Sorry it has been so long...

Wow how time flies. I haven´t been updating this once thought convenient blog as often as I thought I would be. Lauren and I have been traveling around through Chiapas, Mexico for the past 5 or so days, enjoying being tourists.

Ventanilla was an interesting experience. We spent our mornings filling little bags with dirt to be planted with mangrove seeds that we would collect in the afternoons. We also fed and cleaned the deer cages as well as helped take care of the volunteer´s house. All in all a good time but maybe a little bit too much time spent there. It all got a little old after awhile. The volunteer work wasn´t very structured and the other volunteer showing us what to do wasn´t all that motivated so it was hard to keep busy. My spanish did start to improve though as there were only two other fluent english speakers in the village.

Then it was on to San Cristonal de las Casas. I would recommend everyone to come here! But be warned it is cold. The city is just the right size to be able to explore but not get too lost. The markets are a lot of fun and there is incredible coffee here. (If you do come you must stay in Las Palomas. An excellent little hostel located within walking distance of everything.) San Cristobal is full of native indians. The villages surrounding the city (and the city itself) is so full of culture, it is incredible.

We have just arrived for one more night in San Cristobal from a two night excursion to Palenque. We stayed in a great little village called El Panchan. We were within walking distance of the Mayan ruins of Palenque. Exploring them was pretty incredible. The Mayans have such an interesting history and it was amazing to be able to stand in their buildings. Although I was a little disappointed at just how touristy it was with manicured lawns and scaffolding on some of the ruins. The next day we joined a tour of several waterfalls and hopped on a bus back to San Cristobal.

Sorry for the brevity of the last week or so. Free internet is great but it also means there are lots of people waiting to use the computer.

Oh other good news... I have started a flickr account and should have some photos up soon.