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Gemma Drouhard
I'm living in Morelia, Mexico for 3 months for my spring quarter (junior year).Gema
[blogger=cheller] - Michelle's blog
Travel Blog Posts
Mexico City: Days Two and Three
Published: May 31st 2008North America » Mexico » Distrito Federal » Mexico City
May 31st 2008
DAY 2: SATURDAY We didn't have to get up too early the next day- we left at 9 AM for the pyramids of Teotihuacan. It was a long trip, but when we got there I was amazed-- there were HUGE pyramids!! The two large ones are the Sun and Moon pyramids, but in between them are mini temples, pyramids, and living quarters. It was for nobility and priests only, and some of the living quarters are intact- the rest has been rebuilt by archeologists. The designs were similar- lots of snakes, frogs, eagles, and jaguars. It was amazing to be standing somewhere and Victor would say "So this is where the priests prepared the sacrifices" or "This is where they played ball games"... not only that, but we were allowed to touch everything!! And climb them!! ... read more
May 28th 2008
DAY ONE: FRIDAY We left at 5:30 AM from Morelia and arrived at 10AM (good time, since we took a small van- 14 seats for 12 people!!) I slept nearly the whole way there. We got to the hotel, and had an hour to rest and change- I used it to nap! Then it was time to start the day. We started at Templo Mayor. Mexico City is built on top of Tenochtitlan, the capital city of the ancient Aztecs, and before them was the outskirts of the previous ancient civilization. The Aztecs were a nomadic clan wandering from place to place until they found the fulfillment of their legend Huitzilopochtli (the sun and war god) set for them- an eagle on top of a cactus with a snake in its talon. They supposedly found that ... read more
May 19th 2008
This has been maybe the best day of my life. My favorite day in Mexico, anyway!!! Woke up at 6:30, and Emma made me my usual breakfast of two eggs and a sliced tomato- mmmm. No fruit b/c she hadn't gone to the superama yet. We met at school, and got on the huge bus. I slept the whole way, which was nice because I had been out until 2AM the night before. Then, we arrived in Uruapan, at the National Park. The whole park is set up around a series of waterfalls and scenes which correspond to a poem in Spanish, all about this royal family (I think its originally Purépecha...) I don't remember all of the stories, but most centered around the queen and her son in law, and their weird relationship... each waterfall ... read more
May 15th 2008
I have good news and bad! Well, the bad isn't really "bad", its just sad stuff we were talking about in class. Good: I bought a guitar in Paracho and am learning! My friend Ben is teaching me, and he is a great teacher. The main problem is that I don't have a tuner, and really can't tune without one (not yet anyway!) So when I practice at home it sounds horrible. Other good news is about the orphanage! Alexa's dad's company has donated $800 to the orphanage!! Which is so amazing. I've set up the website, but the PayPal account still isn't up, so we don;t have a way for other people to donate. Today she talked to the owner of the orphanage about what the kids need- basic stuff like underwear and bras, mops, ... read more
May 11th 2008
For the first few weeks when I walked around at night I would hear this creepy "PSST!" sound. It happened on a beat, so I didn't think it was a person, so I told myself it was a sprinkler... except people don't really use sprinklers here, and if the do, its during the daytime! Other people heard it too, but to some it sounded like a "SHHHH!". Turns out, its a bird! There's also a bird with a cat-call whistle, and woodpeckers everywhere. So this is the rainy season! When it rains here, it RAINS. This morning it was chilly, i wore a short-sleeved sweater and a knee length skirt, and was cold. then i was able to lay out in the sun at 12-3, burning hot in the bright sun. At 3 I walked to ... read more
April 28th 2008
DAY TWO: SUNDAY Sunday was way more chill. We got up and had a (free) brunch- pancakes, eggs, syrup, MEXICAN HOT CHOCOLATE, coffee, fresh fruit, beans and tortillas. Then it was time to go to a Don Quixote museum- at first I thought "What? Why are we going to a Don Quixote museum?? Wasn't he Spanish?? Random!" But it was AMAZING. Some of the coolest art I'd ever seen. So many styles, hundreds of paintings, all of Don Quixote. I had no idea he had inspired so many! I knew that Dante's Inferno has inspired the most art of anything else (except maybe the Bible), but it seems like Don Quixote is a close second. We weren't supposed to take pictures but I couldn't help myself. I loved it. I could have stayed there for hours. ... read more
April 28th 2008
Where to start? My brain is so full of everything that happened that its hard to even begin. I did a lot of stuff, and it was packed full, so I'm going to separate it into two entries, mmkay? DAY ONE: SATURDAY Got up way too early, packed, and was of course late to meet the girls. We booked it to Suburbia, got on the bus, and slept for 2 hours. We got to Guanajuato, and checked into our hotel- so nice! Alexa and I were in a room together. I unpacked my stuff and we met in the lobby for breakfast- fruit, coffee, bread, tortas, meat, eggs, etc etc. so much stuff! But expensive. cleaned me out!! Then time for a tour! We walked downtown, and it is so different from Morelia. First of all, ... read more
April 25th 2008
Yesterday was one of the busiest days here! Woke up at my usual 6:40 time, and ate an amazing breakfast- grilled Ouaxacan cheese, with beans, tortillas, tomato, canteloupe, and guava (EW). Had my two classes (Spanish and Mexican Culture), and we watched a very sad documentary called "Letters From The Other Side". It is a project that a woman started, interviewing families who have been separated by migration and the US-American border. One woman's husband died, along with 17 others, by suffocating inside an 18-wheeler while being smuggled North. Another woman's husband found a new woman and began another life- but upon seeing the video of her, he and his son began to cry, and promised they would send more money and return home to see his daughter's quinciniera. Upon seeing that video, the wife shook ... read more
April 22nd 2008
What a busy weekend! Friday we went to a fiesta at Antonio's house, and I met lots of people, including one guy who is a trained psychologist but can't get work here so he's a hairdresser. I also met someone named Cristian Morales, which is the same name as my cousin in Mexico City! At the gym we met a boy from Tennessee, and a girl from Buffalo, NY. So many coincidences. The next day we had a field trip to Culapa (sp?), a small pueblo 20 minutes outside Morelia. Nearly all the staff at UNLA are from Culapa, and the pueblo relies almost solely on its claywork. I've been noticing that the claywork is everywhere in Morelia- in the bars, homes, businesses... Alejandro, one of the men who works there, invited us to his home ... read more
April 17th 2008
Cute little story: We were at a salsa club (very fancy!) and the band was taking a break so I invited them over to sit at our table. We started talking about all the dancers on the floor, and I pointed out one man; he was very tall and skinny, and super old; maybe seventy years old, but acted way younger. He was dancing with all the women, young and old, and was great at it- he moved his legs in ways i'd never seen before! I asked the band members if they knew who he was... they said "yeah, his name is Ansiano... Here, I'll introduce you!" So they went and grabbed him, and they said "Make sure you say "Hola, Ansiano!" So I said "Mucho gusto, Ansiano!" he was silent for a second, looked ... read more
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