Learn about Mayan Culture and help repairing old Mayan Huts with Palm Leaves
Yucatan, Mexico’s great green tropical penisula full of culture and waterholes
Continuing your Travels from Cancun you might want to stop by Merida. Capital of Yucatan and surrounded by many small pueblos with Mayan minorities still maintaining the mayan language and tradtitions. Enjoy the City and its vibrant streets filled with old colonial buildings.
Learn via Volunteering kitesurfing in Progreso, north of Merida at the beach. Go Kayaking in Crocodile infested waters west of Merida in Celestun. Explore multiple Cenotes east and south of Merida, especially around and in Homun. There’s multiple volunteering options for you to choose here.
When starting your first time it might be best to start in a Hostel, being the Reception. This way you can save yourself the money for the stay and learn hospitality on the go for future big Cities. The work usually isn’t that hard and a great way to connect with backpackers from everywhere.
Chicxulub, small Pueblo, big cultures and people!
Here’s where things got interesting with volunteering but finding those little gems is not easy since profiles don’t always show everything. Luckily I got a spot for the two weeks of gathering palm leaves and repairing Mayan Huts. We were a group of five. Another German and myself, one from America, one from Franch and a Colombian girl. We got situated in the Hosts own little Airbnb/Cultural Center. We had decent beds, a swimming pool and furry company. Great Start to a Mayan and Local Lifestyle.
After a good evening of food, introductions and a good night’s sleep we set out for our first day of work. The first week consisted of collecting palm leaves. Which meant climbing special Palm trees with ladders, chopping excess leaves off, gathering the leaves and specifically preparing them for drying. This was all done in perparation for the second week.
In my opinion the first week was the better one of the two since I’m a really adrenaline loving Junkie. What better way of getting adrenaline than climbing palm trees with a machete and chopping off leaves or sometimes coconuts for our breaks and rehydration is there?
In our free time we got visited a lot by the local friends of our Host. They were very interested in us and we spent some good times together. We went to the beach and saw a local bull fight. I myself also went on a lot of trips by bicycle. If you fancy deserted villages taken over by nature make sure to visit Misnébalam. A little less than an hour away from Chicxculub on a relatively nice and quiet trail road.
Second week was more about the cultural aspect and learning about the repair of old mayan huts. Our Host seemed to know everyone on the town. We arrived at our first Hut and got to working immediately. We took out the old and broken leaves and replaced them with the newer leaves from our first week. It was interesting to see the method and appreciate the ingenuity of the mayan people back then.
After all was said and done we had two weeks of great experiences. We worked a lot, we got invited to locals homes to attend parties or lunches and were welcome with open arms. The bond of friendship with our volunteer group still lasts and is being maintained even till today.
I hope you enjoyed my story and will have a similar nice experience volunteering wherever you are. I wish you good times on your Journeys and may our paths cross someday.