All Quiet on the Southern Front

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Hello Family and Friends,

All has been progressing well down here in Xalapa. With two weeks left of formal classes I am beginning to receive the first real set of work I've been exposed to since beginning classes in September. So I have just been trying to remember what time management is like and get some things done in a timely fashion. We have to do a lot of reading for our written expression class, just works of fiction from famous Mexican authors, then write a literary review of them. Not all that difficult but reading in Spanish still drags things out a bit. For my cultural studies the teacher waved the final exam and replaced it with a large presentation we have to give about a current topic pertaining to México. So that's pretty neat. I still need to get on the ball and start working before things pile up.

HOWEVER, I am getting increasingly excited to see everyone in less than three weeks!! Wow. I can't say time has really FLOWN by but it's a good laugh looking back on the past three months of slow growth. My Spanish comprehension and comfortability has definitely increased tremendously when I look back on my notebooks. My day-to-day phrases and reminders have evolved from the difference between "mujer y hombre" (women and man) to more complex uses of grammar tenses and colloquial expressions ACTUALLY used by Mexicans, haha. It's very slow though, very slow.

I am excited to take a break from it, hoping I don't forget everything all-together, haha. No, but it's definitely been a lot to take on at once and I am excited to speak some English with friends and family and sink my teeth into a real cheeseburger. Mmmm, drooling on the keyboard.

I am still residing at the house with the three other Canadian students from my school which is enjoyable but irritating at the same time. They are great people but it's harder to leave the house with a head of Spanish after speaking English for hours. As furniture has found it's way into the previously empty living spaces and we figured out how to fill our rooftop gas tank, everything is becoming more accommodating and comfortable. I can cook pasta, empanadas (fried masa with cheese inside, think Mexican hotpockets), eggs and a spicy salsa well enough to fill my stomach. Mexican food, at least the dishes pertaining to Veracruz, is very delicious but also simple and pretty light. It's been a nice change but I'm still thinking of that cheeseburger and thai food.

I hope everyone at home and abroad is doing well in their respective environments and that this update finds you all in good health and spirits.

Much love,
Barry

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