Today, we went to two towns and religious sites -- Tihosuco and Xoken. Tihosuco is pictured above. We talked about the history of Spanish exploration, conversion and colonialism. And we talked about caste wars and revolts. It's not a pretty history, but, in many ways, it is a proud one for the Yucatecan Mayan people.

We also talked about religious syncretism, something that always fascinates me. Religions always converge when they collide in different cultures, particularly when they converge in ways that are forced. The religious site at Xoken, for example -- where we could not take photos -- was a fascinating mixture of Mayan and Roman Catholic mythology. The relic of the cross was dressed in traditional Mayan, female dress, signifying the feminine. Beneath her were her children -- Mary, Lady Guadalupe, Jesus, and others. The power of the feminine in creation was powerful in this cult of Chan Santa Cruzco.

What is notable about this sect is that it is still vibrant today. We often think of the ancient Maya and forget the richness of the contemporary Maya.

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Our trip today took us to places that are not on the American tourist map. They are not designed for us. Many in Tihosuco and Xoken speak Spanish as a second language (Maya as a first). There was no English to be found, no markers to tell us to look here but not there. Miguel guided us through this space, but I hope it gave the students a good point of contrast to consider how certain places in Mexico are designed specifically for (American) tourists and other places are not.

It is a privilege  to go to such places to see what Miguel (our guide) calls the "real" Mexico. Of course, there is a flip side to this also, one I felt acutely in their religious spaces -- a sense that we did not belong, that our presence was disrupting the flow of their everyday life. They are gracious people (and the children are so very curious about us!), but movement within non-tourist spaces creates its own set of questions and paradoxes.

Working through these questions and paradoxes requires, I suggest, a recognition of the privilege it was to be there. I am happy to be part of a group of gracious students who "get" this. I was proud of them today  (as I have been each day on our trip).

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We're moving into the part of our class where we begin talking about pilgrimage as a form of tourism. Pilgrims, we are told, travel toward a sacred center, while tourists travel to the periphery, often in search of a new sacred center or as a diversion from everyday life. This is Cohen's point of view anyway. This is too simplistic as a model, but it's a good starting point.

It will be fascinating to see how different people -- traditional pilgrims, New Age pilgrims, and a variety of tourists with different motivations -- appropriate the same spaces in completely different ways.

Stay tuned.

Hasta luego....