This was a good Sunday for us, although it turned out different than we had planned. Gerhard wanted to visit a ward we never had been to, so we chose Itzimná that started at 9:00 A.M. That way we would have time in the afternoon to rest before the afternoon meeting at the temple.

Gerhard studied the map of Mérida trying to guess how to get there, but finally called a member of the stake presidency for help. We followed the instructions we were given and only had to ask one time for help by someone on the street to locate the general area. We drove around
without seeing the chapel. On our second turn around, Gerhard said "There it is." If he hadn't seen the sign, we never would have recognized the building as an LDS chapel. You can see the elevator tower on the right that makes it possible for people with handicaps to go up to the second floor. We did see one lady in a wheelchair using it.


Brother Campos , a temple worker, and his "novia," Alicia, are in the picture. They can't get married yet because she never could afford to get a divorce from her husband who abandoned her and three children many years ago.
Below is a view of the patio of the chapel with the rock wall around it. This is typical Yucatecan construction--mampostería--rocks piled on top of one another with no apparent pattern. Buildings are often stuccoed in addition, but often left this way.
Brother Campos pointed out the other feature that identifies this as a Mormon chapel, the steeple, so we asked them to pose by it for one last picture.

Alicia invited us to eat a quick lunch at her house, so we saw how another member lives. The home was clean and orderly with framed pictures of pioneer scenes, the temple and family, although very lacking in conveniences that we take for granted. She apologized for just pulling things out of the refrigerator, but she did some magic, because when we sat down to eat, there was plenty and enough for leftovers.
I watched her as she prepared a soup with meatballs (made with hardboiled egg inside) and potatoes in a tomato and chile soup, and on the side "red" rice, refried beans with chorizo, tostada-type tortillas, avocado slices, and panela cheese (a soft white cheese we hadn't tried yet).
Bro. Campos made the "agua de piña." He put a peeled pineapple in the blender and then strained the juice. He added water, sugar and ice and it was delicious. His other contribution was the dessert--his favorite ice cream with pecans and almonds.
We learned about her family and how blessed she is to have two children serving missions. Her son is in Argentina and a daughter in California. Another daughter who has returned from her mission is now living and working in Guadalajara. We may have added some fuel to the teasing she gets from Bro. Campos as he tries to convert her to be a fan of the soccer team "America," when we told of the BYU-Utah rivalry our family feels, especially around the big game days.