For our first free Saturday, the entire student group headed for Hierve el Aqua ( a waterfall and hiking trail site). First, we had to take a bus to the town of Mitla, which was nearly an hour ride. Afterwards, we headed up the mountains in a truck - I sat in the back and got great photos! It was a really bumpy ride, and it started raining as we got farther up the mountain. We finally reached the waterfall site, half an hour later, took some photos, then headed over to the hiking trail. I am soooo glad I wore sneakers - it was my first hike and I was really scared. We had a guide, but the mountain was extremely steep and had narrow paths along the way. We ended the day with a relaxing  dip in the waterfall pool, and headed back to Oaxaca! Check out the photos below for our exciting journey.

At Mitla, we stopped for a bathroom break. The station had an interesting altar dedicated to who I believe to be the Virgin of Guadalupe, a significant figure in Mexican culture.

The back of the truck we took up the mountain. There were seats in front but I decided  to sit in the back to get photos of the scenery.

Here we go!

As we got farther up...

We finally arrived at the site, and of course, we saw stray dogs.

The pool! We went hiking first, so when we came back, there were barely any people there.

Up we go! Check out the walking sticks our guide gave us!

Along the way people have carved they names into the plants...

Amazing view!