Trip to Chiapas: Sunday

On Sunday morning after having breakfast at the hotel we all hit the road and went to two indigenous villages up in the mountains outside of San Cristobal. The first village is called San Juan Chamula and it has been selected as a World Heritage Town. We were not able to take pictures of anything in the town--buildings, people, etc. because they don't want it to become a huge tourist spot. Bare with me as I try "to use my words" to explain everything I saw...as Josh Groban is playing in my headphones. =)

Chamula is about 20 minutes by car from San Cristobal. As we were driving there, people were walking down from their houses outside of Chamula to go to the cemetery. They all had pine needles and marigolds in their hands. The pine needles are used to clean off the graves and then they put marigolds all over the graves. This cemetery was very different from the cemetery in San Cristobal because this town has kept its heritage since the Pre-Hispanic area so (1200-1500AD) so the graves are very simple and are covered with dirt and not buried very deep. They also did not have any tombs like my pictures showed from the cemetery in San Cristobal. We then walked down into the town and I was in love with the difference in culture and the fact that this village has kept its heritage. The men were wearing sheep skins as almost a shawl (space cut to go around their neck, and then their arms were free--There were not sleeves). They wore a long sleeve shirt like a button down flannel shirt underneath and had a belt around the sheep skin probably about the height of the belly button because then they just wore jeans, boots, and a cowboy hat to finish it off. The women wore black sheep skin skirts and very decorative blouses. It was also that undergarments were not that important to them because there were women just openly breast feeding while we were there. I have no problem with that but it is completely different than if we were in the US.

As we walked to the market which was in the town square we got a little glimpse of their culture. It would have been a perfect postcard to take a picture of men sitting around or standing and talking amongst themselves outside the municipal building, but of course we didn't even take our cameras with us to respect their desires. Then the church courtyard and church were about a football field length away from the municipal building. Since we didn't have Luis who knows everything about anywhere we go, we didn't really know if we would be allowed into the church. Since Day of the Dead was Monday and we were there on Sunday, they were starting a whole ceremony that Val had never seen before because she had only been there on a regular Sunday which is a completely different experience. As we walked to the church, the autoridades or authorities were kind of outside their church courtyard when normally they are on one of the sides of the market taking care of business. Val told us that usually people come and tell them about what has happened like someone stole some sheep or something and they will make justice happen. It is just like it was in the Pre-Hispanic era.

So as we were walking into the church courtyard, we just kind of kept our distance and walked slowly because we didn't even know if we were allowed in. Right away Val noticed that the church doors were completely open which is never the case. When we walked in the doors my jaw dropped probably to the floor. The actual sanctuary was huge! There were banners hung from the walls across the width of the walls that were very elaborate. The length of the church was probably about 50 yards. So as we walk in, there are only men filling up the church except for about 30ft. from the church doors. There were about 15 flags that different men were holding that had different depictions of Jesus. There was then incense filling the church from closer to the altar. Then as I look to the direction of the altar, I see 3 different, decorated crosses on poles being carried closer to the church doors where we were standing off to the side at. As they start making their way to the men with the flags, the band really starts playing. There were a couple brass instruments and a trumpet and quite a few drums. So by this time, the sounds, smells, and what we were seeing was becoming overwhelming but an amazing overwhelming feeling. There was no culture shock for me because I was just trying to experience everything and not think about anything else.

So once the crosses got to the men with the flags, I saw 5 saints neatly decorated with silk and cloth and mirrors around their necks that the people believe reflects the bad spirits out. All of a sudden, they make a line and face the church doors and church courtyard. They start marching out and I was in awe. These people were so into their ceremony that they didn't realize we were there. Once they all paraded out, we walked up front and saw saints in glass boxes on both sides of us. I was kind of feeling awkward and really felt that there was a presence of a demonic spirit. So I walked down the middle and looked at the saints which freaked me out and then looked at the altar which was very decorated and decided to walk out. Once we got back into the church courtyard, we saw that the whole parade was making a pass around the entire fenced-in courtyard. So we decided to stand in the middle of the courtyard to be out of the way but the bells outside of the church were ringing at this point and the authorities were lighting fireworks that were on poles that they were holding up in the air. Then they put a bunch of small fireworks on terraces and they all went off at once. There were three terraces that made sort of a triangle figure and when they went off we wished someone would have taken video of us because we all jumped, screamed, huddled in together and felt awkward because all these fireworks were going off around us. Normally in the US we have to be about a football field distance away from the fireworks going off, but no, not here! They weren't like normal fireworks with colors but they were VERY loud! So at this point, we decided to walk out of the church courtyard and walk around the market. Once the parade of flags, crosses, saints, and the band made one pass around the courtyard, the saints were carried back into the church but the rest of the parade made 4 or 5 more passes by the time we left.

Chamula was an experience I will never forget. I just hope you understand what I mean as I am trying to explain in detail what my perceptions and experiences were. Once we left Chamula, we headed for Zinacantan which was about 10min. away and the town was completely dead. We didn't even know where the cemetery was. This town is known for their flower fields which produces flowers that are then shipped around the world. We couldn't take pictures of the people or the church at this town either but I did get a couple pictures of the town. However, they didn't turn out very well at all so I'm not going to put them on here. This church was not as elaborate but it was nicely decorated. There were about 5 glass caskets with a figure of Jesus laying in them and I asked why that was and I found out that for the Mayans they believe they need to see Jesus in the tomb. I don't know if its to symbolize that He actually came here or to see Him dead. I have no clue. I just know I do not believe that He is still dead, because I know for a fact that He is ALIVE. I also found out that if you go outside the church into a separate building that is like a chapel, there are authority figures that hand out liquor that is supposedly their form of communion? I feel that I am missing a lot of information because Luis wasn't with us. But, when he goes with us to Chichen Itza, I will ask him these things and get it all cleared up! =)

But while standing around outside the church in Zinacantan I found out that if we would have gone to the church in Chamula on a typical Sunday we would have seen families performing their own ceremonies on the floor of the church. They probably would have been sacrificing a chicken or small animal and then had the liquor in front of them with the candles as well as a 2L bottle of Coke or Pepsi. They have the pop because they believe that evil spirits are released when they burp. There is definitely a combination of Peganism and Catholicism. However, it is hard to explain their beliefs because they pray to saints and have crosses but yet they still make animal sacrifices, have to burp to let evil spirits, and have to see Jesus laying in a tomb. So I was trying to find a balance between their religion and traditions and my beliefs and The Truth. However, I was just observing so I was just trying to experience everything possible.

After leaving Zinacantan, we made our way back down the mountains to Palenque where we spent Sunday night in the same hotel we spent in Thursday night. I can't tell you how much I will not take TV and air conditioning for granted! I have only had either when we have been in a hotel. But then again, its been great not having to have a TV especially since I hardly watch it anyway except to pop in a movie or to watch TLC. =)