Unlike most typical Sundays in my life, this one was a great way to open the new year. This morning I woke up slightly before my alarm went off, since I was really excited knowing that it would be an eventful day at the archeological site of Xunantunich. Although I have visited other countries in Central America, I have not had the opportunity to visit historical places.
However, I was initially not prepared for the walk that was ahead for all of us while heading up to Xunantunich, but despite that, the weather was pleasant and it also an opportunity to interact more with my classmates and professors. I did not know anything about Xunantunich prior to visiting today but unveiling the unfamiliarity of seeing all the other structures that are associated with the main temple was really neat. I really enjoyed learning about each structure and the purpose that it served. Reaching the top of Xunantunich has definitely been one of my greatest accomplishments so far of 2020, the effort of getting to the top reminded me a little bit of how my classmates and striving for our goal of graduation this May, and to keep on working hard!
After Xunantunich, most of my classmates and I were exhausted, but we were still eager to go to the river since we had been planning to go for several days now. Although I was tired, I thought the river would be a great idea to just sit back and cool off, but things took an unexpected turn.
I have previously been told horror stories of rivers of Central America, but my thoughts were “how bad could it really be?” or “what’s the worst that can happen?” I thought that maybe I would simply slip on a rock but get right back up and be okay. When I saw my classmates and professors confidently go further into the river, I underestimated the river current and was slowly being pulled to the waterfalls. When I reached a point of no return, our group leader Chad was helping get to safety but we both slipped and fell into the waterfall. My first reaction was to hold my breath and get up as fast as possible. For a few seconds I did think that I was going to drown… but the most important thing to do was not to panic and keep swimming. Thankfully, both Chad and I got out of the river safely, but it will definitely be an experience to remember for me and everyone that was present. I realized that I have been using the word “adventure” a bit too loosely but after today’s adventure, this is one of a kind where all sorts of survival skills were applied. Jasmine Turcios
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