Blogs from Mexico, North America - page 751

The Yucatan is HOT and comprises mostly marsh lands and jungle. Campeche is on the Gulf Coast which from an oceanic perspective is also as flat as a pancake (no waves). Two nights in Campeche / Edzna Ruins I stopped in the town of Campeche, as it shortened the bus trip and provided a base to see the Edzna ruins and also study some more local history. Campeche was an offensive / defensive outpost built and used by the Spanich. A sizeable militiary force was setup here complete with canons. The walls of the various fortresses are 2 to 3 metres thick. For me, however the highlight of Campeche was the Monkey Hostel where i met this Portuguese guy called Paulo, we got talking and ended up spending the next week traversing the Yucatan. The hostel ... read more

The final week…*dun dun dun* As mentioned briefly yesterday, this week is jam-packed with last minute activities and lessons to do and cakes to consume! And I’m making the very unsubtle reference to cake mainly because I want to say that I ate THE BEST Tres Leches cake last Friday night at a restaurant called Casa Hidalgo. It was basically heaven in a bowl. The ONLY cake that I would give 2nd place status to…behind a cake from Renee’s, of course!!! Max, I know the reference to “the perfect dinner” should put a giant smile on your face!! Good times! I had Rosanna as my teacher last week and I really feel like I made big strides. In fact, we made so much progress that yesterday I graduated to Book 3! Woo-woo! I started at the ... read more

Just 3 hours NW of Mexico city via scenic countryside is Queretaro state and city. This is 1/2 million as opposed to MC´s 20 million and makes quite a difference. It is the size of perhaps Omaha or Cincinnati but much more accessible. The hostel I´m staying at (The Red Girafe, don{t ask me why) is 20 beds instead of 200 and much quieter and laid back, with none of the constant noise and distraction of MC. The town center is all walkable with red-brick streets and parks every few blocks with landscaped trees and flowers and the ubiquitous fountain or statue in the center. It is so difficult to convey even in pics all the sights and the sounds and smells. Queretaro and Guanajuato states were hotbeds of dissent in the early 19th century and ... read more

The scenery here in Monterrey is not what I had pictured when I signed up for studying in Mexico. I'm staying on a campus with lush green grash, trees everywhere, and mountains looming in the distance. Much of the city is your typical scrubby brush and sparse grass, but with proper care, it's gorgeous. After being completely overwhelmed and lost for the first few days, I have come to appreciate the large campus and all that it has to offer. There are picnic tables everywhere where students surf the internet and work on homework through the wireless internet. Not only are there thousands of students, but there are all kinds of animals. One night during the first week, I was kind of lonely and walking around campus "exploring," something caught my eye, and it was a ... read more

Mexico City, now one of the world’s largest cities with over 20 million inhabitants, all began because of a random sighting. When the Aztecs happened upon an eagle sitting perched atop of a cactus with a snake in its beak sometime in the 14th century, they believed they had found the center of the universe. Being such, it was only fitting that they build a great monument and a city around it. Never mind that it was in the middle of a vast lake. Luckily, the Aztecs were able to conceive of a way of building on the lake surface that involved creating islands by driving wooden piles deep into the lake floor and then filling in this area with mud and vegetation. And on top of these islands now lies the traffic, the skyscrapers, the ... read more