Hacienda Chichen & Naturalist Jim

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My friend "Hammockman" Paul Rounds has put up a post at his blog about our November visit to Jim Conrad of BackyardNature.net . I'll now supplement that post with a few additional photos and recollections. Being only a junior-blogger wannabe, and newcomer, I felt it appropriate to let Paul break this story first; and he's done a fine job. He blogs from Merida, and can be found at HammockmanPaul.blogspot.com .

I've enjoyed Jim's newsletter for about a year, and found my way to it through Paul's sidebar of blogs which he follows. I was an avid reader of Thoreau when in high school. So it was compelling for me to make an effort to visit someone who was living like that 19th century contrarian in the modern age. And I wasn't disappointed. Jim has a spiritual aptitude which is anchored in reality.

He's practical, too. He has done some interesting work with the local Maya to help them improve their community — and he has learned much from them, as can be gleaned from his newsletter.

It was a wonderful adventure to drive to the Hacienda along the old road through the Mayan villages, bringing Paul and his son, Isaac, along. Mary and I are looking forward to staying overnight at this hotel, Hacienda Chichen, during our next visit. We've already got reservations made. Maybe we'll even tour the famous ruins, which are located on this same ranch, but thru a separate entrance.

Happy New Year, 2011, to all. Sorry I'm so far behind in posting. (Posted from home.)

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Photos

Entrance
The guest house and restaurant are ahead.

Huitlacoche
This (black serving) is what folks back home call corn smut, but is considered a mushroom / fungus delicacy here. (When life gives you corn smut, don't try making lemonade!)

My dish
Chicken with arroz, and fried plaintain garnish. D-lish.

Jim
"Ahoy! Anybody home?"
"Professor Conrad, I presume."
What a delightful guy, is Jim Conrad, living rustically behind the parking lot of the hacienda, in this thatched bamboo Mayan house, where he researches nature, and writes a weekly installment of his online newsletter called Backyard Nature.

Jim really rocks
Can't you tell? We all sat for awhile just watching the wildlife and chatting casually.

Garden Seedlings
The elevated platform protects the young sprouts from various dangers and predations.

Tomato patch
A gardener named Santos wields a wheelbarrow in the background.

A.Flutterbye
That's Latin, of course. <smirk>Not sure what the true name is.

Cenote
This "sink hole" is about 45 feet (15 meters) below the surface. The setting is intriguing. The name of the place is something like Yakszadot, on the old Mayan road west towards Merida.

Sinkhole strata
The descent down the stairs was a geologist's dissertation.