THOUGHT: "PRAYER IS MAN'S GREATEST POWER!"
Today we got up early, got to the airport with the Smiths help (again) and flew to Cancun! I thought I would never get here, but here I am! It is quite hot and humid right now! We rented a car and drove around for awhile. After some lunch we hunted down a sister that Greg baptized. We met her last May when our family came down here for a vacation - Hermana Rodriguez. I can't believe I have been at the same church that we were at one year ago! That year flew by fast!!
We finally met up the the Kirkhams at their beautiful home in their gated community! It is big with a beautiful backyard and swimming pool! We had a very nice visit, had some dinner and then Sister Kirkham took me on a bike ride around their community. That took an hour and I am not sure I will be able to sit tomorrow! It is quite warm here and humid! I didn't remember that it was this hot last year at this time! We are tired after traveling all day!
Cancun is a very nice place to visit!
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| Here is the same church we went to last May with the family! |
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| Visiting with Sister Aurelia Rodriguez Greg baptized her 43 years ago! This is who he gave a blessing to last year in Cancun! |
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| Through the gate and down the street to the Kirkhams mission home! Look at these homes! They are all HUGE and nice Who wants to live here! |
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| This is the next door neighbors home! |
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| This is the backyard of the mission home! Over to the left is a big banana tree with lots of bananas growing on it! |
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| Sister Kirkham took me on a ride ALL through the gated community! It took us over an hour and we got home after dark! The security was following us all around. Look at the homes behind us! |
Thursday, May 14th Happy Anniversary Jeff & Rachel!
We got up early again to get to the zone conference and breakfast. The Kirkhams had breakfast catered by the little restaurant across the street from the church. We had scrambled eggs, frioles, spicy meat, chicken legs, spanish rice and chilechilles. The eggs, beans and rice were edible but the rest was toooooooo spicy! We also had hot chocolate made with good chocolate and tons of cinnamon. That was interesting! Greg did his schpeel at the zone conference and we saw lots of the missionaries afterwards for different medical questions.
The Kirkhams took us to a restaurant for late lunch/early dinner. It was like a Golden Coral or maybe a Sizzler - except with all kinds of Mexican food choices!! The food was OK! and before we left the restaurant it had all gone straight through me! UGH! The Kirkhams son had come in to town for an interview to work for some company out of Cozumel. It was fun to talk to him. I am not sure I would want my son and his wife to move to Cozumel for work. The Kirkhams will be here as mission president for only 1 more year.
After the meal, we went to visit a dentist. I have been having some trouble with a tooth and he
x-rayed it. My crown is coming off and I need to get it fixed! He didn't have time to fix it since I was only staying until Saturday. Darn - he was a very cute dentist!!! He is engaged to the oral surgeon that works in his office! That is convienence! While we were waiting for the Kirkhams son to see the dentist, Sister Kirkham took us over to see the ocean and the very nice beach! The sand here is so soft and white! And the beautiful color of the water! Nice place! Poor Kirkhams that they have to live here and enjoy these sights every day for 3 years!!
We drove around looking at the sights of Cancun and got home after dark! No bike ride tonight! WHEW! My bottom couldn't take it!
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| This is called a cinote pronounced sin-o-tay They are big holes in the ground that have water in them and lots of them have tunnels to other huge cinotes People actually swim from one to the other often with scuba gear on! This one is in the front yard of a huge home near the mission home! |
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| A cool lighthouse in downtown Cancun |
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| Went to dinner at a restaurant - a mix between Golden Coral and Sizzlers with the Kirkhams! |
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| This awesome mall out by all the big hotels in Cancun! Love the stained glass dome ceiling! |
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| Beach, breeze and perfect sand - Cancun! |
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| It's hard to see the color of the water but it is so pretty! |
Friday, May 15th
Today was another very nice day in Cancun!! We got up early (again)! I am tired of this!!
We drove for 2 1/2 hours to a town called Valladolid. We had another zone meeting there. The missionaries had made breakfast here - pancakes! YES! Lots better than the breakfast yesterday!
The pancakes were hard to cut and chew, but at least they weren't spicy! HaHa!
The zone conference went well and all the missionaries are still so cute! We met a cute missionary that said he was from Simi Valley Ca. We asked him if he knew Dave Stevens (Greg's brother) and he was stunned when he answered yes - he is my Bishop! The church family is so small! This Elder's companion also lived in the same neighborhood we lived in - in Arizona. Small world!
The Kirkhams took us to a hotel with a nice restaurant in the center of it! I had chicken fajitas and the Kirkhams son had baby shark! He thought it tasted good! WHATEVER!! I can't believe they eat some of the things they eat down here! We met the doctor that takes care of the missionaries in this part of the vineyard. He is very nice and so patient with the missionaries. It is nice to have good doctors that help!
The Kirkhams took us to another pyramid that has only been discovered and uncovered for about 25 years. It is called Ek Balam It was very cool. I took pics, but I have had complaints (from my darling children) that all of my pyramid pics look the same! Sad! The pyramids don't look the same!
We had fun climbing on these with a skirt! Newsflash! - If you ever are climbing on pyramids - don't wear a skirt! You could kill yourself!
It took us another 21/2 hours to get back home. We hurried and packed up and headed to the Marriott for our one night stay there!!! The hotel is as nice as all the other Marriotts. We got a little dinner at about 9 pm and walked around the grounds. We got our suits on and sat in the hot tub for awhile. The ocean looks and sounds so nice at night! I wish we could stay for 3 weeks!
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| Market in Valladolid |
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| Market in center of town |
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| Market in center of town |
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| The market in Valladolid I think it's cool how all these people get up early every day and set up their little shops all over town! Hard work!! |
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| Peg loves to take pictures of hanging chickens Teeeheeee! Gross! |
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| Valladolid |
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| Beautiful jungle shrubbery I like taking pics around town! |
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| Two cute little old ladies sitting on the sidewalk selling their stuff! |
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| Interesting trees in Valladolid |
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| The Hotel where we ate lunch |
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| In the courtyard of the hotel. This is the view from where I was sitting and eating! |
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| This cute girl is hand making tortillas! |
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| This is the Kirkhams son Aaron! He ordered baby shark for lunch! Yum! |
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| El Balam! |
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| Entrance to temple - see below. |
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| More structures around the pyramid at Ek Balam |
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| Entrance to their temple. The doorway that looks like a crayon represents stairways descending from heaven. |
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| Surrounded by dense jungle (currently in a drought and the jungle is much more brown that usual.) |
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| Many small structures surrounding the pyramid |
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| Baptismal font? |
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| The pyramid at Ek Balam - the thatched roofs are to protect intricate carvings from weather and sun. This was buried by the inhabitants as they were about to be over run by a rival group and has been very well preserved. |
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| In front of the main pyramid at Ek Balam |
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| More Mayan carvings in stone |
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| Above this doorway is an upside down figure indicating he is returning from the heavens |
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| Pyramid in the jungle at Ek Balam |
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| This pyramid was probably built by apostates but the figures are doing interesting things with their arms and hands |
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| Ek Balam ruins |
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| Handsome couple at Ek Balam |
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| Handwoven hammocks being made right here by El Balam! |
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