Sudzal

This past Friday-Saturday we were given the opportunity to visit a pueblo. A pueblo can be just about anything from what i have heard, but it is a small town in Mexico to generalize it. Chelsey, Sarah and I traveled to the small town of Sudzal. We traveled with a seminarista (seminarian) and stayed with a family, just to see what life is like in a different part of Mexico. Generally pueblos are poorer than cities and it was very interesting to see life there.
The family we stayed with had a huge house, but with little furniture. We slept in our hammocks in one huge room that only had a bed in it, but it fit our hammocks quite nicely. The family owned a Panaderia, and we woke up really early Saturday Morning to see how the pan was made. It was very interesting because everything was made by hand. Now we have eaten our fair share of pan dulce but have never seen how it is made, and the way they make so many different varieties with such subtle differences is amazing. The oven they had was a huge oven made from one big stone. The dad told us that it was not made of cement because cement cannot handle the heat, so it was made out of pure stone. Kind of like the ruins we have seen. It was really interesting.
Also in Sudzal we hung out with some of the Youth. There was not much to do there becuase it is really small so we played a lot of basketball and on the playground. It was interesting to talk with the youth because life is different there. There is only one high school and not many opportunities to go to College, only those who have a bit more money can go to college. I cannot imagine how life would be if I could not go to college!
The one other thing that was very interesting to me was that the dad of the family we stayed with worked for the wrangler company. One of the companies who has moved their factories to Mexico for cheap labor. He told us the owner only spoke in English and they had to have translators to communicate with him. He was also very aware of why the company had moved to mexico, because of the cheap labor, he told us straight up it was for the cheap hand. But it was also work he needed, so it is a very strange situation. I do not know anything more about it, but after meeting someone who worked in one of the factories, the issue is all the more real.

That is all I got for now, only four weeks till I return to the United States, and it is hard to believe how fast the time has flown ( although sometimes it feels like it is moving very slowly!) But we are taking advantage of every opportunity left to us!

5 Weeks Left

So here we are, still in Mexico. It is hard to believe that we have just finished 11 weeks of studying in Mexico and living in Spanish, and let me tell you it has not been easy. I would like to say that I have loved Mexico with all that I am and never missed home, but alas, it has not been so. I had a hard week these past 2 weeks dealing with homesickness and who knows why. Probably because we had just gotten back from vacation and had to jump right back into classes. But to overcome this homesickness I decided to write down something good that I discovered about Mexico for every day. I started off with making a list of everything good I could think of Mexico, and I do not have the list with me, but I am going to try to say a few.
1. Panaderias- bakeries with very cheap pan dulce ( muffins, donuts, and all other sorts of treats)
2. School House- the school I am helping out at every Tuesday and Thursday, I have gotten to know some of the students and its lots of fun
3. My family- I get along with them so well, and although they are not my mom and dad, I know have parents in 2 countries
4. Panuchos- a yucatan delicacy!
5. Mercados- markets where I have spent tooo much money
6. Music- humorous to say the least at times
7. Telenovelas- my current favorite is Tengo todo excepto a ti ( I have everything except you!) Oh my goodness everything is about to blow up, affairs are being found out, illegitimate children, oye!
8. Wireless in Burger King- we don't go to coffee shops for the internet, we go to Burger King
9. Plazas- every city has its own plaza and there are always people there, or something going on
10. Universal and Axn- my two favorite television channels so I can watch lost and CSI
11. Drake and Josh- a show on Nick that my brothers love ( i have never seen it in English, but its great in Spanish)
12. Ricardo Dogre- a student at schoolhouse, who makes me laugh every time I see him.
13. Carito- my cousin who I am getting know
14. Swimming with Sea Turtles- seriously where else are you going to do that in the middle of the ocean?
15. Hammocks- I finally figured out how to successfully sleep in a hammock, because it was too hot to sleep in my bed!
16. La Hoya- a great little cafe with waffles covered in Nutella! (only 3 dollars!)
17. Our group in Mexico-we have all gotten along great without many problems!

Well I know there was a lot more to that list, I think I made it to over 50 things but my mind is drawing a blank right now! Things continue to go well here in Mexico. I am very very very sick of classes and homework, but I think i would be the same way in the United States! Something exciting that just happened, well actually it happened today, My family opened a restaurant in our house. Well it is actually outside the house but it's called Benji's Burgers, We will see how it goes. Its a very small restaurant, but I think I will be eating Burgers for the next five weeks!

Although I am still homesick, I think i have put things back into perspective. I still have my bad days, but in reality I think I can survive five more weeks. Our weekends are full till we come home. I just have to keep homework in perspective and not get too stressed out, for that is when I tend to get very homesick!

I continue to thank you for your prayers and encouragement!

Two Weeks in a little bus

Well when I left off I believe we were in Oaxaca. In Oaxaca we once again visited more ruins and a market which was near the ruins. You would not believe how many markets there are in Mexico and how tempting all of them are! We also saw a weaving demonstration. It was pretty interesting, everything they used was natural and without electricity. It started from straight wool and ended up in a beautiful rug. Sometimes its hard for me to believe that things are still made this way, with all the technology in the world, but I would say they are more beautiful when made by hand.

As we left Oaxaca we stopped at a famous place where vases, sculptures, and many more things are made from clay. Once again this is done without electricity and by hand, and everything was done without paint, which is amazing because it is a brilliant black in many of the works and it is hard to believe there was no paint involved. I'll show what I mean when I get back. Then we moved onto Puerto Angel which was our one day at the beach. This was wonderful, we took a little boat out into the ocean, saw dolphins, swam with a sea turtle, jumped off a big rock into the ocean and snorkled. It was a nice rest from educational things!

THere is so much more to tell, we saw a lot more ruins, took a boat through a beautiful canyon, stopped at more markets, rode horses twice, swam in a pool, got sunburned, ate good dinners, observed what life is like at a mission, saw very strange mixtures of religions and more. All in all it was a good trip!

Now we are back to classes and counting down the days until we get back to the United States, as of today it is 44. I probably shouldn't be counting, but I miss home a lot right now!

Love and miss you all