Customer Reviews

Where the Sky is Born: Living in the Land of the Maya

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

From the jungles of the Yucatan to the jungles of border patrols and immigration authorities, from pristine beaches to ancient ruins, Jeanine Lee Kitchel's story is a spellbinding, chilling, and humorous adventure of her impassioned effort to realize her dream of "Living in the Land of the Maya."
Beginning with a serendipitous meeting with a man toting a yellow umbrella, Jeanine follows her intrigue to the ends of civilization as we know it, and back. Refusing to be exiled to the land of the "gringos," she links the otherly world of the Mayas with today's Mexican societal peccadilloes and reconciles the differences such that she (as well as we) better understand the fusion.
This book will make you feel as if you've watched a movie where the characters are either so despicable or likeable that you're sure that you've met them somewhere in your life, where the scenes are so enticingly vivid that you can't choose which you'd like to visit in real life. This is a story of hope, perseverance, survival, and love-love for the Mayan people, their rich history, and the place in which they live: "Where the Sky is Born."
No less than a south of the border "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil," "Where the Sky is Born" effervesces comedic characters, ancient ruins, history, culture, mystical beliefs, as well as promise for an end to the frustrations Jeanine experiences along the way. You will not be disappointed! This is a beautiful story.
Donna Lee Gorrell, author, "Perfect Madness"

For a first time published writer, Jeanine Kitchel does a wonderful job of narrating the trials and tribulations she and her husband experienced in realizing their dream ... building and owning a home in Mexico's Riviera Maya. Her book is factual, delightful, easy to read and hard to put down. Reading it anywhere is fun. Reading it in the Riviera Maya lying in a hammock under a "palapa" with a "cold one" on a tray next to you would be sheer delight.

I want to let others know how much I enjoyed this book.
When I began reading, I was immediatly transported back to the Yucatan, to many of the places we had just visited; Coba, Puerto Morelos, Valledolid, Ek Balam, Chichen Itza (of course), and Merida. Jeanine's candid narrative hit home with me and my impressions of the people and the places she wrote about. To me, Yucatan is vastly different (and much more comfortable) than other parts of Mexico that I've visited - and her book paralleled and reinforced my experience while adding the depth of her experience. She colorfully described the perils and pleasures of building a house in the Yucatan - which encourages me to think more about retiring there. We must also share an appreciation of wonderful Yucatecan food, although I would have enjoyed longer descriptions. Jeanine clearly writes from the heart. A good read by an interesting lady who, with her husband, dreamed, planned, then lived the adventure. Perhaps, in a future edition, Jeanine will write a sequel. I certainly hope so.

Where The Sky Is Born: Living In The Land Of The Maya is the personal travel memoir of Jeanine Kitchel and her husband who left the rigid drive of their Silicon Valley jobs in order to pursue a more relaxed life and fulfilling life in Mexico. Despite various conflicts and diverse upsets (including the Mexico government's seizer of their land by eminent domain and a category-5 hurricane), the Kitchels' finally succeeded in building a home, and eventually traveled into the depths of the Yucatan to see Mayan ruins for themselves. Where The Sky Is Born is a genuinely engaging combination travelogue and autobiography of following one's dream "down Mexico way".

Having recently bought some property in Puerto Aventuras I bought this book to learn about a fellow Gringo's experience in buying and building in Mexico. WOW!!! Not sure I would have bought had I read this first. But she does give an exceptional summary of dreaming of living on the beach in the mid 80s and the number of years and twist and turns it took to accomplish her goal. In addition to all the information on what not to do and on the construction business climate (or lack thereof) in Mexico she provides an entertaining story of achieving her goal. And, while I'm watching a hurricane track onto my property this weekend, she forewarned that this is a constant issue and even gave insight into how potential damage could be avoided.

While not included in the book I must editorialize that the climate in Mexico has changed drastically for foreigners buying ocean front property and one should not be near as worried as in the past. However, it is still a "cowboy" climate where buyers should beware. I have seen property sold where the owners cannot build unbeknownst to them and I've seen zoning issues strangely held up. Values of land on legal documents are rampantly understated to save taxes for the seller to the point of sellers refusing to sell if the buyer doesn't agree to this fraudulent practice. And, finally, do government officials tend to have their hands out for bribes? While I have not seen this I do hear stories. On the positive side, the people of Mexico are quite charming and the influx of a large European population makes for an interesting mix of neighbors.

Maybe the author will update her book for her recent history. I Googled her name and found a bookstore she started and later sold. She is still in Mexico and still loving it. If you want an interesting history of buying property in Mexico that is both entertaining, funny and educational, I strongly recommend this book.

I was assigned this book for a class on Mayan Culture and Civilization, so that certainly impacted the lens through which I read this book. I was expecting a book on the Mayans, and that's not at all what this is. It's really a book about buying property and building a house in Mexico - if that's what you're looking for, great. If you want to learn about the Mayans, don't waste your time with this one.
I still only gave this two stars because I felt the writing could have been a lot better.

I lived in this town. From this perspective I found the book interesting, dotted with truisms about ex-pats in Mexico and locals whom I know personally. Could be a learning lesson for those with limited overseas' living experience who think they want to buy property in a foreign land. The writing is sophomoric which is what prevents the book from being a must read. It's not bad writing, it just lacks something. If I weren't motivated by personal reasons, I don't know that I would have finished it.

I ordered this book prior to a trip to Puerto Morelos thinking it might be an interesting read. It WAS an interesting read, and much more! The author is an excellent writer and has created an almost suspence-like page-turner out of her very informative and entertaining book, Where the Sky is Born. The book is also inspirational as it leads the reader to understand that when you have a dream that is important enough, you will find the means to accomplish it. I devoured the book in one day and enjoyed every minute of it.

Puerto Morelos was also wonderful. A special treat was meeting Ms. Kitchel while we were there. She is an extremely interesting and kind woman. Looking forward to additional books in the future!

Good book to get a feel for the rhythm and flow of living in Costa Mayan Mexico - encounters that you can expect with government employees, natives, other expats, etc. Nothing real deep or enlightening, but gives a good sense of what to expect. This was a quick read - it goes by fast.

What an enchanting adventure. This is a true story that kept my attention focused through the whole book. I wish it had been longer. It was easy to put myself in Jeanine's place and a few times I wish I had been there with her doing what she and her husband were doing.