd of us went out to dinner for cheap but delicious tacos after and I have no pictures of any of this (camera was left at home).
Today for service we had plans to work the road that goes from Tulum to Coba (a big Mayan temple site). Coba is normally about 35 minutes away from our house but we worked one side of the road on our way there so we were gone for about 4 hours. We had 3 car groups that worked "car over car". We are going to do the other side in 2 Sundays.
The girls after eating lunch (we had lost the 3 boys, they eventually showed up)
This is a coatamundi. Some people will try and domesticate them but they are always a little wild. I think they are the coolest animals. Kind of like a racoon/monkey.
More has happened but I guess that is enough for today.
Let's see, Friday was actually another fun day. (Hey, we did lots of spiritual things the day before) and we went out to breakfast. Before going to breakfast we packed up all our snorkel gear b/c we planned on biking to a cenote and swimming after a late breakfast. A cenote is a Mayan word that describes a sinkhole filled with fresh water. All over the Yucatan there is a system of underground rivers and there are areas where rivers are exposed by the sinkholes and it creates an awesome place to swim and snorkel b/c it's very clean water. It's clean b/c the underground rivers keep the water flowing (people scuba dive the underground rivers, often going from cenote to cenote and there are lots of caves to explore.)
Anyways, I tried to take pictures that showed all of this. Here is cenote Escondido where Josh and I biked to on Friday.
Josh getting into the water
scuba divers who surfaced while we were there
a scuba diver at the bottom of the cenote
This one is for Julie, fish nibbling at my FEET
So anyways, it was very relaxing and we stayed for a few hours (we had to pay $3 to get in). We stopped to get a Michelada on the way home. Its a beer served with a salted rim glass and ice cubes, lime, and assorted spices. It's a Mexican thing.
The next day we went out in service and got sticky and hot and so Carla, Josh, and I decided to check out another cenote before the meeting at 4:30pm. This one is about 15 minutes from our house driving. We actually liked this one better than Escondido.
Carla and Josh still chewing their lunch
I forgot to mention that dinner went really well with Francelia and Carla. I made a potato leek curry soup with cauliflower and shredded chicken and we also made open face avocado, tomato, and cheese sandwiches. We got to know Carla's "story" (we already knew Francelia's) and it was very interesting. I won't post her private details on here but I will say that she is an encouragement to us. Josh and I think of her as out mother down here. I don't think she minds us saying that since her oldest daughter is 33 years old (my age).
BTW mom, Carla would love a roomate. :)
The meeting went great. Jennifer and Mike Richards were visiting from Louisiana so Mike gave the talk for us. (We got your "hello" Brooke and Eric!) They spent 2 months in Tulum a couple years ago so a lot of people were very happy to see them again. A big crowd of us went out to dinner for cheap but delicious tacos after and I have no pictures of any of this (camera was left at home).
Today for service we had plans to work the road that goes from Tulum to Coba (a big Mayan temple site). Coba is normally about 35 minutes away from our house but we worked one side of the road on our way there so we were gone for about 4 hours. We had 3 car groups that worked "car over car". We are going to do the other side in 2 Sundays.
The girls after eating lunch (we had lost the 3 boys, they eventually showed up)
This is a coatamundi. Some people will try and domesticate them but they are always a little wild. I think they are the coolest animals. Kind of like a racoon/monkey.
More has happened but I guess that is enough for today.
1.21.2010
Not much
I haven't posted in a while b/c not much has happened. On Tuesday and Wednesday we went to the beach since we finally got some HOT weather (85 degrees) and just relaxed. I feel bad blogging about the beach and posting pictures b/c it's so snowy and cold at home. On Tuesday we stopped at a restaurant and had a margarita but by then the weather had turned gray and windy. Here are a couple pictures.
And this one is for you Julie! She says the only pictures of me have been of my feet. Of course that has been intentional. Here is a photo of me really far away.
This morning we went out in service. We worked with a sister who just moved here from Washington. Brooke and Eric, if you are reading this I think you know her! Her name is Carla and she drove here less than 2 weeks ago after selling her house and packing her truck up. So now we have another gringa in the group (whitey). I am assuming she is somewhere in her early 50's and obviously has an adventurous spirit. She came last year for 5 months to check out Tulum before deciding to make the move. She and Francellia are coming over for dinner tonight after our Spanish meeting so I will post a picture of then tomorrow.
Josh tried to sleep in a hammock last night like a local but when we got up this morning he said he slept horrible. So now he is trying to take a nap but it's funny b/c as soon as he went into the bedroom and shut the door the NOISES started. In our neighborhood the houses are right next to each other. Actually we share a wall with both of our neighbors so it's more like a townhouse (kind of). And the back neighbor's patio shares a wall with our patio so we are packed in tight. The back neighbors have a band and decided to start practicing right when Josh wanted to take a nap. I like the music though so it's not too bad. One of the side neighbors is doing construction or something b/c there is loud pounding going on over there (Josh actually came out of the room to check on me b/c he said he thought maybe I was choking and pounding on the wall to get his attention. What a weirdo!). And the neighborhood dogs are barking like crazy! Poor Josh. Don't we feel sorry for him??
Uneventful times in Tulum. I will post again when something exciting happens. Karle and Alyssa....only 5 more days and we will be picking you up at the airport!
And this one is for you Julie! She says the only pictures of me have been of my feet. Of course that has been intentional. Here is a photo of me really far away.
This morning we went out in service. We worked with a sister who just moved here from Washington. Brooke and Eric, if you are reading this I think you know her! Her name is Carla and she drove here less than 2 weeks ago after selling her house and packing her truck up. So now we have another gringa in the group (whitey). I am assuming she is somewhere in her early 50's and obviously has an adventurous spirit. She came last year for 5 months to check out Tulum before deciding to make the move. She and Francellia are coming over for dinner tonight after our Spanish meeting so I will post a picture of then tomorrow.
Josh tried to sleep in a hammock last night like a local but when we got up this morning he said he slept horrible. So now he is trying to take a nap but it's funny b/c as soon as he went into the bedroom and shut the door the NOISES started. In our neighborhood the houses are right next to each other. Actually we share a wall with both of our neighbors so it's more like a townhouse (kind of). And the back neighbor's patio shares a wall with our patio so we are packed in tight. The back neighbors have a band and decided to start practicing right when Josh wanted to take a nap. I like the music though so it's not too bad. One of the side neighbors is doing construction or something b/c there is loud pounding going on over there (Josh actually came out of the room to check on me b/c he said he thought maybe I was choking and pounding on the wall to get his attention. What a weirdo!). And the neighborhood dogs are barking like crazy! Poor Josh. Don't we feel sorry for him??
Uneventful times in Tulum. I will post again when something exciting happens. Karle and Alyssa....only 5 more days and we will be picking you up at the airport!
1.18.2010
Lot's of parties
But before getting to the parties....
Saturday morning in service we preached at all the little stores that are at the entrance to the Tulum ruins. We have not been to the ruins themselves yet but they are Mayan ruins that are located right on the ocean not far from our house. I think it's like $4 to enter and walk around. I am sure we will go once we get some visitors.
I got 3 return visits that morning! The one I am most excited about is for Josh. His name is Juan and he lived in Los Angeles for 22 years so his English is perfect. He is probably around 50 years old and he says he has realized that he needs to give the Bible more time in his life. I told him I will bring the Teach book back to him and my husband can answer his Bible questions. We will see how it goes and keep you updated!
Saturday after the meeting we went to Evelyn and Jennifer's apartment for dinner. They rent a room which has a bathroom for about $175/month. They turned the room into an awesome little apartment. They built a kitchen in one corner and they both sleep in hammocks (something I could never do) in order to save space. They also have a great front patio which makes the studio apartment seem bigger.
Here is Evelyn and Jennifer. They have been here for almost 3 years. Evelyn is on the right and she is from Mexico City but went to a bilingual school so her English is perfect. Jennifer is from the States and her Spanish is perfect.
They made us Posole which is a pork and hominy stew. I used to order it once in a while in Cozumel. It's eaten with a ton of extras that you put on top like lime, chopped onion, radishes and lettuce. It was delicious.
Josh and I thought it would just be us and a couple other people but they invited everyone who was at the meeting that night! It was about 20 people. And they were not stressed about space or anything. I guess it's just the Mexican way.
Of course we did a little dancing but I didn't get any great photos.
Last night Jennifer and Evelyn and also Gilbert and Priscilla came over for dinner. These are the ones who have helped us out so much prior to getting here and also once we arrived. Because of them we were almost immediately settled in Tulum with everything we needed.
I made the chicken parmesan and it came out pretty good. Nothing too special. I made salad too and garlic bread. I meant to buy some of the delicious bread at the bakery I talked about in an earlier post but forgot they would be closed on Sunday. So I had to buy crappy bread from the supermarket (i am sorry but Mexicans are not good at making bread, the other place is owned by Italians). But I just put lots of butter and garlic on it and it came out okay. I also made Sangria that they all seemed to like. I helped Priscilla clean one of the houses she takes care of a few days ago and the people left some Malibu Coconut rum so I threw that into the Sangria too. I would not normally buy coconut rum but it was pretty good. Afterwords we showed them how to play Skip-Bo.
Gilbert and Priscilla
This morning I went on an awesome study that Jennifer started about 6 months ago. We turned off the highway onto a dirt road and then just keep turning and getting deeper into the jungle. I was wondering how they found this girl! But then we pull up to a very nice, big house and I meet Tania. She is Canadian and is about my age with 2 kids. Her husband is a little older and he is Italian and works here in Mexico. She has only been studying for 6 months but today talked about wanting to read the Bible all the way through before getting baptized and she is on Chapter 13 of the Teach book already. I should have taken a picture of her. She is going to be at the meeting tonight so maybe I will sneak one.
More later. Josh and I have a beach day planned for tomorrow since we have not been in days.
Saturday morning in service we preached at all the little stores that are at the entrance to the Tulum ruins. We have not been to the ruins themselves yet but they are Mayan ruins that are located right on the ocean not far from our house. I think it's like $4 to enter and walk around. I am sure we will go once we get some visitors.
I got 3 return visits that morning! The one I am most excited about is for Josh. His name is Juan and he lived in Los Angeles for 22 years so his English is perfect. He is probably around 50 years old and he says he has realized that he needs to give the Bible more time in his life. I told him I will bring the Teach book back to him and my husband can answer his Bible questions. We will see how it goes and keep you updated!
Saturday after the meeting we went to Evelyn and Jennifer's apartment for dinner. They rent a room which has a bathroom for about $175/month. They turned the room into an awesome little apartment. They built a kitchen in one corner and they both sleep in hammocks (something I could never do) in order to save space. They also have a great front patio which makes the studio apartment seem bigger.
Here is Evelyn and Jennifer. They have been here for almost 3 years. Evelyn is on the right and she is from Mexico City but went to a bilingual school so her English is perfect. Jennifer is from the States and her Spanish is perfect.
They made us Posole which is a pork and hominy stew. I used to order it once in a while in Cozumel. It's eaten with a ton of extras that you put on top like lime, chopped onion, radishes and lettuce. It was delicious.
Josh and I thought it would just be us and a couple other people but they invited everyone who was at the meeting that night! It was about 20 people. And they were not stressed about space or anything. I guess it's just the Mexican way.
Of course we did a little dancing but I didn't get any great photos.
Last night Jennifer and Evelyn and also Gilbert and Priscilla came over for dinner. These are the ones who have helped us out so much prior to getting here and also once we arrived. Because of them we were almost immediately settled in Tulum with everything we needed.
I made the chicken parmesan and it came out pretty good. Nothing too special. I made salad too and garlic bread. I meant to buy some of the delicious bread at the bakery I talked about in an earlier post but forgot they would be closed on Sunday. So I had to buy crappy bread from the supermarket (i am sorry but Mexicans are not good at making bread, the other place is owned by Italians). But I just put lots of butter and garlic on it and it came out okay. I also made Sangria that they all seemed to like. I helped Priscilla clean one of the houses she takes care of a few days ago and the people left some Malibu Coconut rum so I threw that into the Sangria too. I would not normally buy coconut rum but it was pretty good. Afterwords we showed them how to play Skip-Bo.
Gilbert and Priscilla
This morning I went on an awesome study that Jennifer started about 6 months ago. We turned off the highway onto a dirt road and then just keep turning and getting deeper into the jungle. I was wondering how they found this girl! But then we pull up to a very nice, big house and I meet Tania. She is Canadian and is about my age with 2 kids. Her husband is a little older and he is Italian and works here in Mexico. She has only been studying for 6 months but today talked about wanting to read the Bible all the way through before getting baptized and she is on Chapter 13 of the Teach book already. I should have taken a picture of her. She is going to be at the meeting tonight so maybe I will sneak one.
More later. Josh and I have a beach day planned for tomorrow since we have not been in days.
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