Catching Up

As expected, we fell behind on the blogging when we traveled south to Chiapas, and then north to Mexico City, during the two-week Easter vacation.  Then we were back in Oaxaca for only a few days before leaving to visit our friends in Tehuacan, a town near Puebla, which is where we are now.  Also, we have not downloaded our pictures from the first trip yet.  Rather than attempt to describe the whole trip now, we simply provide some of the key statistics, with the help of some pictures from our phones.

1.  Movies watched on our personal screens on the 11-hour overnight luxury bus ride from Oaxaca to Chiapas:

Air Force One (Harrison)

Despicable Me (Max)

G.I. Joe (Max)

How to Train Your Dragon (Helen)

Iron Man II (Max, Harrison)

Jump In (Max)

The Princess Diaries (Natalie)

Star Trek (Max)

The Year My Parents Went on Vacation (Natalie, Harrison)

Helen and Natalie after the bus ride.  Both slept more than Max and Harrison, who were not fit for a picture.

2.  Animals we held in Palenque, Chiapas:

Cicada (the size of a small mouse)

Fish (Max and Harrison wove nets from palm leaves and caught guppies)

Frog (see photo)

Lizards

Snake (freshly crushed baby, Helen carried it on a stick to show Natalie in the hotel room)

Hypnotized frog (the creature on the right)

3.  UNESCO World Heritage Sites we visited:

Mayan ruins at Palenque

Canals of Xoximilcho in Mexico City
Ciudad Universitaria in Mexico City
Centro Histórico in Mexico City (Harrison only, on way to airport)

Palenque

Xoximilcho, similar to Venice but the boats are better suited to yoga

4.  Most likely source of amoebic dysentery Natalie caught in Chiapas and cured three days later with antibiotics:

Beef and tomato stir fry at hotel in Palenque (no photo, thankfully)

5.  Number of processions we saw in San Cristobal de las Casas on Good Friday:


At least four, but photos only of two.

No real nails for JC, but the Roman guards really whipped him.

Reminded Max of a certain question he was asked in class.

6.  Best hotel name:  Hotel Real Jovel (pronounced "hovel")

We stayed somewhere else in spite of, not because of, this hotel's name.

7.  Scores of the three soccer games Max's team played in the tournament in Mexico City:

4-0 (Win)

0-0 (Tie)

6-1 (Win)

Unfortunately, the team they tied won its other two games 7-0 and 15-0, so it advanced to the next round (where it lost), instead of Max's team.

Max's team in the five-star hotel lobby where they stayed.

8.  Most exciting thing Helen learned in Mexico City:

How to swim (in the pool at the four-star hotel where Natalie, Helen and I stayed).

9.  Countries besides Mexico we visited during the trip:

Guatemala (for 2 hours, to renew our Mexican visas)

United States (for 2 days, Harrison only, for grandmother's 101st birthday)

10.  Modes of transportation used during the trip:


Airplane

Barge (in Xoximilcho)

Bus
Escalator (in the mall where we took Helen as a "special treat" for sitting through so much soccer)
Foot

Metro

Motor boat (in the Cañón de Sumidero, Chiapas)
Shoulders (Helen)

Taxi (including VW bugs in Mexico City, which Helen made us wait for)


In sum, we had a wonderful trip, but it will be nice to be back in Oaxaca.  --Harrison