Animals, Ghosts, Mosquitos and Football Fans

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I´m afraid that this week I´m sitting the internet café with very little time to write up what´s been going on in the last 2 weeks, as I have to go and meet some of the other volunteers for a Tchikovsky concert in a few minutes and tomorrow morning Anne and I are off to Cuba for the next 5 days. Luckily, there is not much to report this week as I have spent a great deal of time lying on my bed with a fever and stomache cramps, which have now been identified as some sort of intestinal infection probably contracted from one of the delightful little people I teach. I love them more and more every day! I have also spent a lot of time trying to swat mosquitos and trying not to scratch the 10 odd biotes I got on my single left hand!

Actually this week was our last in the secondaria as they now finish for thier summer exams and I´m actually reall sad to be going. Yes, sometimes they were little bu**ers but lots of them came and said how much they would miss us and some even said they learnt something - so it must be worth it! Last Thursday (our penultimate week, due to Mexican complications involved in arranging almost anything) we were thrown a good bye concert by the students of the choir who sang songs in English and SPanish for us, conducted by the multi-lingual music teacher. They also gave us some beautiful roses and bookmarks and a certificate each certifying that we had contributed to the progress of the school and its pupils. It was really moving, Elizabeth especially, one of our supervising teachers, has made us so welcome and cares so much for the children´s education, I am so sorry to have to leave her to work alone again against the system.

This week of course also signalled the start of football mania and we wrestled (not literally!) with the kids to keep their concentration on the tasks in mind as they hid radios and ran out to watch tvs in other classrooms - that´s not even for the Mexico matches, I can only assume that when Mexico play no one comes to school at all but we can´t be certain as the matches played so far have not been in school-time. For the Angola match today Anne and I went to the Minerva square, a big city roundabout where people watch the macth on some big screens. It was good fun, very hot, very noisy, there were only a few arrests and we managed to dodge all the thrown bottles. You definately get a better view at home though, so I think that´s where we´ll stay for the next time.

Last weekend we went with Ernesto, Beto and Gina to the Panteón de Belén, an old cemetory in the centre of the city for a nightime tour of its history and legends, which was pretty cool and very different, the bats were awesome, but I´m not sure I was convinced by all the ghost bits. We also went to the zoo where we saw some amazing iguanas - not just in the cages but ´real´ones too; some cute giraffes; a gorgeous polar bear swimming so gracefully and lots more. The zoo grounds also backs onto the Canyon we visted on our first day in Guadalajara but this time, armed with camera. It really is a very impressive hole in the ground. Sunday we had planned to drive with Beto to Tapalpa to see some giant stones, but soon after attempting to start breakfast it became obvious I wasn´t going anywhere, hopefully we will be able to find another day to go in the last month I´m here working. Then really that´s it, I was sick Sunday-Wednesday properly and still not 100%, but getting there. I´m really looking forward to a change of scenary from tomorrow, getting a bit bogged down here doesn´t make it much easier to distract myself from feeling not great. I´m sure I´ll be fine though.

Anyway, I´ll let you all know what we get up to in Cuba on my return next week. Best of love to all. xxx

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Photos

Iguana
An iguana in the Guadalajara Zoo

¡México!
Watching the Mexico-Angola match at the Minerva monument in Guadalajara.

Canyon
This canyon in the north west of Guadalajara forms part of the San Andreas falt - the break between the American and Pacific techtonic plates and the cause of Mexico´s earthquakes

With our students
Me, Vincente, Francia and Anne

Our goodbye concert
The choir sang us some songs

Supporting Mexico (for now)
Our Mexico head bands and flag (just visible. This photo is pre-face paint attack which left me with parallel red, white and green stries down each cheek.

Comments

[Beryl Maile]

A great Adventure!
What a great trip and working experience you are having! I have travelled qute a bit but reading your blogs gives me itchy feet again and again and again! Keep chugging! When are you coming back! See you then, love Beryl