Monday, January 7

After a Sunday with our host families and a Monday morning spent catching up on reading, rest, and assignments, we all met after lunch at the main plaza downtown with the goal of becoming better acquainted with the downtown area. First we visited the Palacio de Gobierno, where we saw large paintings and murals depicting the history of the Yucatan Peninsula. Then we divided into two groups to explore nearby churches, plazas, theatres, university buildings, and streets. We ended up in the main square, where we checked out historical buildings such as the oldest cathedral in Mexico, the house built for the founder of Merida, and a former convent. We ended up our walking tour with delicious fruit popsicles at a conveniently located heladeria (ice cream shop).If that weren´t enough, we then hopped the bus to our headquarters at the Presbiterio (church buildings used for education, meetings, etc.), where we heard a lively lecture by a local history teacher about the life and times of the Mayas, including their social classes, educational system, religious practices, and ideas about human beauty (crossed eyes, sharpened and jewel-incrusted teeth, a sloping forehead--America´s next top model, eat your heart out). We headed home after a very active but interesting day