Blogs from Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, North America - page 9

My first day in Guadalajara I found out about the Sunday recre-active event. The main street in town, which most of the time is FULL of traffic, is shut down to all motor vehicles, & open to bicycles, skaters, skateboarders, wheelchairs and walkers. There are volunteers monitoring the traffic at all the intersections and it is a big, citywide cycling party! Loads of fun with other groups sponsering events along the way.... read more

Tlaquepaque and Tonala are the younger, crazier twin sisters of Guadalajara. Lying equidistant from Guadalajara at 45 minutes in opposite directions, they share one main commonality: they are both known for being quite large market towns that specialize in handmade crafts from this region of Mexico. This is where there similarities end, however. Tlaquepaque is the snobbier of the two. If you were to peek into her closet, you would observe that her clothes are organized not only by article, but by color as well. You might even take note of the fact that the smell is quite pleasant. This fact would draw your eyes to a small lavender sachet attached to the coat hanger of her best dress, which would surely involve some sort of lace made in France. Tonala's closet, however, would consist of ... read more

To a mosquito, I have always been the holy grail, the Mecca, the Wailing Wall. To a mosquito, taking a chunk of my forearm or calf is akin to the feeling one gets upon scaling their first mountain, puckering up for the first time, or meeting their red-haired piano-playing idol. If two mosquitos were having a conversation, one would most likely say to the other: "She's the cat's meow." Mosquitos love antiquated idioms. Upon my arrival in Guadalajara, the mosquitos had a giant fiesta. This is Mexico afterall, so they threw their sombrero'd heads back in hearty guffaws as shots of tequila were passed 'round and female mosquitos were grabbed by their mosquito waists and pulled tight to dance to the tunes played by talented mosquito mariachis. Against my wishes, and without an RSVP, I attended ... read more

So the stress is over! We had exams yesterday (Thursday)...not sure what my "notas" are, but I will soon find out. We are trying to "live it up" our last couple of days in Guadalajara...after exams, we took a long siesta and then headed out to the clubs! The scene last night was similar to east Atlanta...alternative-ish...lots of music lovers, etc. We went to Wingston's, a place that only sells hot wings and beer, then to a club on top of a roof of a building, then to a bar called Bali Bar. Bali Bar had this amazing cover band...a girl and a guy singer...they could sing ANYTHING...Queen, Reggaeton music, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and on and on...Crystal and I especially loved the band...they'd alternate a few songs of the band and then discotheque music. We stayed ... read more

I'd say the best part about going to Mexico has been, besides the sights and attractions, besides the new experiences, besides learning Spanish....has been simply hanging out with the people I'm rooming with and the other GSU students that are living down the street. Yesterday, after classes ended, we decided to go to the San Juan de Dios market near downtown Guadalajara. I had heard that it was a really big market, but I had no idea exactly to what extent. This place was actually an indoor market, and it would have taken 3 or 4 hours to shop the whole thing. It was a cramped, crowded, and hot, giant multiple-floor warehouse. If you wanted a watch, they had 'em. If you wanted sunglasses, they had 'em. If you wanted a microwave, they had 'em too. ... read more