Advertisement
Published: September 12th 2006
Edit Blog Post
I don't have much to say about this past school week because it was just full of studying, attempting to motivate my groups for projects, and doing poorly on exams in Spanish. Also, apparently my body hates Mexico- more specifically- my bowels. A liquid diet for a few days helped that out, in case you were curious.
I have had two official days of working at the Consulate. So far I have been editing their database and working with Collin to research the exports and imports of pipes and valves in Mexico. Right.
Before I get too far- this is an official shout-out to Emma Swift who doesn't think "that Bridget should get preferential treatment" and that she, too, should be mentioned on having been on the Spring Dean's List. People, Emma was on the Dean's List (she's smart, too).
I went to the movies for the first time this past weekend. A pal from my photo class, Carlos, invited me and we saw "Todos Contra John". It turned out to be an American movie but at least that helped Carlos practice his English that he wants to improve.
On sunday, I went on a trip to
the Icamole Desert, Hot Springs, and the Garcia Caves. I enjoyed hanging out in the drippy caves but they were scary to get to. We all squeezed into a cable car and were lifted to the top of the mountain via cable. The caves that were discovered by North Americans were inside the top of the mountain. The tour was pretty cheesy, every mineral deposited on every rock formation was pointed out by our tour guide to be either "Christ's head" or "The Virgin of Guadalupe" when clearly it was Tony Hawk doing a flip-side kick. It was fun to make up my own icons out of the minerals. Despite my fear, I opted to return to the ground by cable car instead of the twenty-minute walk down the ramp built on the mountain. This extra 20 minutes gave me time to eat a doughnut that was fried, filled with homemade vanilla cream, and rolled in sugar- all before my eyes. And I got to do a little booth shopping. Anything with an Aztec icon on it goes for at least ten pesos more than everything else.
We had lunch in a small nearby town and walked through its
history museum. Then we went to Hot Springs. This place was literally in the middle of nowhere. It turned out to be a spa with a large indoor pool that was heated naturally by the springs. I skipped out on the bathing and went on a walk with these two girls who also thought the entire pool area smelled like butt, and that the water was suspiciously murky. After walking down a dirt road we ended up in small town with smaller homes that we could see inside of as we walked by them. The people who lived there probably constructed the buildings and there were roosters and chickens walking around the houses.
Then our international tour group headed to the desert, which we were already in but I guess they wanted us to go to another part of it. We were told that it is technically a semi-desert because there is more greenery than most deserts. Our guide gave a nature tour as everyone walked up this steep rocky hill. I opted out of falling on my butt, what with having smooth-bottomed shoes, and instead I took photos of cacti and bugs I found hiding under rocks. During
the long way back to Monterrey, an eccentric conservative Canadian, with whom everyone else had already learned not to make eye contact, chatted to me.
The trip was unusual but I got to see new things and I took a few good scenic photos with Marco, my film camera. Next weekend I am going to Guadalajara with many other students for the Mexican Independence weekend, and more specifically, the Grito holiday! I have been told that the Grito is when Mexicans gather, usually in a town square, and everyone screams (aie aie?) at midnight for Mexico's Independence. The Grito actually celebrates the beginning of the fight for Independence which was on September 16th of 1810.
For now, I am enjoying the slight temperature drop and having fun splashing in the puddles on my way home from school. My fridge is thankfully packed with fruits and veggies that haven't been imported. And I have survived over a month of living on my own in a foreign land.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.138s; Tpl: 0.015s; cc: 15; qc: 71; dbt: 0.0941s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
Laurita Mueller
non-member comment
maravillosa
your pics look amazing. that looks like a "special" party bus to me. take care chica. ciao!