Buenos dias!

I finally got here:) Only a ten hour flight and a bump on the head (and there were no bouncy castles involved!)
First, I have to tell you about my crazy waiter at breakfast this morning! He was so happy and spoke really fast... his name was Manwell haha! Couldn´t help but smile when he told me that! And you´ll be happy to know Dad, that everyone says Buenos dias here!

I had such a tiring day yesterday, but so amazing! First full day in Mexico and I got to see one of the 7 wonders of the world! I was picked up at my hotel at 6.30a.m., but then we had to pick up the rest of the coach. It wasn´t too bad though as we got unlimited free continental breakfast. You could tell I was the only student, everyone took one pastry, I took my sixty dolllars worth:)

We went to a place called the il cenote first, which is like a natural spring. Its about 50metres deep and has fish swimming in it, but despite that I swear I would have got in.. if they had lockers to keep my bag safe!
We stopped off for an all you can eat buffet, I had some Yucatan style chicken, so yummy! Whilst we were eating, the staff did a little folk dance. They would put bottles and glasses on their head to show how still they keep their upper body. Was quite cool!

We passed through some Mayan villages on the way. They have some beautiful houses! When at the Chichen Itza, our tour guide introduced us to some Mayan children who were selling things on the site. She was so cute with them, giving them fist bumps haha! She got them to speak the Mayan national anthem, to show how monotone the language is and almost like Asian countries (the Mayans are supposedly derived from the Mongolians). The children were selling little hand stitched handkerchiefs for a dollar, which they do every day after school which finishes at midday.
Apparently, when Mayan babies are born, they put boards on their head to elongate their skull, giving them really distinctive features. Two of the boys were half my height, so I thought they were about 6, but they were 14! Even smaller than the Mexicans! Some Mexican was convinved I was Canadian, because no European can be as small as me!!!

The pyramid on the Chichen Itza was awesome! If you clapped on one side, the echo was the sound of an eagle! And they had built it so that during the Equinox, the light effects produced a snake effect down the pyramid. Mayans were actually genius! Plus, we don´t need to panic, that whole thing about the end of the world being in 2012 isn´t true. 21st September 2012 is the end of the Mayan astronomical calender after 5000 or so years, supposedly when all the planets align, so all good:)

It´s been non stop cloudy since I got here:( I avoided the torrential downpours yesterday, luckily as they only happened while we were on the coach. I´m going to have a little wander around Playa del Carmen today, as its my last day without the tour group. I met a Canadian girl at breakfast this morning who has been on the GAP tour from Mexico city to here. She said it was so much fun, and her tour group bonded so well. She knows my tour rep, and said he was brilliant, if not a little off with directions (Oh great!). She said that apparently my tour is his favourite, so he should be excellent with us:)

Hope everyone´s OK at home! Bet your all getting more sunshine than me! And most likely bitten less by mosquitoes!
Love to you all! I´ll catch you all up again in a couple of days!

Jane xXx