Missionary Retreat - some renewal time on the coast

         

     

A day away

Recently our family had the opportunity to spend just under 24 hours outside of Mérida for a little getaway. This past weekend our kids had a few days off of school to make it a 5 day weekend, but between homework, parents' work and church we couldn't really relax until the very end. So what do you do when you live in Mérida? Head to the beach! No, the waters aren't crystal clear like they are near Cancun. But they are just as wet and just as salty and the sand is just as soft. So, after church and a late lunch with the pastor and her family, we drove to Celestún, a fishing city on the gulf coast where flamingos can be found, at times in the thousands. Once there, we checked into a hotel for the night and went straight to the ocean. The kids ran and swam and played in the water as the sun set, making for a very beautiful and relaxing evening. Afterwards, the kids rinsed off under a very powerful spray of water from an outdoor shower. Although they didn't want to come out of the water, our hunger compelled us to find a place to eat along the beach. We found a restaurant that had fresh fried fish - mero - which in English is the fish known as "grouper". Very yummy - I couldn't finish mine, but Dave said that my fish was larger then his was and he helped himself to some of my dish :-)
The following morning we ordered room service. You know, I don't remember EVER getting room service anywhere. Anyway, we were brought coffee, eggs, toast, hotcakes and juice. I'm thinking that, including the tip, we paid about the same (or less) than we would in any American restaurant for breakfast. After that, we had scheduled a boat tour to see the flamingos and a water hole along the coast. Our guide, Don Louis, picked us up at the hotel along the beach and we boarded his boat for a 2 1/2 hour tour. It was an absolutely gorgeous day to be on the ocean and enjoy God's creation. Don Louis took us to a place they call a petrified forest, which is really and area where the trees are preserved because of the salt water. We got out and saw dozens, maybe hundreds of little crabs called "violinists" - because with their larger claw raised (which is actually attracting the female crabs) it looks like an orchestra playing their violins. Rebekah and Joseph picked some up and I captured what I think is a pretty cool picture of a female crab (the female does not have the enlarged claw like the males do) on Rebekah's finger. Later, we went on to see the flamingos and other birds that call this place home during part of the year, at least. This is actually not the "season" but we were blessed to not only see a group of young flamingos, but also to catch them in flight. We heard that, just one day before, all the tourists who came saw only 1 lone flamingo. Can you imagine?
Next on the agenda was visiting a water hole. On the way we maneuvered through "los manglares" (mangroves) and saw huge termite nests in the trees and got the feeling that we were in Costa Rica again during our getaway on the Atlantic coast a few years back. After this short passageway through the trees we arrived at the final stop called an "ojo de agua" which literally translated means "water eye" or "eye of water" - which we had heard was fresh water found along the coast. My guess is that those who called it fresh water did not jump in and try it out because it was definitely salty, although not as salty as the ocean. The water was very clear, like you would find in a cenote or a water hole along a creek, and it was full of fish. The whole family tried it out, but we didn't stay very long since it was deep and not even Dave and I could touch bottom in the majority of the pool. Here is a picture Dave took of us sitting on a fallen log in the water. Then it was time to head back to the hotel. We had to be checked out by 1, but when we returned to check out they said we were free to enjoy the beach and use their area for changing. Bonus! So, we packed up, but returned to enjoy the ocean waves, sun and fresh mango on beach. Of course, our stomachs got the best of us, and we were craving more seafood. Don Louis had been talking about jaiba which is a type of crab and also shrimp that they served along the coast, and he also suggested some restaurants. He did not let us down. I now have a new favorite - jaiba a la mexicana - basically crab meat served Mexican style. Oh, was it delicious! In the picture, that is shrimp that you see closest, of course, then ceviche with mixed seafood (crab, shrimp, fish, and octopus), and on the plate near Dave is the crab meat. Did I say that is my new favorite seafood?
There are always people selling things on the beach, even inside the restaurants, so we had to get some local sweets as well. Dave got an almond cookie, of sorts, picture almonds laid side to side in circle, held together with a caramelized sugar. Rebekah got something similar, but with other ingredients, kind of had a Cracker Jack quality to it. Jonathan picked a coconut treat and Joseph and I went for pure sugar in what is simply meringue (basically egg whites and sugar, slightly baked) - just a baseball size treat that is crispy on the outside and soft in the center. Can you tell who has the sweet tooth in the family?
Well, that, in a nutshell (no pun intended, Sky), was our 24 hour mini-getaway. I couldn't have asked for anything to work out more nicely. I count it a blessing to have experiences like this and a double blessing to be able to share it with family and friends who are far away. We miss all of you.

Cancun - Day 2

On Monday we found a nearby beach and, after some trouble finding a place to park, grabbed our beach stuff and headed for the sand. The name of the beach is Playa Langosta. We didn't see anything even resembling lobsters (langosta) - not even a shell, imagine that! But the sand was white and the water blue and, well, we really enjoyed ourselves!

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Coming next: Cancun Day 3 - Detour!

First Full Day of Vacation

Hey everyone,
I know I haven't written in awhile - can you say b-u-s-y? Well, we needed to disconnect ourselves for a short while, about a week, in order to refresh our spirits. It is late right now since I've been gathering some photos for the web, so I won't write a lot. Just enjoy the pics of the scenery, the food, and our family, during our first full day of vacation in . . . Cancun!

You can view them here:

Cancun1

More to come - stay tuned.

Side note: When you click on the photo, you are taken to a Picasa Web Album. If you choose to view the group of photos using the "slideshow" option, choose 8 or 9 seconds to be able to read the captions.

Shark!

Ok, things are getting kind of fishy down here in Mérida. Guess where we were able to travel last week??? The beach! A family from church was planning to visit the coast with relatives - minor problem, one car and 10 people. They would have sent their kids on with an aunt and uncle, but we thought, "hey, we have a car and a few days with no plans - how about going together?!"

I love when good ideas become a reality :-)

We traveled to San Felipe, a small fishing town - a 2 1/2 hour drive from Mérida. There we rented a newly built one bedroom house that we shared with our friends. Yup, shared a one bedroom house with no beds and no kitchen installed yet. We strung 5 hammocks up in the "bedroom" and they put 3 hammocks in the "living room" each of the 2 nights we were there. Their relatives, who live in the place next door, had had their home destroyed by hurricane Isadora and were in the process of reconstructing their own home. So, despite the fact that their living room was in the remains of their wooden home, and the kitchen in the new part of their home didn't have a roof - they welcomed us with open arms to share in their life on the coast. The dad, Chucho, caught fish as well as a "small" shark, with which they prepared meals for all of us while we were there. The food was delicious but very different from any type of seafood I have had in the past. The mom, Martina, made a salsa of chili jabanero and garlic - yum!

The beach itself is not right on the mainland. The family took us on their fishing boat to the beach which was a 5-10 minute ride out where the water was blue and there were grass huts on which to hang our hammocks (boy, those come in handy!). All of us experienced a lot of sun (can you say "peeling"?) and waves. While in the town the second day, we stopped to buy "bolis" which are homemade ice pops made with fruit/water or chocolate/milk - yum, yum!! We saw the carcass of a horseshoe crab in the water, much bigger than the one we saw in Progreso, but instead of calling it some type of crab in Spanish, they call it a "cucaracha del mar" - know what that is? A Sea Cockroach! What an "aha! moment" when I figured out that one :-)

The highlight of the trip (as much as I love the beach) was spending time with these families. Our kids played with theirs, we shared food together, played on the beach, relaxed together - it was just good to be there. They plan to visit Mérida in June, and I am looking forward to the chance to reciprocate the hospitality and genuine love we experienced during our brief vacation in San Felipe. I pray that our "adiós" (good-bye) is in reality an "hasta luego" (until later)!

Fish!

Our family finally had a chance to go to the beach. This time it was to watch a baptismal service with the people at the church. 6 people were baptized in the ocean while the kids half played and half watched. Very neat experience! Later on, after being in the sun way too much (I'm really burnt), we enjoyed fresh fried fish. I've never tasted fish THAT good. Here's Rebekah with her fish - teeth and eyes and all!
To read more about what we've been doing lately, check out our ministry website where Dave has more pictures from the baptisms.

Poolside

What a blessing! Our whole family enjoyed not only the beach but the pool as well this week. The Schwartz family from Michigan invited us to spend a day with them during their vacation here in the Yucatan. The kids had a blast with Zeke while we adults shared thoughts and experiences from our lives around the dinner table and poolside. They even surprised me by bringing me Reese's peanut butter cups all the way from Michigan! Now that's what I call "sweet" fellowship!

Here's a few shots from the pool and the beach.

The Beach

Since we arrived in September of last year, we've only had about 3 or 4 beach days or afternoons. Now, growing up in Erie, PA, going to the beach was a "given." You go to swim, to have a birthday party, to watch the sunset, even to ice skate (in the right season, of course). Here in Mérida, the beach is about 20-25 minutes away. Yup, that's it. And we can count the number of times on one hand that we've actually taken the drive to enjoy it. I'm hoping that number increases dramatically come summertime ;-)

Here's a look at the beach close to where we are - the gulf side waters of the Yucatan Peninsula. Remind you of anything? Lake Erie maybe? Granted, you can't taste a photo - believe me, the flavor of the water is nothing like the lake, but I'm suprised with the resemblance in other aspects. Oh, and you won't see any sunsets over this body of water - we face the north. Ok, there may be a few more differences - for one, the wildlife. Can you name these creatures?
The Yucatan is known for the great flocks of flamingos that migrate on the gulf side. We look forward to seeing more of these pink feathers in the future - apparently they can be seen by the 100s in certain areas along the gulf side of the peninsula (where these photos were taken). We have plans to go to a new beach today - maybe that's why I'm thinking about it so much. There will be more photos to come, of course. I can't remember what the name of this sea creature is - if you know, please comment. This is only it's shell, but we found quite a few like this on the sand during our visit.