Kathleen
I created this blog so that I could "bring" my friends and family along on my 5 month stint in Monterrey, Mexico. I hope that you all enjoy reading about my experiences and viewing my photots! If you are not already subscribed and you would like to subscribe, click the link to the lower right that says "Subscribe."TravelinLass
I hope all is well and see you soon!
Travel Blog Posts
December 1st 2006
When Ester and I got to Palenque, we stayed at a place called El Panchán. When you first enter, there are a few open air restaurants covered in tents, with 4 different sleeping accomodations places around it in the jungle (cabins, dorms, hammocks, etc.). We each paid about $5 for our cabaña for the night, brought our stuff to our very rustic room, then went to get some dinner at the restaurant with two other travelers, Alex, a German woman (taking a 5 week vacation here in Mexico) and Julian, a French guy (on the last leg of his 2 month world tour). We had a lot of fun recounting travel stories and talking about experiences here in Mexico. After 10pm, a band started playing, sort Cuban, sort of reggae, real hippy. The next morning we ... read more
November 21st 2006
Updating from my favorite Mexican city so far! I planned on updating just before I left for an 11 day backpacking adventure through the south of Mexico, but things were a little hectic with writing an 8 page final project until 5am last Thursday night, getting the backpack together, and wrapping up (my last semester of) classes in general. Today would be... day number 5 of my trip, and I am in beautiful San Cristóbal de las Casas in the Mexican state of Chiapas! I can´t post pics just yet... you´ll have to hold onto your pants until I get back to Monterrey and have time to sort it all out. But I promise it will be beautiful and amazing and everything you ever dreamed in an update from me! I started out Friday around 4:30 ... read more
The one where I don't have all the answers. Just some more questions. And it's okay.
Published: October 30th 2006North America » Mexico » Nuevo Leon » MonterreyOctober 30th 2006
Well, it's just around midnight on a Sunday night, and I'm feeling strangely inspired to (try to) recreate the amazing blog post I lost yesterday afternoon. For any of you that have studied abroad or spent an extended period of time in another culture, I'm entering the... "uh oh, my time is soon coming to an end, what would happen if I stayed?" phase. Don't worry Mom and Dad, I'm coming home. It's just that Mexico is coming to a close (well, Mexico as a nation is not ceasing to exist, just that the end of my time here is drawing near), and I'm experiencing some new feelings about the place I've come to call not quite "home," but someplace familiar, comfortable and friendly. In an effort to portray some of the smaller, more everyday occurrences ... read more
October 28th 2006
I created a new entry-- It was amazing. Then something happened and I lost it. I'll recapture everything when I have more time.... read more
October 14th 2006
Well everyone, Writing once again from my home here in Monterrey, Físicos 380 (interior). The past few weekends have been somewhat low-key, which is really nice. I completed my 2nd (and longest) internship paper this past week, I've been learning about Mexican culture and politics, I've surveyed more foreign visitors at the Museum, and I am now a Spanish compound sentence expert! I've said this before: time is seriously whipping by. Reality check: I've been here for 3.5 months!! Where did the time go?! This coming week begins our 11th week of classes, which end November 17. Finals occur the two weeks that follow. And then I've got some time set aside to either lay low in Monterrey or maybe explore another part of Mexico. I came here wanting to see and do everything imaginable in ... read more
Tampico, more than the Sunny D knockoff
Published: October 2nd 2006North America » Mexico » Tamaulipas » Tampico
October 2nd 2006
Hey y'all! I hope life is treating you well wherever you are! 24 hours ago I was looking out at the Gulf of Mexico, letting the saltwater tickle my toes, and enjoying some great fish empanadas... "We should travel this weekend..." --that's pretty much how this all started... James suggested we take a weekend trip, because he doesn't want to go back to Australia having regretted staying in Monterrey every weekend this semester. Soooo, Christin, James and I went back to my place, looked through the Lonely Planet Guide book and checked out a few places at the recommendation of our most recent mesero (waiter). We looked at Real de Catorce, Zacatecas, Tampico... Since none of us had yet been to the BEACH in Mexico, we decided to travel to Tampico, which is located in the ... read more
September 18th 2006
¡Hola amigos! I'm writing once again from Monterrey, but I spent the past 3 days in Guadalajara, celebrating Mexican Independence Day. This entails the top local government official (mayor/governor) giving the grito "¡Viva Mexico!" It's an amazing thing, central plazas all over Mexico packed with people all celebrating independence on the same night... We got into GDL before noon, piled into another taxi-van and got to our hotel, unpacked a bit, and took a walking tour. (See photos.) At the end of the tour was a huge 3 story market that sells EVERYTHING. I heard the phrases "A sus ordenes..." (at your service) and "¿Que buscaban amigas?" (what were you looking for, friends?) several hundred times, I'm sure. You really could get lost in the market... and we did. Luckily, there are openings in the tent/ceilings, ... read more
Irish weather, momias, and holes in the ground
Published: September 6th 2006North America » Mexico » Nuevo Leon » Monterrey
September 2nd 2006
And because I have some pictures to post and a couple of you have bothered me about updating, here's some eye candy and the latest from Monterrey. This past weekend, I headed downtown with an Austrian, an Australian and a Czech. Oh, good times were had all around and memories were made. We wanted to see some sights, check out some museums, and explore Monterrey a little bit more in depth. We arrived downtown, took some pictures and walked through Macroplaza or la Gran Plaza, in the middle of downtown. It is one of the biggest plazas in the world, with an extension of 400,000 square meters consisting of various monuments, smaller plazas and gardens. I had been there before, but I hadn't walked the entirety of it, which seems more like a serious of parks ... read more
It's those very unexpected "mishaps" that often make the trip worthwhile...
Published: August 21st 2006North America » Mexico » Nuevo Leon » Monterrey
August 21st 2006
Hola everyone! I hope all is well in Chicago, Green Bay, De Pere, Virginia, Texas, or from wherever else you might be catching up. I myself have been a busy lass down here in Mexico but you're in luck because I have some time to update!! Since the last time I've written, I have waited in many, many lines, endured much confusion over seemingly easy processes (for example, who knew I'd have to go to 6 different places on campus to enroll in a salsa dancing class with some friends... or how difficult it would be to get the university to take my tuition money). It seems that some processes are complicated by some very unnecessary bureaucracy, but hey, when in Mexico, I guess. I started my internship at Museo de Historia Mexicana (Museum of Mexican ... read more
The Good, the Bad, and well, the not so good...
Published: August 4th 2006North America » Mexico » Nuevo Leon » Monterrey
August 1st 2006
But it sure gives me something to write home about! ;) Life in Mexico: a few observations written over days/weeks I'd like to share with you all a few simple things I've learned. 1. The authentic way to eat a taco: Take a half lime, squirt the juice all over the taco, add spicy spicy salsa, and roll it up. Then eat. 2. Those hard "taco shells" that we have in the U.S.? They're pretty much non-existent in Mexico. 3. If there's not (at least) one taco stand on every block, you're not in Mexico. Some are open 7-7. That's right. 7pm to 7am. And they deliver. Also, you can get a taco with pretty much anything on it. I still don't understand the difference between the different types of carne: asada, de res, bistec, seca ... read more
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