Jungle Crossing

by Sydney Salter

  I also wanted to show readers that descendents of the ancient Mayans, like Nando, still live in Mexico today. Although the Spanish conquistadors devastated Mayan culture by burning books, enslaving people, and bringing disease and death, many of the Mayan people survived. Their descendents are now scattered throughout Mexico, Central America, and the United States. In fact, if you're of Hispanic heritage, there's a chance that your ancestors once lived in the great ancient Mayan kingdoms.

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  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Thanks first to my daughters, Emma and Sophie, who inspired me to begin my writing journey.

  Thanks to my writing group, especially Kelley and Susan, for helping me make it through the thorny tangled times.

  Thanks to my family, whose support for this book I will always treasure: my grandpa, Ted; my mom, Rondi; my dad, Dave; my step-mom, Stephanie; my mother-in-law, Marcia; my brother, Ethan; and my sister-in-law, Colleen.

  Thanks to my husband, Mike, with whom I've shared so many adventures (with many more to come).

  Thanks to my agent, Ted Malawer, for his enthusiasm and all those initial excavations!

  And finally, a pyramid of thanks to my editor, Julie Tibbott, who worked like a literary archaeologist to help me uncover the heart of the story.

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  GLOSSARY

  altar a large stone used for religious rituals and offerings

  amigas friends

  amor love

  atole a warm cornmeal drink

  balam jaguar

  banditos bandits

  bienvenido welcome

  bisabuela great-grandmother

  bonita beautiful

  bonjour hello (French)

  buenos días good morning

  ceiba tree a sacred tree at the center of the Mayan universe, believed to reach from the Otherworld into the heavens

  Chac the Mayan rain god

  Chac Mool stone statues of a reclining human figure, used in ancient Mayan rituals, including sacrifice

  chérie dear (French)

  Chichén/Chichén Itzá an ancient city located in the northern center of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico

  chicleros men who collected sap from the zapote tree that was then used to make chewing gum

  coati a small, racoon-like mammal

  Cobá an ancient Mayan city located in the Yucatán

  con with

  copal a smoky-scented incense made from tree sap, used as offering to the gods. Also known as pom

  daykeeper a person who kept track of the calendar days, performed rituals, and read the future

  digging stick a long, pointed stick used by Mayans to plant corn

  ¿Estás listo? Are you ready?

  flint a hard gray rock, used to make weapons; also starts fires; used in sacrifice

  frijoles beans

  gracias thank you

  Great Star Venus

  Hero Twins the brothers at the center of the Mayan religious book The Popul Vuh

  Hola hello

  impatiens a plant with pink, red, or white flowers; used to make dye

  incense burner a sculpture used to burn incense for religious worship

  jade a hard green stone that symbolized maize, water, sky, and life; often used for jewelry

  kan snake

  Kulkucan/Great Vision Serpent represented by a feathered serpent; a god of war

  "Las Mañanitas" the Mexican birthday song

  lip plug a stone jewel placed in a lip piercing

  maize god a beautiful young god associated with the Hero Twins myth

  Middleworld the earth's surface, where people and animals live

  me llamo my name

  milpa a small field containing several crops, including corn, beans, squash, and melons

  mol monkey

  muy very

  obsidian a dark, glassy lava stone used to make weapons and mirrors

  offering a gift given to the gods

  Otherworld/Xibalba a scary place under the surface of the earth that could be entered by a cave or standing water; ruled by gods of death and other lords

  peccary a wild pig

  pom a smoky-scented incense made from tree sap; burned in Mayan religious ceremonies

  por favor please

  prima female cousin

  profesor teacher

  pulque alcoholic beverage often used in religious ceremonies

  quinceañera a girl's fifteenth birthday tradition that celebrates God, family, friends, music, food, and dance

  ramon a bright green nut often gathered when crops failed

  señor sir

  scribe a person who writes books by hand

  sí yes

  skull pressing a practice used to create an elongated forehead, thought to be very beautiful

  Snake Mountain a carving depicted in Chichén Itzá, believed to represent an aspect of creation

  sun disk a symbol of war

  tamale steamed corn dough filled with meat or vegetables and wrapped in cornhusks

  taquito a rolled-up tortilla, stuffed with meat filling and deep-fried

  trumpline a strap attached to a backpack that is worn over the top of the head to ease the burden of carrying heavy loads

  turista tourist

  turquoise a greenish-blue stone used for jewelry

  uno one

  vámonos Let's go!

  Wak-Kan, Six Snake another name for the World Tree

  way wizard-like power

  World Tree a symbol of the center of the Mayan universe

  Xibalba/Otherworld a scary place under the surface of the earth that could be entered by a cave or standing water, ruled by gods of death and other lords

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  WEBSITES FOR JUNGLE CROSSING

  The Mayan people developed a complicated calendar system that was more accurate than the one we use today. To learn more about it go to www.mayacalendar.com or www.michielb.nl/maya/astro.

  To read more about the Hero Twins story, go to www.mayas.mrdonn.org/herotwins.html.

  To learn more about the archaeological site of Chichén Itzá, go to www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chichen_itza or www.smm.org/sln/ma.

  To learn more about the archaeological site of Cobá, go to www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coba or www.smm.org/sln/ma.

  To learn more about the archaeological site of Tulum, go to www.wikipedia.org/wiki/tulum or www.smm.org/sln/ma.

  To learn more about Mayan gods and goddesses, go to www.mayankids.com.

  Do you think you might want to be an archaeologist someday? Go to www.digonsite.com for all kinds of fun information about ancient cultures around the world.

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  SYDNEY SALTER'S fascination with Mayan culture started when she was six years old and climbed down a steep, dimly lit stone staircase to the elaborately carved tomb of King Pacal, a ruler of Palenque. Visiting Mayan ruins, walking through fragrant Mexican marketplaces, and chasing lizards in the jungle ignited Sydney's imagination and led to writing Jungle Crossing. Sydney lives in Utah with her husband, two daughters, two cats, and two dogs. She loves reading, writing, cooking, and traveling—especially to Mexico. She is also the author of My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters.

  WWW.SYDNEYSALTER.COM

  FOR TEEN READERS:

  My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters

  "Complex, likable, believable characters and a fresh, appealing fictional voice pull together this very agreeable summer romance."

  —Kirkus Reviews

  HARCOURT

  HOUGHTON MIFFLIN HARCOURT

  WWW.HMHBOOKS.COM

  JACKET ILLUSTRATION © 2009 BY JOHN WEBSTER; JACKET DESIGN BY CAROL CHU

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