¡Adiós!

As with all good things, our amazing month in Mérida in the gorgeous Yucatan peninsula of Mexico must also come to an end. As we headed to the farewell dinner at the elegant Museo de la Gastronomía Yucateca, we were still awaiting the results of the piñata contest. Would Don Mosquito of Dzibilchaltún be the dark horse - LOL - or would it be the Platanito en Llamas (The Flaming Little Banana)? Or perhaps, one of the two piñatas fashioned after the other Mayan wonder, Chichén Itzá? (Don Mosquito was the surprise winner; "Beauty is not always on the outside," explained one of the judges with a wink.) After our delicious meal, the teary goodbyes soon began.  Of course, NO ONE had packed.  Not that anyone was thinking about sleep even though about two-thirds of our group would have to be at the airport at 5:45 AM (the luckier contingent, especially for the night owls, would leave at 2:30 in the afternoon). 

Everyone was proud to be part of the first session after COVID 19 started, with all the added precautions, and to have had such a successful trip and positive experience.  When asked about the one best thing about their experience, no one could choose just ONE thing.  It was the friends, the immersion in a new culture, the hours-long impromptu plática (conversation) with a restaurant owner and his son, the dancing, painting and cooking classes, the local people, the beach, or the homestays (it was fun listening to the teenagers argue over who had the best host families).  Several students mentioned the diversity; they enjoyed coming together with young people from all over the United States; others could not get over the thrill of that first time they learned to regatear (bargain) with the street vendors, in one case successfully negotiating a handbag down from $400 to $250 pesos (from about $20.00 to $12.50  USD).

The memories and experiences formed here in Mérida have been life-changing for these young people: You can tell that by listening to them describe the past month.  Even better, you can see the joy and discovery in this last round of pictures. These kids have begun a lifetime of cultural bridge-building.  Looking into their misty eyes during the goodbyes, I saw future language teachers, engineers, lawyers, musicians, actors, airline pilots and entrepreneurs, in short, people who are going to make a mark in the world.  Thanks to this CIEE summer immersion program, that vast range of careers they will go on to pursue will bear the hallmarks of developing bilingual and bicultural competency.  Now if they could just get those bags packed!