Discover the Yucatan and Mayan World

[faith31617]

Highly recommend this excursion.......

The brochure does not even do this excursion justice, we saw more that it described and our tour guide was awesome!!! It also says 4 hours and it was almost 5.

We boarded the bus and headed down the pier. As we pulled into Progreso the first thing that struck us was how different it was there as opposed to here in the states. We left the town of Progreso and headed down a road that showed us the backside of all the expensive oceanfront properties and he pointed out to us the one they call the mansion and told us a friend of his was one of the contractors that built the house and the guy that owns it also owns Burger King and that he had a Burger King built into the house :eek:

From there we were shown two lagoons and then a large place of water that had a whole bunch of Flamingos and from there we were shown the plants that the locals take leaves from to cover their huts.

Then it was on to see some of the ruins....there was the pyramid, governors mansion, church and lots of other ruins to explore and climb on, at first glance it didn't look like a lot but then when you explored further it just grew.

We went to a cemetery and the customs were explained and then you were allowed to walk through if you wanted to....I DIDN'T!!! :eek:

We then traveled to a very poor town that I am ashamed to say I never got the name of, but this was the true learning experience.....I can't even begin to explain to you how this place touched my heart. To see how these people live makes you really appreciate everything we have here. They live in huts and have very little....Carnival has arrangements made with one family to bring tour groups through their house and this is what we saw....there was not a door an either of the huts, you walked in the first one and there were hammocks hanging and the grandmother was sitting in one with the baby asleep beside her and her daughter standing beside her. There was a turkey sitting on its nest right there in the living room. There were other hammocks wrapped around poles (there was a tv and a refrigerator, but I am sure the money from Carnival afforded them the opportunity to purchase those) and a couple of chairs. Then you walk through that hut into another one that was the kitchen, it also had hammocks wrapped around poles from the ceiling, I looked at the kitchen and wondered how you would even begin to try to figure out how to cook in there. Out the back door of this hut was the preparation area where the grandfather was and it was in the yard area. There was no grass, only rocks and dirt, chickens and cats were running around and there was a dog on a chain. On top of the hut was a big black barrel and that is where they got their water, when it runs out they have to call for more to be delivered. In the back yard was an area where they took their baths with water coming through a hose from the black barrel. The tour guide explained that grandma and grandpa live there and have their kids and grandkids and when they die then their kids take their place. He said everyone else was either at work or school and that some move away and send money home. At this point I was so very thankful for all that I have.

As we traveled through the town we could see in other huts as we passed by them, they were all mostly the same.....nothing inside but hammocks and maybe a couple of chairs and little else. There were some homes in this town that were definitely not poor, but most were.

We also saw many iguanas on fences.

We then went to the town square and toured a Catholic Cathedral built in the 1700's.....it was amazing!!!! And then we went behind the church to a patio area and were treated to a Mayan lunch which was delicious, small but delicious and it came complete with entertainment from 5 young children dancing for us. After that we boarded the bus and headed back.

When we got back to Progreso I noticed soldiers everywhere carrying guns and riding in trucks with guns.....that was a little unsettling.

We were offered the opportunity to get off the bus and explore the town or continue on to the pier. After almost five hours we all were ready to get back to the ship.....besides we had to be back on board in another 30 minutes anyway.

I was very impressed with our tour guide and equally if not more impressed with the driver as he managed to maneuver that big bus through some very tight spots!!!!

IT WAS A VERY GOOD DAY!!!

(A couple of tips for this day....don't worry about bringing drinks as they are furnished, don't worry about a restroom break as there is a clean one on the bus and at the church, when at the patio and cemetery watch for bees)