Author Archives: acm5255

War of Independence

Hola,

So including today, we have only 3 more days here, but so much more to do. I have one final presentation today and an exam and a presentation tomorrow. Then I want to visit all the museums in town, or at least a few.

Yesterday, I finished up my shopping and went on a scavenger hunt for my one class. I had thought that a scavenger hunt near the end of the trip would be pointless, but it was so much fun and I really learned a lot. Most of the scavenger hunt required asking people questions, like how to get to a certain building, or the time, or other silly questions to help us practice our conversation skills. But one of the questions asked us to find a historical site downtown and describe it. My group decided to go see the Alhondiga de Granaditas, which is an old grain storage building that was the site of the 1st rebel victory of the Mexican war of independence.

When Miguel Hidalgo called for independence, all the Spaniards took refuge inside this building, but it was no match for the rebels. Huge crowds gathered, charged at the building, and eventually burned the door down and attacked the Spaniards inside. When we found the building yesterday, we were surprised to see dirt and gravel covering the cobblestone streets, tape that said, “do not cross”, and huge crowds of people.  A police officer escorted us through the crowds and down a side street, and we ended up on the other side of the building. Then, we noticed that some of the crowd was dressed as peasants and held torches and pitchforks, and the rest were dressed as colonial aristocrats. At first we thought it was some sort of reenactment celebrating the bicentennial, but then we saw the camera crews and heard them call action. All of a sudden we were in the middle of the independence. The “Spaniards” ran into the building for protection, and the mob charged at the door. It was so exciting and I can’t believe we were lucky enough to see that in action. And I was able to tape some of it, so I will put that up for you all very soon.

Anyway, that’s all for now, I just had to tell you about that incredible experience.

Adios,

Lexi 


Location: Alhondiga de Granaditas, GTO, Mexico

Mexico City

Hola,

So I’m back from Mexico City and it feels so surreal. I can’t believe this is my last week in Mexico. The city was great, but nothing like I expected. We arrived on Thursday and started off the weekend with a great dinner in our Hotel. Then we explored the Zocalo (the historic downtown plaza, otherwise known at the plaza of the constitution) and the area around our hotel. The Zocalo is very cool and huge. It is bordered by the Cathedral to the north, the National Palace to the east, the Federal District buildings to the south, and just to the northeast is the site of Templo Mayor (the remains of the Aztecs’ main temple). In the center is a flagpole with an enormous Mexican flag.

Later that night, we went out to celebrate my friend Anna’s birthday, had some Mexican gelatin cake, and danced like crazy. The next morning, we went to Teotihuacan (which means ‘where men become gods’) to see the pyramids. It was probably one of the most amazing things I have ever seen, and like always nothing close to what I’d expected. The pyramids were enormous and I could almost feel the age in the city. First, we climbed the smaller pyramid, the pyramid of the moon, and from there we could see the whole city. Then, we started the trek up the pyramid up the pyramid of the sun. The view was so amazing. We stayed up there for at least half an hour just relaxing, taking in the view, and taking tons of pictures.

It was crazy how many people were there trying to sell stuff. More than once we were approached by someone claiming their goods were “almost free” and others just wouldn’t leave us alone if we even glanced their way. Then a big group of eighth and ninth graders approached us and started interviewing us in English. At one point I was surrounded by 6 people and was being interviewed by two students at once.  Some of them, who didn’t know as much English, didn’t even bother trying to ask the questions, instead they just handed one of us the paper and smiled. Then, they all wanted a photo shoot with us, which was pretty fun.

Afterwards, we went to a huge market downtown with all sorts of good gifts. There was tons of silver, tons of obsidian, many woven blankets, and a ridiculous amount of pottery. It was very overwhelming, but the merchants weren’t nearly as pushy and I had a lot of fun haggling with them. The next day, we started off at the National Museum of Anthropology, which houses one of the best and most important collections in the world. An interesting, and very sad fact, is that most of the works in the museum were replicas because the real artifacts were taken to Europe the moment they were found. It was still really interesting to see all the art, sculptures, and history by the many indigenous groups that once occupied Mexico. After that museum, we went to Frida Kahlo’s house. It was really interesting to see her artwork and photographs spread throughout her house and her things.  We were able to see her brace, her x-rays, and many of her self-portraits, and I feel like I learned so much about her in the short time we were there.

After the museum, we went to a nearby market and had some of the best quesadillas I’ve ever eaten. The woman there was truly an artist. She made the tortillas from scratch, filled them, and fried them in record time, and they were delicious. After lunch, we went to Xochimilco, which is home of the famous chinampas. Chinampas are huge rafts that were made by the Aztecs as a means of irrigation. They would fill these rafts with soil from the bottom of the lake and then planted their crops right on the rafts. Over the years, the roots have grown down into the soil, creating canals around the chinampas. Anyway, we spent the afternoon floating down the canals, listening to music, and trying to ignore the venders floating down the river in their own boats. It was so relaxing and really a great way to spend the afternoon.

So that’s all for now, I’ll write again very soon!

Adios,

Lexi


Location: Mexico City, Mexico

Getting Ready

Hola,

 

I’m so excited because tomorrow morning we are leaving for Mexico City. I love history and all the old architecture, so you can imagine how hyped I am to see ancient pyramids and art. And I think it will be a great time to spend as a group with my classmates and teachers.

The past few days, the parents of my mother here were in town, so all the cousins and aunts and uncles came to visit. It was nice having more people in the house to talk to, and the grandfather really enjoyed learning about my classes here and where I lived at home. He told me about his hometown and said he lived by one of the best beaches in Mexico. Then he and his wife invited me back with them, I said of course. I would have loved to go to the beach and see more of Mexico, but my mom here said I couldn’t because I had to go to school. Oh school : (

He also told me a lot about Mexican history, even more than we had talked about in my culture and history class and it was so interesting to see how much he knew about his country and ours. Another interesting thing is that yesterday my mom here made meatloaf and mac’n’cheese. Which is strange because I rarely have meatloaf in my own house in Pennsylvania, yet this super “American” dish was really really good.

Anyway, I got to go finish some homework and start packing for this weekend. I’ll be sure to write all about Mexico City and put up lots of pictures the first chance I get.

Adios,

Lexi

Here are some random pictures from my trip so far:

 

Oh, and PS. I’m not sure if you’ve ever seen Once Upon a Time in Mexico, but most of that movie takes place in Guanajuato, the town where I’m staying and some of the other towns we’ve visited.


Location: Mexico City, Mexico

Week Two Adventures

Hola,

Now onto the events of this week. Classes were as good as they can be, but of course busy. And on Thursday, we got a tour of the local candy shop as part of our culture class. It was really interesting because a lot of the packages don’t really have descriptions of what kind of candy is inside, so it was nice to have the employees explain the candies to us and we got to try a lot of them. One of my friends got something that resembled peanut bark except it was mostly peanuts and other nuts and was just held together by the sweet part. I got amaranto with chocolate, which reminded me a lot of sesame seeds, but I think they are more like a very tiny hazelnut. It was all very delicious, but I thought it was interesting that most of the stuff in the store was made of either fruit or nuts.

On Friday, we went to Leon, which is known for its leather. They told us there would be a lot of leather, but I had no idea how much they meant until I saw it.  Where we went was six square blocks of leather stores selling shoes, jackets, bags, and belts. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that many boots in my life. They had a million types of cowboy boots in a million different colors. Some from ostrich, some from stingray, and others of just normal leather. I ended up buying a pair of sandals, which are very cute and were made in M�xico, but I don’t believe they have any leather on them at all.

When we came back, my mom here asked if I wanted to go downtown to meet up with Alondra’s (her daughter’s) friends. Well I ended up walking around the mall with a group of 14 year olds for 4 hours. It was fun but weird, and really interesting.  We hung out in the parking lot for a while, and some of them took turns singing along with popular American songs that they had on their phones, like hush hush.   I was very surprised first because of how much they knew about pop culture in America, and second because when they were singing I could hear almost no accent. Another interesting thing was that they described every thing as sexi. I should have counted, but I think I heard “Que sexi” at least 200 times that night.

A few times, we went to the elevator where they had fun screaming and taking panic pictures. Then we hung out in the arcade and played deal or no deal and the fast and the furious racing game. It must be a culture difference because my sister is the same age, but I don’t think she would do any of the things we did at the mall. Not that this is a rare occurrence, but they all thought I was lying when I said I was 21. When I asked how old they thought I was, they said they thought I was their age, and then they had fun asking random people all over the mall how old they thought I was. Later they invited me over to sleepover and watch Zombieland with them, but I said no because I was exhausted.

Yesterday, I spent almost all day doing homework in a local caf�, which was really nice, but like almost everywhere else, the Internet connection was terrible. Then we all met up at our professors’ apartment to have dinner. We learned how to make salsa verde and pico de gallo, which were both delicious, and we also learned how to make agua de pi�a (pineapple juice) and agua de sand�a (watermelon juice). Then for dinner our professor made a traditional dish of chicken and rice with plantains from Ghana, which was also delicious. It was a very fun evening and a good chance to hang out as a group again and talk about our trip to Mexico City next week.

That’s it for now; hopefully I’ll have time to write again before we leave on Thursday for Mexico City.

Adios,

Lexi


Location: Guanajuato, Mexico

Mmmm… La comida mexicana

Hola!

Wow it’s been a while since I last wrote. This week was really fun, but it’s weird to think we already have less than two weeks left!

This week we discovered a ton of new cheap and delicious places to eat. First off, the tacos. I thought the tacos I discovered last week were delicious until I tried these. Every time I go I get un taco pastor, which is just two small tortillas with a mix of chicken, onion, and spices; but it is so good. Like the other place they have a lot of sauces and toppings to put on. Some of my friends go all out with the toppings, but for me a bit of salsa verde and a lot of salsa rojo is just what I need. The best part is that each taco is only 7 pesos ($0.50), and each quesadilla is only 12 pesos ($1).

Another recent discovery is the pizza place, where you can get a huge slice of pizza and a soda for just one dollar. I have yet to visit (even though I hear it is delicious), because the tacos are just that good. Finally there is the pasteleria, or bakery, where you can get a huge slice of cake for just 18 pesos ($1.50). I’m pretty sure it’s the best and cheapest place in town, but last night they were closed so we were forced to buy our cake at Starbucks. It was a third of the size and 48 pesos!

I’m not sure if you are aware, but recently Hershey opened a factory in Mexico. I assumed they would make the same things, but yesterday I discovered Mexican Reese’s, and I never want to eat ours again. Here, the peanut butter is creamier, there are crushed nuts in the chocolate, and they are just far more delicious. I might just have to have one now lol.

 Anyway, this one’s short, but the next one will be about more than just food : )

Adios,

Lexi


Location: Guanajuato, Mexico

One Week In..

Hola!

Well this past week has been interesting to say the least. We started our classes, had a few quizzes, and even had a test. Six credits in 4 weeks is not an easy thing to do. Then on Friday we went to San Miguel de Allende and Dolores Hidalgo. Both of which are historical sites, which were important in the Mexican Independence. In Dolores Hidalgo, we got ice cream at this famous ice cream place that has some strange flavors like tequila, cerveza (beer), avocado, cheese, mole, and shrimp. I tried the tequila flavor, just to say I did, but ended up getting pine nut, and it was delicious. Then, on our way out of town, we saw a girl getting ready for her quincea�era. She had a beautiful blue dress and what looked like a wedding party with her, they all looked so beautiful.

In San Miguel de Allende, we went to the artisan market, which was blocks long. It started with fruits and vegetables, and of course I got some fresh mango, and ended up with jewelry and clothing. There was a ton of cool stuff, and I think every one in the group got something different, and we got some practice with bartering. Later, our guide took us to some very beautiful and very old churches, and then showed us an unfinished mural in a tunnel-like room of the local art school, which was done by David Siqueiros in 1948. It was really cool because he had all his lines sketched, for whatever he was going to paint next, in a way that I wouldn’t have known it was unfinished if no one had told me. Something I found really interesting about this town is that it is a very popular destination for retiring Americans, so there were a lot of people who spoke English, and a lot of tourist-looking people. And of course, there was a Starbucks.

Yesterday, two of my friends decided to lay out for a little while we did some homework, I should have known it would be a bad idea. Even with spf 45 on, I was burnt within four hours. Then a group of us went to the local market to look for some souvenirs for our friends and family, and got tacos at a street stand at last. They were so cute. The tortillas used had a diameter of about three inches, and they were served with meat, onions, and cilantro. That was good by itself, but at each table they had six different kinds of salsas that you could add and picking just one was really hard.

Last night I noticed something really interesting. Along with all the cool shows and other things going on downtown, there seemed to be an invasion of tourists. I knew that this was a popular tourist destination, but I didn’t think it would happen so suddenly. In all three months that I was in Venezuela I think we saw 2 or 3 groups of tourists, so I was not expecting this at all. One week down and just three weeks left to explore.

Adios,

Lexi


Location: San Miguel de Allende, Mexico

First Impressions

Hola from Mexico!

As of today, I’ve been in Mexico for two full days and it’s been very interesting.  We went on a tour of the city and, as predicted, it was nothing like I expected. Compared to Venezuela, everything is very different. For one, in Venezuela there were roads, while here, most, if not all of the roads are made with pieces of slate with mortar in between.  It’s very cool. Another difference I noticed was with the society. In Venezuela, most people are either very rich or very poor, and there are few in between. Here, however, most people seem to be middle class. All of the houses are very similar looking, and it seems like most people where the same quality of clothing.

Another interesting thing about the city is all the nightlife there is, especially on the weekends. Just in the past two days I’ve seen a clown/mime show, 2 parades, a presentation with a bull costume and some bull fighters, and a traditional indigenous dance complete with costumes and headdresses. And all of this was just in the middle of the street downtown.

Something I found very interesting is right downtown there is a Starbucks and a Champ’s, but I have seen no sign of a McDonald’s. This is especially strange for me since there were three McDonald’s in the small town I was in in Venezuela, but nothing else from the United States.

The house I’m staying in is on top of a mountain, which is awesome as far as the view goes, but a B to come up every day. Going down is a cinch. I can get to the school in a little under 20 minutes, but coming back up is so hard. Even tonight, when it was chilly, I was out of breath and sweating coming up they hill. You don’t even want to know what it was like coming up the hill this afternoon for lunch.

The family I’m staying with is so adorable. It’s just a mom and her 13-year-old daughter, but they get along so well and seem like they are best friends. I’ve never seen a relationship like theirs at home.  Yesterday the mom made rice, salad and some type of pork cutlet for lunch, and afterwards we had a platano cut up with condensed milk on top. It was so sweet and delicious. Today, we had fresh fruit and pancakes for breakfast, and I have to say the mangos here are so much better than at home. Then for lunch, we had mac’n’cheese, but with spaghetti instead of macaroni, and some kind of tuna casserole that had bread instead of noodles and some really hot peppers. That was also delicious.

Well, I think that’s all for now, I’m exhausted and still have homework to do.

Adios,

Lexi


Location: Guanajuato, Mexico

Houston

Hola,

The past week has been hectic. I had three finals this week and my last one was yesterday at 4:40, so it was very hard to concentrate on packing. I had my suitcase open all week and I think I packed and unpacked (taking out and adding stuff) at least once each day. Hopefully I ended up with everything I’ll need, and if not, well it’s only a month.

Right now, I’m sitting in the airport and it still doesn’t feel real. The time as gone so quickly and I can’t believe I’m already on my way to Mexico. Most of the group will be meeting up in Houston and flying into Mexico together, so I’m really excited to meet everyone. There are 12 students and 2 teachers. I think it will be good having such a small group because it will be easier to get to know everyone in the 4 weeks we’ll be there. Tonight we’ll all be staying together, and tomorrow I believe we are touring the city, which I am very excited about. I have an idea of what I think the city will be like, and I’ve seen pictures, but in my experience things never look like I imagine them.

They told us we should have a theme for our blog, and until right now I had no idea what mine would be. But I think it would be really interesting to compare the things I see and experience with my experiences studying abroad in Venezuela last spring. I think some things will be the same, but I can already think of some differences just in what I’ve read about the two countries.

Well, that’s all for now. Next time I write I’ll be in Mexico! Adios!

-Lexi


Location: Houston, Texas

Getting Started

Hello Everyone,

My name is Lexi and I will be studying in Guanajuato, Mexico this summer, and everything is happening so quickly. I think there are only 17 days until we leave and I am so far from ready. My biggest concern is calling my family, I needed to do it weeks ago but my nerves are getting to me… Anyway, hopefully sometime this week. I’m so excited to work on my Spanish again. I studied in Venezuela last spring and have been loosing it ever since. Today in class my profesor put a list of words up and ask if we knew how to say them in Spanish. It was so frustrating because I know that I’ve learned every one of them before and at one point I would have been the first in the class to raise my hand, but thats all gone. Its not like I’ve been slacking on it, but now that I’m in higher level Spanish classes, we don’t concentrate on all the vocabulary. And like they say, if you don’t use it, you loose it. Hopefully this summer helps. Here is a picture of downtown Guanajuato, hopefully I’ll have a lot more to tell you next time i write. Till next time.   -Lexi

 

guanastreet.jpg


Location: State College, PA