Mediodia in Merida

Today, I learned more about mediodia. Actually, I experienced it. Mediodia is the two-hour "rest" in the middle of the day in Spain. The entire city literally shuts down for the afternoon and everyone goes home to eat and rest. The once bustling, noisy streets are quiet, stores close, children come home from school, even tourist attractions and historical sites close. All, that is, except restaurants, and they take advantage of tourists' "free time" by handing out fliers advertising their savory selections.

We, in planning our day, did not take mediodia into consideration. During the morning hours, we toured the courtyard around our hotel in Plaza Mayor as well as a main street and park. I have a greater appreciation for how much Jonathan walked in this area. He really knew his way around and was very valuable to us in navigating this city of narrow streets and tall buildings.
We packed a lunch and drove an hour to Merida where we saw ancient Roman ruins. We walked all over to find the pink signs which led us to the ampitheater.
We saw a few ruins on our way, had lunch in the plaza, and by the time we reached the ticket office, it was 1:20. They close at 2:00 for two hours. We could either see it then for 30 minutes or wait two hours and see it at 4:00. No wonder people were handing us fliers for their restaurants; they knew we would have two hours to kill. We decided, however, to buy our tickets, go in and see what we could fro 20 minutes (they start escorting you out ten minutes before two), and go back to Caceres.
We were able to see everything and even take a bunch of pictures before having to leave. Jonathan had been there twice and was a great tour guide.



This is a picture of the children going home for mediodia. As we walked back to our car, we literally watched the city shut down. I think it is a good tradition in some ways, one being that families can spend time together as they eat an afternoon meal. We, too, went back to our hotel and took a nap. When we went out to get some dinner at 6:00, we discovered that since people ate at 2:00, no food establishments were open to serve dinner until 8:00! So we bought some calzones at a bakery and pastries as well, took them back to our hotel room and ate.
This is a mailbox.
A little "stage kiss".
At 7:30, we drove to see the Blanco family. The weren't home, and I could see how disappointed Jonathan felt. As we were headed for our car, we saw the missionaries, Elders Jackson and MacArthur. They were so glad to see Jonathan. Elder MacArthur replaced Jonathan in Caceres six months ago. They, too, were going to the Blanco home. They had cell phone numbers, so they called, and a little while later, Patricia, the daughter, walked toward us on her way home. We all followed her, met the son, Juan, and the missionaries gave a message, after which we visited. The Blancos are very nice people. Juan was baptized while Jonathan was in Caceres. Their parents were in Trujillo attending her Aunt's funeral while we were visiting, but we were excited to meet them the following day.

I felt the spirit that evening as we were in the Blanco home and the missionaries were teaching, particularly when Jonathan gave the opening prayer and Elder MacArthur gave the closing prayer. Even though I didn't understand all or most of the words, I felt the spirit bear witness of the truth. It was a sweet experience to be part of a missionary teaching experience.