Day Nine - Hacienda Peon, Becal, and Campeche

There’s something about this trip that reminds me a lot of Uncle Stash. Perhaps it’s the fact that he passed away only a couple of days after I received my acceptance letter to the program and I’m having the time of my life in his memory. It could also be that I was always excited to share stories of my world travels with him and I’m wishing that I could tell him all about everything I’m doing. But looking at it from a positive perspective, I can feel him with me when I need him most. It’s funny because over the last few days, just at the moments when I’ve thought about him, I’ve stumbled upon something “Ford” related! For those of you who don’t know, my Uncle Stash worked for Ford for a number of years and is the reason for my 2010 Ford Fusion. For example, I started to think of him after seeing the science murals at Escuela Secondaria Technologica No. 2, and then one of the teachers I spoke to was wearing a Ford hat! Then as we were on the bus today leaving Merida, the song “Cryin for Me” by Toby Keith came on my Ipod (which I quoted in his eulogy) and at that same moment, I looked out the bus window to see a Ford showroom. Glad I had my camera handy! :-) There’s nothing like having Uncle Stash here to encourage me to keep having a good time!

Some of the interesting things I’ve noticed in Mexico so far:

• There really are TONS of butterflies all around the Yucatan! I’ve found many yellow ones, but some other beauties as well! One thing I need to brush up on is my knowledge of butterfly species.

• The little towns in Mexico have frequent speed bumps. I’ll have to research more about why there are so many in such small areas.

• All of the cities and towns we have visited are populated with political murals. Every time I look out the window, I notice the name of a politician, the PRI or PAN initials (the two major political parties in Mexico), and the city or town’s name with “Como te quiero! (How I love you!)” painted in Mexican colors (green, red, and white).

The main part of today’s trip was a visit to Hacienda Peon, a sisal manufacturing site for many years in the mid-20th century. At the Hacienda, we learned how sisal fibers were stripped from the agave plant. We actually witnessed the separation of the agave leaves into fibers and pulp, then we saw the drying of the fibers, and finally we watched as the fibers were combined to make ropes, rugs, and more. I must admit…I quickly gave in and bought a few items made from sisal. Our lunch at the Hacienda was good, but without a doubt, the highlight of our trip was a dip in their cenote…part of an underwater river! I was pretty amazed at how refreshing the water was in this underground cave! It was a cool temperature with natural light coming through a small hole in the ceiling.

We then traveled about an hour until we reached the city of Becal.  Becal appears to be a very poor city and we took a short "taxi ride" on a bicycle cart for 10 pesos (about $1 dollar) each way.  But where were we going?  Well, we went to a local house where the people in the family make panama hats.  There were two men showing us exactly how the hats are made.  One man actually pulled a leaf off a growing plant and started ripping it apart with the help of a small needle.  Then we went inside their underground cave and watched as the other man sat on a small bench and weaved the fibers into the shape of a hat.  According to them, the best weaving conditions are in the areas with the most humidity (hence, the underground cave).  I was pretty impressed with their work and bought a few souvenirs!  :-) 
After leaving Becal, it took about one more hour until we reached the city of Campeche, in the state of Campeche. The outskirts of the city looked very poor, but as we got closer to the downtown area, it looked nicer and nicer. I even saw an Applebees, a McDonalds, Church’s Chicken, and KFC in the city center. We arrived just in time to see a beautiful sunset and then head off for a dinner of Camarones al Coco (Coconut Shrimp) at a local restaurant….fue muy delicioso! My biggest thought about the evening as that it felt like being in a European city…we ate dinner on a terrace, overlooking a beautifully manicured park, next to a brightly lit cathedral, surrounded by trolleys…it seriously felt like DisneyWorld. According to Jacques, Campeche is considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site, so it receives money to maintain its beautiful downtown area. Needless to say, I was so impressed that I told my travel companions the service charge on the bill was 38 Euros (as opposed to 38 pesos)!