tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132445102011-04-21T18:06:56.820-07:00An obsessively detailed journal of 3 weeks studying Spanish in beautiful Oaxaca, southwest Mexico.Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.comBlogger541100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117326468601709462005-05-28T17:24:00.000-07:002005-12-06T21:41:44.060-08:00

Note: the easiest way to read this whole blog is to go and click this May 2005 link. It will take a bit to load, then you can easily just scroll down through the whole thing. If you have a spare 10 hours or so.A quick note: if I sound like a cranky, clueless gringo, well, these posts were mostly written at the end of long days of hard study and being lost and confused. Like so many travel

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117326262541848762005-05-28T17:22:00.000-07:002005-06-07T09:57:13.586-07:00

6:35 amLos Angeles International AirportThe adventure, and the confusion, begins.It is beginning to dawn on me that I am truly leaving English behind and stepping into a different world, a world of Spanish-speakers. I know that seems obvious, but I can be kind of dense. I will have to communicate all my needs in this other language for the next three weeks. It's a good thing I pretty much keep my

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117326128119914432005-05-28T17:21:00.000-07:002005-06-07T09:58:35.010-07:00

I am only writing about this because it is so different than every airport scene I have ever encountered, with shuffling masses proceeding calmly as cows to pasture.The Aeromexico terminal is a zoo. Lots of noise, people calling out to one another, people being joyful and sad, hanging onto each other, smiling, crying.It appears that people flying to Mexico from Los Angeles have a lot of luggage.

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117326056714153672005-05-28T17:20:00.000-07:002005-06-29T21:45:54.023-07:00

12:27 p.m. in the airSo far, so good, I got another customs form to replace the first one and managed not to screw it up so badly this time. The people sitting next to me are a honeymooning couple. I already knew the groom. He sat next to me in my Marriage and Family class at CSUN last semester. Out of a class of 160 people, he sat right next to me, and now here he is, next to me again. What are

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117326002906597452005-05-28T17:19:00.000-07:002005-06-07T10:01:44.953-07:00

2:39 p.m. Mexico City airportI am in Mexico!The descent into Mexico City was steep and swoopy. My stomach was doing flip-flops. I have never had a flight quite like it before. The plane makes a dive downward through turbulent clouds, then a long curving turn around tall buildings almost obscured by terrible smog.We got a little shuttle tram from the taxi way to the terminal. It looked like a

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117325950414988972005-05-28T17:18:00.000-07:002005-05-30T22:25:16.886-07:00

3:42 p.m. On the plane to OaxacaI couldn't see the northern part of Mexico on the first leg of the flight. They made us shut the window shades to watch the movie "Hidalgo," which kind of irritated me, especially because it looked to be a truly terrible movie. But this flight I can look out and see the beautiful green of Mexico through the clouds. Many areas are very rural with no habitation for

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117325904343638082005-05-28T17:17:00.000-07:002005-05-30T22:36:07.863-07:00

Monte Alban with Oaxaca in the backgroundThe guy next to me on the plane into Oaxaca was very friendly and gave me travel advice - visit Monte Alban, the church of some saint (turned out to be Santo Domingo, of course), the tree at Tule, and drink some mezcal, but not too much. Well, I have been on the ground less than two hours, and I have already had some mezcal - but just one shot. Not too

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117325809499395212005-05-28T17:15:00.000-07:002005-05-30T22:38:27.510-07:00

Dr. Gabriel Rodriguez, my host dad, met me at the airport in his little silver Peugeot, a cute car. He was a small thin man about 5 foot 4, maybe 55 years old, very dark brown and a with a kindly, lined face.He dragged my bag out for me, which was both gentlemanly and kind of funny since I probably outweigh him by 60 pounds. We tried to converse as best as we could, though I am having a sinking

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117325720302565932005-05-28T17:13:00.000-07:002005-06-07T09:51:55.593-07:00

The first thing we did was to to to a wedding! Dr. R asked me if I wanted to go to a "boda" and thinking he meant "bodega" (a place to drink) I said yes. I certainly was dressed more for a bar than for a wedding.I was off the plane about 10 minutes and we went to this site where people were sitting around at tables under a big tent with no sides. This band was standing around in a semi-circle on

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117325584962247832005-05-28T17:11:00.000-07:002005-05-31T10:19:31.730-07:00

Home at lastThe Rodriguez house is on a tightly packed, narrow street with orange and grapefruit street trees. All of the houses are built right up next to one another, mostly without front yards or just tiny patches behind wrought-iron bars. It appears to be pretty large and nice, though I have never seen another Mexican home, so I really don't have anything to compare it with. It is two-story.

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117325476570511102005-05-28T17:10:00.000-07:002005-06-05T22:13:31.640-07:00

6 p.m. I awoke at 5:30 and it was dark. By 6:30 it was pretty much light, but I lazed around in bed until 7, paralyzed at the idea of getting up to face a whole new world, then took a shower and finally went down for breakfast at 8. I wasn't sure whether the shower would have hot and cold. I don't know what to assume in Mexico. After seeing dogs living on the roof, my whole world is rocked.It

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117325390043510302005-05-28T17:09:00.000-07:002005-05-29T21:13:21.776-07:00

The PrefericoAfter scampering across the busy street, the Preferico, and trying not to get killed - people don't seem to be concerned about running over pedestrians - we entered downtown Oaxaca, also called the Centro. The buildings look old. This is a colonial city, settled by the Spaniards in 1500-something. There are about 50 big stone Catholic churches and ex-convents in town.The sidewalks

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117325334232459172005-05-28T17:07:00.000-07:002005-12-06T21:32:28.013-08:00

My school - Espanol InteractivoMy school is right downtown, about 2 blocks from the Zocalo, or main plaza. It doesn't look like anything from the outside. Like many of the buildings here, it presents a blank face to the street, but inside is ful of life.You enter the school through a big wooden door that swings in to plant-lined corridor to an inner courtyard. The walls are decorated with those

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117325242519219132005-05-28T17:05:00.000-07:002005-05-30T08:54:20.066-07:00

10:50 pmIt is raining. And lightning-ing. And thundering incredibly loud but not too frequently. Gabriel, Gloria and I just returned from the fiesta de los lunes del cerro. Lunes del cerro means "Mondays of the mountains." It is part of La Guelaguetza celebration. It is a time when people from all the surrounding villages come to Oaxaca city for a big annual fiesta.They were nice enough to take

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117325093908851352005-05-28T17:02:00.000-07:002005-05-30T08:49:49.500-07:00

7 p.m. It rained this afternoon. And rained. My second day of classes - is that all? It feels like so much longer and I don't feel any brighter or more competent en espanol than I did yesterday. I am working hard in class though.This morning I made my way across town, by myself this time, down the broad walkway on Avenida Ciruelos (Plum Avenue), past the three or four skinny dogs sleeping in the

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324948143296082005-05-28T17:01:00.000-07:002005-05-30T19:54:42.730-07:00

The city and lifeThere are no tall buildings here. Three stories seems to be the maximum. The cathedral of Santo Domingo is the tallest building in town, I think. I know they have earthquakes here, maybe that is the reason. All of the buildings are made of stone or concrete, no wooden buildings at all.The rhythm of the days is different here. In the morning it starts out slow. There isn't much

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324892650995102005-05-28T16:58:00.000-07:002005-05-30T19:48:47.006-07:00

Wet and tired. I kind of hit the wall today. It is amazing how tiring it is to think so hard in another language all day. Every single thing is different, everything must be considered carefully, nothing is habit. I am beginning to feel like I have a bad attitude in general. I had a bad attitude in Thousand Oaks and I have a bad attitude here. I was about ready to buy a plane ticket home at about

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324717523626272005-05-28T16:57:00.000-07:002005-06-29T22:10:21.266-07:00

The Mezcal Faire Part OneThen I went out into the rain again with my purple-flowered umbrella. I was in search of my classmates Nicole and Halo, who said they would be meeting at the Feria Nacional de Mezcal (the mezcal tasting) at 5 p.m. I didn't know that they had been in Mexico long enough to adopt the Mexican version of timekeeping...I walked around for the longest time. I knew the Mezcal

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324654950262282005-05-28T16:56:00.000-07:002005-05-30T19:53:08.536-07:00

7:35 pmToday was much better. I quit freaking out quite so much. Everything seemed a little more manageable for some reason. It was sunny, for one thing.I go down for breakfast - "almuerzo" in Spanish - and Sra. Gloria has left a plate of fruit (melon and bananas), two dry pieces of toast, and a cup of coffee flavored with cinnamon and mixed with milk, covered with a coaster so it will stay warm.

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324590805247142005-05-28T16:55:00.000-07:002005-05-29T21:38:33.906-07:00

Erica, Luis, Me & LuzFun and games at schoolToday in school, time went by a little more rapidly than usual because we took part of the morning off to play games. We had to give the other students the instructions in Spanish. All 15 or so of us were out on the patio together, and there was a nice feeling of solidarity, with all of us speaking bad Spanish, together.One of the games was "Telefono

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324510131509102005-05-28T16:53:00.000-07:002005-06-29T22:07:48.530-07:00

Skinny sidewalk9 pmMy brain is filled with so much new information. It seems like seeing and hearing and smelling so much new stuff actually makes it harder for me to learn Spanish, because I swear that my brain fills up. Sometimes there is just no more room!This morning almost the whole school went on a field trip to Ocotlan. Luz wanted me to stay at school for class, but I was determined to

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324356479515922005-05-28T16:52:00.000-07:002005-05-29T10:52:35.436-07:00

OcotlanWe got off the bus and went to a cuchilleria - a knife factory. Angel Aguilar, the knife maker, lectured in Spanish and demonstrated how, using ancient techniques, he turns recycled auto parts and plumbing fixtures into knives and swords. Angel explaining his workThe workmanship is quite beautiful and some of the designs quite exotic. I guess he has been to a bunch of Renaissance Faires in

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324308880283542005-05-28T16:51:00.000-07:002005-05-29T21:43:01.526-07:00

Rodolfo Morales, Ocotlan's famous artist...They had a bunch of his artwork there. I didn't find it attractive at all but you know I am a philistine anyway. Modern enough to be boring but not so modern to be exciting. It reminded me a little of Marc Chagall, whom I don't care for much, either.Then we went to Morales' house. He passed away a few years ago, but his house is operated as an art school

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324256597181802005-05-28T16:49:00.001-07:002005-05-29T21:45:30.710-07:00

Everyone here knows about genetically-modified corn from the United States and they are mad about it. I'll bet not one person in 10 in the U.S. can tell you about GMO corn, but here the barista in the coffeehouse talked to me about it for 10 minutes.Corn is so important here. Most people seem to have tortillas as their staple cereal, and that means corn, not flour, tortillas. A zillion other

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324179285132132005-05-28T16:49:00.000-07:002005-05-29T21:44:04.520-07:00

Food, more foodChiles sometimes disagree with me, and every meal except breakfast has some kind of chiles. I love how they taste but they don't always love me the way I love themThere are molinas, or mills, all over the place that make mole and other kinds of chocolate. You can see the chocolate paste coming out of the hopper at the molina. Drinking chocolate is part chocolate, part cinnamon, and

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324135966373862005-05-28T16:48:00.000-07:002005-05-30T19:58:34.506-07:00

I went to lunch at La Flor de Oaxaca with Christy, a woman from my class. We had ridden the bus together and struck up a conversation.She is from Oakland, has a longtime boyfriend from Venezuela, and has 2 kids, ages 3 and 6, with him. The kids are here with her because she wants to improve her Spanish and have them practice theirs.I went back for an hour of class with Linda. We played a game "

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117324083332812532005-05-28T16:46:00.000-07:002005-05-29T21:50:36.873-07:00

The Ethno-Botanic Garden - my new favorite place in OaxacaI went over to the ethnobotanic garden behind Santo Domingo. Why it is an ethnobotanic garden and not just a regular botanic garden I do not know.I got there just in time for a lecture at 6. Well, it would have been just in time, but this is Mexico, after all, so at 5 minutes before 6 it looked like nothing was going on. So I wandered

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117323982918221392005-05-28T16:44:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:22:09.370-07:00

9 p.m.A long day, but fun, all by myself as usual. I wish I was traveling with Greg. I really do feel rather lonely.It was a beautiful day for taking in the sights, warm and with a blue sky with big white clouds in the afternoon.I walked downtown about 11 a.m. and had coffee and a roll at the cutest little bakery/cafe, with tables under vines climbing up the walls and little arched doorways and

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117323847644479982005-05-28T16:42:00.000-07:002005-05-29T21:57:09.153-07:00

I went to the museum at the church of Santo Domingo. The museum is in the ex-convent part and is huge. It has the pre-historic artifacts from Monte Alban, and articles from pre-Hispanic and Hispanic history up to the present. The Mayan stuff on loan from another museum was very interesting. The Mayans weren't from this area - they were further south. They had a bunch of bloodletting tools and

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117323741057787962005-05-28T16:39:00.000-07:002005-05-30T19:59:20.250-07:00

8 pmI am tired and my head hurts a bit. I took a daylong tourist trip - with the emphasis on tourist - to Monte Alban and some other locations in the Oaxaca Valley. I didn't really realize the type of thing I was in for.First, this morning I called Mom and Dad. They were both in good cheer and pleased to hear from me. I was glad to hear them too! Dad was impressed that my room and board was only

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117323551065008772005-05-28T16:38:00.000-07:002005-06-29T22:14:34.916-07:00

The second stop was in Zaachila, a little town that had a nice, peaceful Sunday afternoon kind of feeling. We went to a huge old church. There was a funky little band of about 6 guys out front, wearing matching burgundy colored outfits and playing what sounded like Dixieland jazz. Zaachila market bathroom ticket - 10 centsThere were feathered headdresses set out like perhaps someone was going to

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117323474158261512005-05-28T16:35:00.000-07:002005-05-29T22:09:48.906-07:00

Lunes del Cerro, which means "Monday of the Mountains"Another big adventure, and one I was in no way prepared for.I had a message at the house that we were to arrive an hour early at school so we could go to La Guelaguetza. I just couldn't figure that one out, since the doors to La Guelaguetza in Oaxaca open at 5 a.m. and the stadium fills up quite early and we didn't even have tickets. I couldn’

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117323327800205532005-05-28T16:34:00.000-07:002005-05-29T22:12:43.466-07:00

La Guelaguetza beginsThe program was supposed to start at 2. Of course that didn't happen, but no one seemed to mind. The whole scene was merry and fun.It began about 3. First, someone started setting off a bunch of firecrackers, then there was a long introduction, then the queen of La Guelaguetza and her court promenaded on stage, then finally the dancers came out.Each of the 7 regions of Oaxaca

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117323239286942912005-05-28T16:31:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:05:27.433-07:00

8:15 pmWaiting for dinner, which is usually at 8. The family of course doesn't eat at 8. They eat dinner between 9:30 and 10:30 pm, a light meal of rolls and hot chocolate or something. I can'f figure this Oaxacan schedule out.People seem to be up early. They breakfast between 6 and 10 a.m., depending on their schedule. Lunch is at 3. Then kids eat between 6 and 8 p.m., and adults later. This is

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117323093801681562005-05-28T16:30:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:06:45.706-07:00

10 pmMy poor wrecked feet. My stupid sandals were hurting my feet so bad, so I bought these new ones at a store owned by a gringa up by Santo Domingo. I hated my old shoes so bad I didntt even want them anymore (the soles were pretty worn out). I just told her to dispose of them (she said she would leave them out for someone to find), and bought these comfy new ones with wide elastic straps. Then

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117322956458742242005-05-28T16:28:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:08:54.993-07:00

Cooking and School...cooking school!We cooked in school today, which was a lot of fun. First we went to the market and bought the things we needed, practicing our verbs for spend, save, have left, etc. We got masa for tortillas, huitlacoche (a corn fungus like a mushroom that is quite a delicacy), squash blossoms, epazote (an herb), quesillo (a long belt of cheese wrapped into a ball), chiles,

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117322899809553642005-05-28T16:26:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:09:45.933-07:00

After school, Mary, Mari and I went to Santo Domingo museum together. We rented the audio devices , which were pretty disorganized and irrelevant to the exhibits. There would be a number on an exhibit, and you would listen to the recording with that same number, and it would be only tangentially related to what you were seeing. Or the exhibit would have #30 at one end of a huge hall and #31 down

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117322769049556312005-05-28T16:24:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:11:15.100-07:00

6:30 p.m.Of course it is raining when I need to go pick up laundry. Of course I left the umbrella at school. It hasn't rained for 3 days and suddenly it is pouring. Poop.I started the morning by looking for the the laundry. There is a sign on Camino Ciruelos, pointing down a street and saying "Lavanderia La Mixteca #104". I went to #104 and it looked like a house, not a laundry at all. I went to

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117322675464341042005-05-28T16:22:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:12:27.886-07:00

7:20 a.m.Some people at school were throwing a fiesta last night. When I walked Mari home the other day, she showed me where the house was. I thought I was clear on where it was, but I ended up wandering the streets for about 45 minutes last night in my party clothes - a long red ruffly skirt and a gleaming white embroidered top - looking for the place. I ended up in some fairly bad neighborhoods

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117322501184283492005-05-28T16:18:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:14:09.836-07:00

10 pmI feel kind of icky. As if I might be on the verge of throwing up or I might not. Well, if I am going to get sick, let it be tonight so I don't miss classes tomorrow.It is hot. Hotter than it has been, especially up here on the second floor in my room. I wish it would rain a little. I have a ceiling fan but it just makes it tolerable.I had lunch today at Cafe La Olla, which I have heard much

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117322302360558222005-05-28T16:16:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:15:29.983-07:00

The food booths (puestos) I mentioned as part of a festival when I first got here are not special - they are an everyday part of life. There is one ensconced in a niche on the outside of a church wall on the street next to our school. They are there every day. They sell quesadillas and tlayudas and drinks.On the corner by the school, there is always a guy with a cart selling "Ricos raspadas,"

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117322161566399212005-05-28T16:14:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:17:44.510-07:00

I don't know why, but my nails have been looking better than ever here. Maybe it is all the calcium I am eating in the tortillas? (After I got home, I realized that it was not having to wash dishes that made my nails look better.)Alexis, the other renter, did not come home last night and we are all worried about her. She left rather late with a male friend after a very very long (an hour and a

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117322053677661102005-05-28T16:11:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:20:47.400-07:00

A Two-Hour TourYesterday I took a 2-hour tour of the botanic garden in English. When I got there, they told me I was too late - they only took 20 people on the tour and I was number 21. I stayed anyway, knowing how things go in Mexico. I knew better. By the time we got under way, there were 25 or so in the group - one couple thought they were "on the list" without signing it because they called

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117321857652590192005-05-28T16:09:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:26:09.933-07:00

Today Meghan, my new housemate Norman, Meghan's friend Leslie and I went to the mercado in Tlacolula. The markets are on different days in different towns. Tlacolula is famous for its crafts. I made plans with Meghan to meet at 10:30 a.m. at her house. Norman decided he wanted to go along, so we walked over there, but Meghan was out to breakfast with her housemates. Norman and I went over to La

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117321779649697922005-05-28T16:08:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:27:43.033-07:00

Only 6 more days left here. Our house will be full if Alexis' mother ever arrives. She will share a room with Alexis. She was supposed to arrive yesterday on the 11 a.m. autobus from Mexico DF but never showed up. Alexis waited at the bus terminal for 8 hours but her mom never came, and our phones are still out at the house, so who knows if she was trying to call.I spent the evening with Norman,

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117321679614865992005-05-28T16:05:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:28:37.326-07:00

Tonight I feel hot and headachy and have a sore throat. I think Meghan gave me her stupid cold on the bus to Tlacolula. She has also been sitting right across from me coughing for 2 days, right in my face. Great. I bought a bunch of cold medicine and Kleenex in case I need it. Of course my hypochondriac brain is imagining being sick on the trip home.I decided to ship all the stuff I bought here

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117321534421832152005-05-28T16:03:00.000-07:002005-06-07T09:47:54.990-07:00

I took a day off of Spanish school to go to cooking school. I planned this while I was still back in the U.S. It was an all-day adventure in shopping and cooking Mexican food with Susana Trilling, a cookbook author and teacher. I had heard a lot about her from the people on www.chowhound.com.The morning began rather inauspiciously. I was getting ready and looked out the window because the roof

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117321386891989052005-05-28T16:02:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:33:51.763-07:00

Only 2 more days here. I am already nervously packing. I can be a little compulsive sometimes.I bought a suitcase with wheels on it today for all my stuff that I had bought in Mexico. I packed my pottery in my shirts and will hope none of it gets smashed on the way back home. I will miss Oaxaca, of course, but I want to be home. I am a little tired of all the chaos and noise and stuff that "no

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117314797803253572005-05-28T14:12:00.001-07:002005-05-30T20:35:00.003-07:00

8-6 Friday 7:20 pmIt just finished raining. Now it is rush hour for here, and the traffic sounds are really loud. People honk A LOT here, sometimes even if they know there is no way they are going to be moving anytime soon. They will just lay on the horn.My last day of class was today. I got a little choked up at the end. I had to put my sunglasses on for a little while so no one would see me

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117314768133783582005-05-28T14:12:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:36:07.176-07:00

Quesillo!I started HATING quesillo cheese yesterday. I have never been a big fan, but yesterday my loathing sort of peaked. I guess it means I am ready to go home.Quesillo is basically string cheese. Curds are somehow stretched into a long, inch-wide, rubbery belt. It is then wound round and round into a ball, which is sold by size. The smallest are tennis-ball size and the biggest are like

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117314710283557822005-05-28T14:11:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:37:41.506-07:00

On my way back home8-8 Sunday 8:45 am, Mexico DF AirportIt looks more like the United States here in the airport, but it still smells like Mexico. Someday they must really get their sewer problems under control.So far so good. I got picked up by the colectivo van at 6:05 a.m. I was stuffed into the van with 7 other people and a ton of luggage. I got to ride shotgun and see Oaxaca in the early

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117314627344496182005-05-28T14:09:00.001-07:002005-06-29T21:42:13.250-07:00

One Last TripYesterday for my last day, Meghan and some other people from school and I rented a Suburban and a guide to take a trip around the Oaxaca valley. There were 6 of us, all women except for one man. We first went to El Arbol del Tule, which had been a joke between Meghan and I because we were supposed to go there before and never did - we made a pact to lie and say we had because people

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117314568125358012005-05-28T14:09:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:38:47.136-07:00

Saying Goodbye, or trying to...We returned to Oaxaca very late and it turned into a strange evening. I wanted to say goodbye properly and take some photos but it didn't work out that way.Gabriel wasn't there and Gloria realized I was tired and needed a shower, so she got Pati to turn on the hot water heater.I took a shower and thought I should finish packing, so I was walking around naked in my

Suebobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14652931599004264512noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13244510.post-1117314486402680172005-05-28T14:06:00.000-07:002005-05-30T20:44:53.253-07:00

As usual, no alarmAt 5, as I had expected, my watch alarm failed to go off. But thanks to my neurotic, sleepless nature, I was awake.I got ready in about 20 minutes and hauled my 2 incredibly heavy suitcases downstairs to wait for the colectivo, which was supposed to arrive between 5:45 and 6.At 5:55, a taxi pulled up down the other side of the street. I looked out there and waved. They honked

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