Good Stuff

I feel like I owe you all a follow-up blog post. I don’t want you to think I am leading an oppressed, miserable existence here. It was just a mounting frustration that I decided to let loose on blogger.com. A moment of culture shock. Hopefully that is the worst of it.

In fact, the truth is that for every moment of machista-driven frustration, I have double the moments of inspiration and hope in our generation and our world.

For example, being told by a guy-friend that the reason he likes me is because I am intelligent and we have great conversations reminds me that not everyone here is how I described in the previous post.

T.I.M.

Or having a great day at La UTEZ. I started routine classes this week; icebreakers, conversations, attendance-taking. The work has made me feel very positive. One of the students in the advanced section on Monday even gave me a candy after class (Mexican equivalent to USA apple?)!




Or having a fun Mexican celebration. Here are 2 pictures of Laura and me on the night of the Independence day celebrations, in the street and with a goofy Mexican caricature.





Or, having an amazing couchsurfing experience. My gringa friend Laura and I travelled to Puebla, a beautiful city about 3 hours south of Cuernavaca, this past Friday. We went very last minute but were fortunate enough to find someone on the couchsurfing website to host us (non-profit organization to help travelers find hosts in destination cities). We stayed with a Mexican guy named Mario. He was the perfect host. He and his friend Manolo picked us up in the downtown when we arrived, took us to a café, then we went out to dance salsa that night.



Unfortunately my camera battery died after this, so I don’t have pictures of the next day, when he took us to a feria (outdoor artisan fair/bazaar) in Cholula, a town near Puebla, and to some famous churches and pyramids/ruins. Born and raised in Puebla, Mario was the perfect mix of historian, tour guide, friend, and gracious host. Laura and I had a bedroom to ourselves, and he cooked for us in his house. We spent the weekend having very interesting conversations about sociological issues like culture and generational differences, machismo, gender roles in our respective cultures, poverty, and much more. It was enlightening, a refreshing experience, and we now have a friend in Puebla!

WIA

Laura and I have also tried some to-die-for Mexican food, including huitlacoche (black corn fungus—trust me it is DELICIOUS) and a few candidates for best Mexican horchata! Here is a picture of Laura and our friend Jorge the day after Independence Day (back on Sept. 16), and a picture of the previously mentioned meal.





This past weekend, after Puebla for 24 hours, Laura and I bopped up to Mexico City to go to a party with a bunch of Fulbrighters in the city (there is a huge population of former and current Fulbrighters living there). I was pleasantly SHOCKED when I met a Kenyan! We chatted for a while.

The day after the party we spent the day in Coyoacan, neighborhood of Mexico City famous for the house of Frida and Diego. Charming, open-minded, historical and relaxed, it was the perfect setting for a lovely Sunday afternoon. We ate our way around the town (tacos al pastor—the best yet, churros filled with Nutella, the renowned ice cream of Coyoacan, quesadillas, horchata). Yummm.

WILT

I also purchased 3 cds off the street: "Laberinto en la guitarra," Baroque Mexican acoustic guitar music, "Antologia del Son de Mexico," and a compilation of Mercedes Sosa, a beautiful Argentine musician. I leave you with a gorgeous song by Mercedes. Enjoy.