our internet this week has been very hit or miss. i haven't been able to write a lot, due to minimal free time paired with no internet.
this week, we were in our first week of language school. i am in the intermediate class, and it is a lot of review for what i've learned in the past. we spent the week learning/reviewing the preterite, imperfect, present perfect, past perfect, and even more fun things (: then in the afternoon we have a conversations class. we sit and just talk. kind of fun (: friday, our teacher gave us the prompt of "what's your stand on gay couples and should they be able to adopt?" i feel like i have a hard enough time explaining my views in english, let alone in another language with people i'm still learning about. we also got to learn a few mexican songs! de colores, la bamba (: got to sing with the teacher, and it was an absolute blast (:
(ready to write a bunch in my notebook!)
after school everyday we've been learning about either our jobs, or about the city of cuernavaca. most of the volunteers for mexico will be working in the city of miacatlán, where the younger kids are, which is only about 45 minuutes away. in cuernavaca, we have a 'bachillerato' for the older kids. their high school experience consists of the normal classes kids take, and then they choose an area of specialization - child care, tourism, computation, business, etc. to give them the skills they need to work right after they graduate if they'd like. otherwise, the children are given the opportunity to go to university by giving an extra year of service after they graduate high school. there is housing for volunteers in cuerna to visit on their weekends off from miacatlán, which is where we've been staying. we've got 5 girls in 2 rooms, with more on the weekends since there are ladies who have their weekend off right now. its been so fun getting to know the people that will be my primary support system this year.
this week we've learned the bus system, went out to eat with the current volunteers, learned some of the slang for the house/mexico, some safety, and other things pertaining to our jobs, as well as salsa dancing. i had SO much fun learning salsa, with one of the best partners ever. he was an older man i didnt know before getting there, but he was so kind and wanted to ensure i was getting all the moves correctly (: afterwards, we went to have a couple drinks on a patio bar (: to all the minnesotans - sorry im not sorry (; i ordered a hamburger, and it was notttt very good. kind of missing american food right now - so sick of beans (frijoles), and its only been one week.
yesterday, a few of us decided to climb a mountain to an old pyramid about 45 minutes away. one of the other volunteers said he wasnt going to climb because he'd done it recently, and i was curious as to why he didnt want to go again if it wasnt that bad? after about 4 minutes i realized why. i had one of the best workouts ever, but man am i sore. i wish i could just have a bubble bath with epsom salt and wine (; the whole way up, id ask to stop every 3 minutes or less - id relate it to p90x. its great if you already work out. if you dont, its very difficult. our mantra the whole way up was 'si se puede', which means 'you can do it'. it helped a little more when we could see the end in sight (;
for more info on the mountain, click the link: http://unvrso.hubpages.com/hub/Archeological-Sites
(before our hike)
weve all had emotional highs and lows this week while acclamating to this change in everything - our daily routine, communal living, school, etc. i feel that 'si se puede' really applies to a lot of whats going on, and its whats keeping me trekking right now (as i write my blog post in bed on a saturday night).
purchased some things at the market to make guacamole with the avocados and limes that we have in our front yard (: time to see if im any good at cooking down here? ¡hasta luego!
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