Ok, this is my 1st post of the trip so far, so it might be a little lengthy. First of all, coming here has been quite different than what I expected. I've been to Mexico in the past, but only to major tourists sots such as Cancun and Cozumel. Here in Merida, there are few tourists. Another major difference between those tourist cities and Merida, is that no one here speaks a word of English. To me, that has been the most difficult adjustment to make during my stay here. When we go out to eat, a lot of times we have to point at the menu to order our entrees or we just get Harvey to tell us what's good and we all get that. But all in all, getting over the language barrier can be very frustrating at times when trying to do simple everyday activities. The first 2 days we were here, we went to el centro, or i guess downtown, to the markets. These areas are really poor parts of town, with many little food stands and cheaply made goods being sold. Imagine a US flea market multiplied by a thousand, filled with little Mayans all speaking Spanish, and you still might not be able to fathom the extent to which these people go about their daily lives. We did a really cool Intellectual Property project, where each group was sent into the market in search of violations of Intellectual Property. A lot of what we got were many "bootlegged" DVDs selling for $2 or less, but we also came across inadequate shoe brands, toys, and common American company's emblems being used on other products. We actually bought a handful of movies due to their low cost and in curiosity of how legitimate they actually were. Some were good and some were really bad, but overall, it was fun to test each one out.
The next big thing we did was our trip to the major Mexican Port of Progreso. Progreso recently built this huge port that ignites all major industries in Mexico, including cruises. But we were able to arrange a private tour of the port itself and had Sarah Hartzog to translate our tour guide. It was really neat to see the different stations at work, loading and unloading their different items. Although short, the tour was very exciting and informative. After touring the port, we went to eat at Flamingo's, located right on the beach of Progreso. The food there was excellent! After eating, we spent a few hours walking the beach and watching Justin and Brandon play soccer with some of the locals. They were very inviting and seemed very happy that we were able to express our appreciation for their culture.
Then was the long trip to the Millsaps reserve. The ride there totally sucked. Me and John got shafted and had to sit in the very back of the van. Doesn't seem that bad right? Wrong. There must have been 500 speed bumps between our house here in Merida to the reserve and if you've ever ridden on a school bus, the back seat feels every bump. I remeber one specific instance where Harvey was speeding along and by the time he realized we were coming up on a speed bump, it was too late. Right before we hit it he yells, "SORRY", and then...BAM! I swear me and John both slammed our heads into the roof and then came back down to our seat from about a 2-foot drop...not cool Harvey.

Well some of us are about to head to the movies to see Little Fockers, so I have to stop here for now.

To be continued...

By: Ryan Zemke