Agua Chocolate

8:22 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 30, 2010 – La Casa, Palenque, Mexico

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I finally got my stitches out, with a stern lecture from el doctor scolding me for keeping them in for eleven days rather than the prescribed seven. He just said my punishment would be it hurting more as the skin had partially healed over the stitches. When I road up to the park entrance to meet up with the rest of the group, I called Sarie to let her know I had arrived so she could hike out and get me (I had no idea where they would be in the forest since we hadn't tracked the monkeys the day before). However, I couldn't get through due to a lack of service on her side, so I just dozed off in the parking lot for an hour and a half until she finally got out of the dead zone. The other assistants and I survived the final two days of Pakal observation with the knowledge that we would have a nice, four day break ahead of us. The powers that be had business elsewhere that would keep them out of the field, and also recognized that we needed some time off.

Evelyn, Liz, Brittany and I decided to stay close to home for this break, as we all have been stressing out about applying for PhD programs. Most of the deadlines are the beginning of December, so we have loads to do before then. I have schools to research, potential advisers to email, recommendation letters to request, transcripts to send and statements of purpose to write.

Today, day two of the break, we did allow ourselves to take an afternoon trip to Agua Azul, some cascades about an hour away. We had a little trouble finding a ride at first, but finally hailed what I can best describe as a truck with a trailer in the back for transporting people. Not quite a colectivo, but still a common resort for getting from point A to point B. The last time we had ridden in one was on the way back from Misol-ha, which was a windy but enjoyable ride. The trailer had been covered on the top and sides, but not front and back—allowing for sufficient ventilation. This trip, which was twice as long at an hour and a half, was much more miserable. The bed of the truck was covered on all sides but the back, where the exhaust pipe was. So our quarters were quickly filled with fumes which stayed with us for the duration of the journey.

The road was long and winding, through the hills and around hairpin turns. Motion + fumes = 4 not so happy riders. Our perky conversation turned to silence about a third into the trip. When we finally arrived it was almost 4 p.m. We recovered our land legs and walked around the park, which consisted of magnificent cascades which seemed to go on forever. We would take pictures and admire one level, then go up the stairs to see the next…on and on for about six levels. While the area is known for its sparkling, clear-blue water, the past two weeks of solid rain coupled with the recent mud slides due to Tropical Storm Matthew have transformed Agua Azul into Agua Chocolate. But we enjoyed walking around and climbing trees until the park closed.

We once again struggled to find a ride back, finding from most drivers that they usually carry people from Palenque to Agua Azul but not back. Great system. Since we got burned last time we arranged ahead of time for a driver to come pick us up, we decided to wing it today. Luckily, we were able to talk one of the people-trailer drivers into taking us back for 60 pesos. This time we squeezed into the cab up front and our lungs were thankful.

When we got back to Palenque, we still needed a ride back to the house but it was after 6 p.m., when most colectivos stop running (taxis still run but are more expensive). While we were waiting, a man who was going to be taking some workers home asked where we were going, and said he could give us a ride. However, he turned down the left fork instead of the right and took us a few kilometers the wrong way. We finally shouted up to the front for him to drop us off, and none of us paid as we were even farther from home. A colectivo came our way and took us back to Palenque, but no more passed going towards our house. So, in keeping with our transportation woes, we walked all the way home.

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