Chichen Itza!

One "Bucket List" item checked-off for me!
We had our first tour from "Helaman Tours" on Saturday, 5/15. We had "Carlos" as our guide (apparently Helaman and his son, Nefi, were both busy with other groups). But, Carlos was excellent and we had an interesting and uplifting day. Chichen Itza was spectacular (it's one of the "icons" of ancient american ruins) and Carlos was able to bring certain passages and aspects of the Book of Mormon to life. Although Chichen Itza is part of the Mayan "classical period" and had its peak after Book of Mormon times (and is probably not in the geographical area that may have been the home to BofM peoples), there were still several aspects that seem as though they could have come from BofM teachings and society.
We also visited a less-popular ruin named "Ek Balam" (there were only a couple of other people there). This ruin dates from the Mayan pre-classical period, which better matches BofM chronology. Again, Carlos pointed out some very intereting things that, while puzzling and meaningless to non-LDS archeologists, are pretty amazing to those with an LDS background (especially if you've been to the temple!). We'll share more of what we learned and felt. (Well, maybe not what we "felt" after climbing up 110 steep steps on a pyramid! Actually, coming down was harder for me...!)
Today (Sunday, 5/16) was a slower day. We went to Sacrament meeting in one of the Wards here at noon - didn't understand more than a few words during the entire meeting (well, the song "Oh Mi Padre" was pretty easy to figure out!) but the spirit was there and I hope that Chelsea and Erik had a good experience in their first non-American meeting of Saints. The rest of the day was spent relaxing, playing games, reading, and video-skyping with Josh and Barbie so that we could actually see and hear our new grandson.
It's currently raining pretty hard - but that's OK since it's dark outside and we're inside. We hope to see blue skies again in the morning.
Love you all!