All Good Adventures Must End.

Our Mexican adventure is now over. Thankfully, we had an amazing time and we will keep visiting Mexico as much as possible. The places we visited, the things we learned, and the people we met will all be a part of our memories. Thank you for following my blog!

While this adventure is over, we have another one we're planning. Another blog will follow. Keep in touch!

I am sad.

Mexico, my second home, my home-away-from-home, my go-to vacation spot, and our next-door neighbor is hurting.
The drug war is not really working. Mexico is trying to fight the drugs, because their President knows that Mexico cannot and will not get much U.S. support until this is under control. Unfortunately, until the U.S. can get immigration under control, and stop fighting wars on the other side of the world, there is no public support in the U.S. for helping Mexico to de-corrupt their government.

As The Drug War Rages On, Will Mexico Surrender
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129009629

In my summer office job, I helped to coordinate mission trips to Latin America (and a few other Eurasian and African countries.) Part of my job is to moderate the security warnings from Mexico.

Unfortunately, we won't be sending mission trips to Mexico anytime soon. These are the articles that have come to my inbox in the last 2 weeks:

Mexico drug cartels thrive despite Calderon's offensive http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-mexico-cartels-20100808,0,5731725,full.story

Mexico: Cartels Pay Corrupt Cops $100 Million a Month http://www.laht.com/article.asp?CategoryId=14091&ArticleId=362206

Former Mexican president Vicente Fox has called for the legalisation of drugs http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-10921975

Violence paralyzes Mexico border areas http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38685423/

members of a drug cartel blocked off at least 13 major roads in Monterrey on Saturday http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-10977501

Under threat from Mexican drug cartels, reporters go silent http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-mexico-narco-censorship-20100816,0,4152944.story

Drug hitmen kidnap Mexican mayor near U.S. border http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100816/ts_nm/us_mexico_drugs

Gunmen Dressed as Cops Kidnapped Mexican Mayor http://www.laht.com/article.asp?CategoryId=14091&ArticleId=363478

A surge of drug violence in Mexico's business capital and richest city has prompted an outcry from business leaders who on Wednesday took out full-page ads asking President Felipe Calderón to send in more soldiers to stem the violence. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704557704575437762646209270.html

As Drug War Turns Into Quagmire, Fear Rules Mexico http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128804488

English is a crazy language

Unfortunately, I do not have more news or commentary about living in Mexico. Moving 'back' to the US has been personally and professionally challenging. Our next adventure is still in the future, it seems, so right now we're just trying to stay connected with our friends and experiences of Mexico. Dave is lucky bc he is meeting with some of our Mexican friends in Tokyo this week - they're all there on a business trip.

In the meantime, I thought I'd share a funny story I just read about the English language. There's a joke in Mexico that goes, "Why is it every Mexican speaks 75% English?" The truth is, most Mexicans can barely say 10 words in English. And that's because English is hard:

Let's face it - English is a crazy language. There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple. English muffins weren't invented in England or French fries in France. We take English for Granted.
If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So.. one moose, 2 meese?
If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat?
Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane. What other reason could there be for saying that people recite at a play and play at a recital? Or, ship cargo by truck and send cargo by ship? Or, have noses that run and feet that smell? How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? How can overlook and oversee be opposites, while quite a lot and quite a few are alike?
English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of the human race (which of course, isn't a race at all.)

trust me, every language has it's weird parts. And knowing those idiosyncrasies is what proves we're 'good' at it. I'll never learn all of those for Spanish, at least I don't think so, but it's still fun to try.

This is my Song

We went to church today. As one of Dave's favorite blogs stated, on holidays at church, anything goes. http://stuffchristianslike.net/ (see blog #251, July 3)
I was prepared for all the regal patriotic splendor of an independence day service - God Bless America, honoring veterans, a sermon about how all the founding fathers were Christians, etc.
While I do pray that God continues to bless America, and I do pray for and honor our veterans, after living abroad, I feel differently today than I used to. This is a great country, and it has been blessed by God, and I am proud to be an American, but I know better than to think that this is the 'best' country in the world, or a 'Christian country' or the only 'land of the free and home of the brave'. Lots of countries have dedicated veterans and honored heroes who fight for freedom and showcased bravery. Every country deserves freedom and democracy and peace.
So, I felt blessed to sing this song for the first time:

This is my song, O God of all the nations,
a song of peace for lands afar and mine;
this is my home, the country where my heart is;
here are my hopes, my dreams, my holy shrine:
but other hearts in other lands are beating
with hopes and dreams as true and high as mine.

My country's skies are bluer than the ocean,
and sunlight beams on cloverleaf and pine;
but other lands have sunlight too, and clover,
and skies are everywhere as blue as mine:
O hear my song, thou God of all the nations,
a song of peace for their land and for mine.

This is my song, O God of all the nations,
a prayer that peace transcends in every place;
and yet I pray for my beloved country --
the reassurance of continued grace:
Lord, help us find our one-ness in the Savior,
in spite of differences of age and race.

May truth and freedom come to every nation;
may peace abound where strife has raged so long;
that each may seek to love and build together,
a world united, righting every wrong;
a world united in its love for freedom,
proclaiming peace together in one song.

This is my prayer, O Lord of all earth's kingdoms,
thy kingdom come, on earth, thy will be done;
let Christ be lifted up 'til all shall serve him,
and hearts united, learn to live as one:
O hear my prayer, thou God of all the nations,
myself I give thee -- let thy will be done.

I am a proud citizen of the earth, and an even prouder citizen of America. The continent, not just the country.

Funny Moments

We asked the GPS yesterday to give us directions to "go home" and were wondering why it had a map to show us, but no arrival time.
The GPS gave us directions to our "home" in Metepec, Mexico. :)
No one knows our next arrival time there.

We had a garage sale on Saturday and at least 3 hispanic groups came to shop. We wrote "se habla espanol" on our sign (spanish spoken) and so some took us up on our offer! We even met a family - from Toluca!

I will sometimes come home and look at a sink and a counter full of dirty dishes and think, "ummmm.... how did this get here?" and then, "did I think a fairy would clean my kitchen?" Oh, yes, that's right, I did think a fairy would come. Her name is Carmen, and she really did try to crawl in our suitcases...

I took a taxi and forgot to put on my seatbelt. Also forgot to check if the meter was on - that was a HUGE mistake!

Whenever I go to Chipotle and order carnitas or barbacoa or salsa verde, I will slip into Spanish and then try to do my entire order in Spanish. Sometimes, the worker is Hispanic, and doesn't mind. That is much less embarrassing than the weird look from the white teenager.

We went to a new Mexican restaurant bc we had heard they served 'authentic' Mexican food. When we ordered a "torta milanesa" the waitress had no idea what we meant. We repeated it 3 times, and I finally pointed at the menu. "Oh," she says, "You want the chicken sandwich." Um... nope. we could get a chicken sandwich anywhere. What we really want is a torta milanesa.

At work, a Spanish-speaking Latino pastor called and talked with my co-worker, who was struggling to keep up with the conversation. Finally, in desperation, I hear him croak out "Pooh-way-das hab-lahr cone me ahm-ee-go Kelly?" (can you talk to my friend, kelly in the worst accent I've heard in a long time). So... then I continue to talk with the guy for about 15 minutes. *sigh*

A little less American

I walked out of the house yesterday. With nothing but my purse. And just started walking.

In Mexico, it was normal to walk around places. We would go out for dinner - and walk. We would go shopping - and walk. We would leave for the airport - and walk. We would walk just to walk! Some of our favorite excursions being the "mountain" near our house that was a climbing challenge while getting ready to go to Europe. The last 2 months, while I lived in the apartments, I walked to work, I walked to do my laundry, I walked to go visit friends.

But in the states, I get funny looks when I'm walking. In fact, I feel a little funny walking. Leaving my house through the front door - not the garage - is awkward. Walking jauntily past my garage door and driveway with no keys in my hand feels strange.

But for a few weeks now, I have been relying on my feet, and my new bike, and the local bus system for transportation. (and on my DH's car. I can't be too mexican!)

So, maybe I did manage to keep a little part of Mexico with me. If I can only speak Spanish and pretend that I'm fighting with mangy dogs and unruly taxi drivers for space, then I'd feel right at home!

What can I say?

A lot of people - new coworkers, acquaintances, old friends, even some family members - have tried to start conversation by asking "what's it like to be back home?" or the very similar, "are you getting used to life in the states?"

Until very recently, I winced at the question.

What did people want me to say? I heard the very strong implication that I was supposed to say "It's so good to be home" implying that MI/USA alone is my home, that I disliked my time away, that it was easy to re-adjust, etc. I know most people are just making conversation, and really wanted a one or two word answer (kind of like when people ask, "how are you doing?" when they really don't care, they just need something to say after "hello").

But I don't have an easy answer. At least, not one that most people want to hear.

I wanted to scream and shout and rail against the U.S. ethnocentrism that made it difficult for Americans to understand anyone or anyplace else. I wanted to explain how I had left behind some of my very best friends. I wanted to complain about the hassle of moving with suitcases and trucks. I wanted to wax poetic about the culture of Mexico.
I wanted to do a lot of things, but I normally mumbled something like "oh, it's ok" and desperately tried not to cry.

Now, with some wise counsel, I'm ready to own my answer.

"Even though it was time to leave, I wasn't ready. We loved Mexico, and it will always be a part of our hearts. I hope you get a chance to enjoy it someday like we did."
I might cry the first thousand times I repeat it, but I can do it. I can tell people. I can accept if they nod and walk away, but I'm hoping that person after person after person will ask why I loved Mexico so much, and where they should visit, and what part will be the hardest to leave behind.

Because I want to shout loud and clear that I love Mexico, I love the people, I love the culture, I love the food. I think everyone should try to understand immigration before they make a judgment call. I think everyone should eat real tacos. I think everyone should visit Mexico - if even once in their lives - without visiting a beach or going on a mission trip. Just enjoy it like you would enjoy Paris or Cairo or Tokyo or New York City. And then come home and tell someone else.

Dazed and confused

My eyes glazed over as I looked at the options. It was just too overwhelming.

Hundreds of cuts of meat were wrapped in sterile plastic, arranged neatly on spotless white shelves, illuminated by bright lights. There were so many options, and all of them looked so disconnected from each other. There was so much space and so much cleanliness that the meat locker at Meijer reminded me of a morgue or a museum.

It was all too much.

Now, I have to admit, I have never really liked meat shopping. And, while in Mexico, I never did work up the courage to buy my meat from the butcher at the outdoor market who would cut a chunk off of a dangling carcas and wrap it in plain paper. Still, the shock of grocery shopping finally caught up with me.

I miss Mexico.

I miss walking to the outdoor market, carrying my cloth bags and a pocket full of coins. I miss the smell of fresh tortillas and tamales and roasted corn and tacos al pastor while we're shopping. I miss driving to the supermarket and hiding my reusable bags in my purse bc I wasn't allowed to bring them in. I miss tipping the bagger and buying water and getting really excited at the pick-your-own pastries counter.

Here at Meijer, I had to buy a cake for 20. And it probably wasn't made in the bakery right there. The tortillas were full of preservatives in the refrigerated section. The salsa was so pathetic, I didn't even look, lest I get more depressed.

In my Mexican History class, we read an article exerpt from the 18th century explaining how Mexico City was the place for upper-class Europeans to visit. The colors were so unlike anything in drab Europe: the food, the dishes, the clothing, the flowers, the sunshine, the buildings, everything is bright with colors. And during the dry season, when it seems God has turned the world to gray, Mexican mujeres will still wear bright red scarfs and the men will paint their houses yellow, as if by coloring their world they can bring the rain sooner.

Now that I'm surrounded by green forests, and clean rain, and quiet nights, I'm still missing the colors and sound and feel of Mexico.
Maybe I will for a long time to come.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

At the final faculty party, the teachers who were leaving received presents from the board. (It is kind of telling that in a staff of 8, it's normal for 3 teachers to leave each year)

These are handcrafted pewter frames from a town near where we lived. Thankfully I had room in my tight suitcases for a 5-pound picture frame!

My last day was a week before the end of school. (I just couldn't stay for such an emotional week. it was too much.) I tried to get a picture with every kid, but
2 left before I got the camera out.

7th & 8th graders (missing D)


9th & 10th graders (with everyone!)


11th & 12th graders (missing B)


After school, my best teacher friends - the ones at the apartments who hosted me for 5 weeks over my last 2 months in Mexico - took Dave & I out to dinner. This was a delicious restaurant and a bittersweet time together.


This restaurant was full of witty quotes. They're all in Spanish, of course, so I won't share all of my pictures. (Dave says that one in the men's bathroom, above the urinal, said "the future of Mexico is in your hands" which I honestly thought was hilarious)


Much money, little work, cheap tequila - long live Mexico!t

Culture Shock

There are officially 5 stages of culture shock: anticipation, excitement, negotiation, adjustment, and mastery. Unfortunately, 60% of expats never master the new culture. 10% of expats master the new culture so well that they choose to stay, basically forever.
"Some people manage to adapt the aspects of the host culture they see as positive, while keeping some of their own and creating their unique blend. They have no major problems returning home or relocating elsewhere. Approximately 30% of expatriates are these so-called Cosmopolitans." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_shock)

I guess we're 'cosmopolitan'.

So, of the 90% of expats who return home, most of us go through something called 'reverse culture shock'. Basically, getting used to our old country is nearly as unsettling as getting used to the new country. Most Americans are unsettled by this. People think that we're not very American if we don't immediately re-adjust to our 'old' life or our 'real' life here.

Truthfully, culture is all-encompassing fact of life. We have to get used to dozens of lifestyle changes here:
air conditioning
rain then sun then clouds then drizzle then half sun
cruise control
early morning sunrises and late night sunsets
hockey (not soccer) all over the news
mowing the lawn
expensive restaurants
daily mail
and new jobs, just to name a few.

So... I miss Mexico. 2 years ago, I thought I'd be so happy to see this day, and I am in a way. When we came home for our 6 month visit, I was trying to fill my days with US things and my Spanish was all but forgotten. Last summer, we were in the US and England for over a month, and I forgot some Spanish and didn't miss tacos. 6 months ago, I had a hard time NOT eating avocados with Christmas dinner. Now, I miss my friends, and my beautiful rented house, and the delicious food, and the warm sunshine, and the challenge of speaking another language. I'm sad from leaving my kids and saying good bye to my friends; I'm exhausted from unpacking and cleaning our house while starting a new job.
I'm hopeful that we can bring our Mexican personalities and habits and - can I claim it - culture will come with us to the U.S.

Done

Our time in Mexico is officially "done".

We packed up our beautiful house, and returned our "fancy" car. I ate all the Mexican food and gave away my used clothes. I cleaned out my classroom and sold my Mexico phone.

I completed an exit interview and took pictures with my kids and hugged my friends and got on a plane and flew away.

After months of answering, "so when are you really coming home?" and weeks of living out of suitcases, and days of waking up and wondering where I am, the truth has finally come.

We live here now. We're not going back (anytime soon)

This is our house. My books are on the shelf and my shoes are in the closet and my water bottle is on the bedside table. Dave installed the flooring and I painted the walls and the only thing on our shelves that we didn't pick out ourselves is a kerosene lamp left by the last owner which I can't throw away because of some sort of sentimental value.

Our suitcases are stored in a closet somewhere.
Our passports are in the safe.

My calendar is filling up with "Michigan things" like birthday parties and the farmer's market and bike rides. There aren't any "Mexican things" like spanish class or hotel reservations.

I'm not going back. (well, not anytime soon.)

And it's just not that easy to walk away from a perfectly good life.

Controversial Herb

Like politics and religion, cilantro elicits strong opinions. People love it or hate it. For some, it's an acquired taste, thus attracting its share of proselytizing converts, such as myself. Even the name of the plant can be controversial. In the U.S., the leaves are called cilantro, while the seeds are called coriander. In Europe, the leaves are called coriander, while the seeds are also called coriander. To confuse matters further, cilantro leaves are also known as Chinese parsley.

We LOVE cilantro, and it's very popular in Mexico. For recipes and a full article about this delicious herb, check out: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127092887

Immigration

I'm an illegal immigrant.

Yep. I'm a white-skinned, red-blooded, Protestant Christian, college educated, born-in-the-USA, tax paying, hard working American citizen. But I'm also an illegal immigrant in Mexico.

"WAIT!" I hear you shouting. you can't be illegal - you're working!

Of course I'm working. I'm working for a Christian school who refuses to get me legal paperwork and instead pays me under the table. So every time I cross security at the airport, I can't be a Christian witness and tell them "I'm teaching at a Missionary school in Mexico City". I have to lie. I am visiting my husband; I'm staying with a friend; I'm learning Spanish; I'm avoiding the cold northern winters. Basically, I have to pretend that I'm spending every day tanning and drinking margaritas when I'm working a full-time schedule and putting up with kids who don't do their homework and parents who don't speak English and board members who don't know how to run a school.

None of this makes me legal. A little piece of paper makes me legal, and I don't have it.

To Clarify: I am NOT sneaking across the border. I'm crossing into Mexico legally. I'm returning legally. I have a valid passport and a 'tourist visa' which gives me permission to stay in Mexico for up to 180 days at a time as long as I do not commit a crime or ask for government resources.

So, I feel that the following facts about U.S. immigration should be shared:

1. 40% of illegal immigrants in the U.S. arrive with legal documentation, only they overstay their visas. (I can see how easy this is! Once I'm in, no one calls to remind me to leave, or anything.) Once someone has overstayed his or her visa, that person officially has an 'illegal' status and his or her application for legal residency or citizenship will likely be denied.
Myths about illegal immigration: http://www.urban.org/publications/900898.html
how to become a legal resident: http://www.ehow.com/how_2083009_become-legal-us-resident.html
how to become a citizen: http://www.visaus.com/citizen.html

2. Most U.S. citizens are ok with letting current illegal immigrants (about 12 million of them) become legal residents or citizens as long as they learn English, keep a job, and stay out of prison. In otherwords, as long as they act like us. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/02/opinion/02fri3.html

3. Children who immigrate illegally while minors are still held responsible for their crime. In other words, if a person came to the U.S. illegally as a minor, s/he can be deported with his or her parents if under 18, and once that immigrant graduates from U.S. high school (passing government class, in English) - a feat that up to 25% of U.S. citizen children are not able to accomplish on time - s/he still cannot apply for legal residency or citizenship. Ever. That is why this recent story on CNN really got me angry: http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/05/14/georgia.student.immigration/index.html
and also why I support this guy from my hometown: http://www.annarbor.com/news/ann-arbor-man-faces-deportation-following-arrest-in-arizona/

4. While a legal path to citizenship has not yet been proposed (as I mentioned above, most U.S. citizens are ok with this), the DREAM act has been. http://dreamact.info/students This would help law-abiding young people who were brought here illegally by their parents to apply for citizenship, basically forgiving them for living with their parents when they crossed the border.

5. Most illegal immigrants pay taxes: sales taxes & gasoline taxes, of course, but also 2/3 of illegal immigrants pay payroll taxes: income taxes, social security, and medicaid taxes even though they will never receive federal or state benefits. http://reason.org/news/show/122411.html
The only services illegal immigrants can receive are K-12 education (less than 5% of school children are either illegal or children of illegals) and emergency room care.

In short, the US needs a more humane and logical immigration system. Christians need to support immigrants, no matter where they came from or how they got here, because those are our brothers and sisters in Christ. http://faithandimmigration.org/content/about-ccir

Baby Drama

As my avid readers know, I'm currently staying with friends in a small apartment building about 1/2 block from the school in Mexico City where I teach. This is giving me a closer look into the lives of my neighbors than I had when I lived in the condo complex in Metepec. (although, in metepec, I did notice that the men dressed up in suits and smoked by their cars at 10am, watching the portero wash their cars, and then their wives would get all dressed up in athletic gear and walk back and forth on the small road in front of our condos at 11am. This, apparently, was how upper-middle-class Mexicans assert their economic status - they dress well, and mainly separate themselves from the working class Mexicans who wash their cars and their kitchens.)

The apartment building where I am right now is mainly other teachers from my school, but there are 2 apartments with Mexicans - one apartment with 2 single women and one apartment with a Mexican family.

The apartment with 2 single women is only occupied occasionally. The women likely live in a small town near DF, but work or go to school in the city. So they share a cheap apartment to sleep in when they're in town. This is common in Mexico City. It has the most jobs of anywhere in Mexico, but it's crowded and dirty, so people try to work here but live somewhere else.

The apartment with the family is kind of crowded. A 20-something man with his dad, his pregnant wife, and his preschool-aged son are living in an apartment that we consider to be for 1 person (maybe a married couple). They do not have a car. This family seemed nice, and pleasant, and relatively happy, if crowded.
This weekend a huge family drama played out. I speak enough Spanish to get the gist. The wife had her second baby, her family came to visit, and then she left with them. She did not take her children. There was lots of confusion. What exactly happened is basically speculation on our part (we do have some biased details) but through this, I did learn a lot of facts about Mexican society:

1. The local police can be called on in domestic disputes. While they may or may not show up, when they do, they will do basically what U.S. cops do - take down some names, make sure no one is dead, and dispel the situation. Then leave. They will not talk with the children or ask about their welfare.
2. Mothers in Mexico have complete custody of their children. (We had to consult our Mexican co-workers to get this info.) Whether or not they married the mother of their children, fathers are generally not consulted in custody disputes.
3. A mother has to have physically left her child for at least 2 months before she can be considered absent. Children are only considered abused or malnourished if they are routinely hospitalized. Children are only considered neglected if they lack basic food (1 tortilla with beans every 3 days is considered basic nutrition), shelter (anything with a roof counts, even if there is no electricity or running water), and clothing (1 complete outfit with any kind of footwear - even flip-flop sandals - counts).

Some things I already knew about the child welfare system:
4. Once DIF takes the child into custody, any family member without a criminal record can claim custody of the child. As less than 1% of all crimes in Mexico are ever punished, very few "criminals" have a record. Once that person has claimed custody of that child, DIF rarely follows up to be sure that s/he is still caring for the child. (keep in mind that "caring" is a minimal requirement)
5. Less than 100 children from Mexico are adopted outside of the country every year, mainly by Mexicans living abroad and/or married to U.S. citizens who claim responsibility for their distant relatives. Mexico does not want to admit that they have trouble caring for their own children.

So basically, an infant and a toddler have been abandoned (perhaps only temporarily) by their mother in the apartment next to me. The mother has the right, at any time in the next two months, to retrieve the children and take them away from their father forever. In the meantime, it's unclear who will care for them. Even if the father does a great job in caring for these children, and loves them immensely, he doesn't have any right to the kids. If neither the father nor the mother want the children, it will be years - if ever - before permanent caring custodians can be found.

All of this while thousands upon thousands of caring individuals could and would take these children into their homes and care for them.

Today, I am praying for that family and thousands of others for whom the "system" has failed.

International city

I always knew that DF is a truly international city, but one dinner this weekend really drove the idea home. First, this is where our restaurant was located:


And this is what it looked like at the entrance:


So, yes, we went to a Japanese restaurant on a street named for an American state in Mexico's capital city.
Welcome multicultural evening!

When Public Transit Works

After living in Mexico City for nearly 2 years, I was pretty convinced that cities this large just can't work with modern technology. Then, I went to Tokyo - an even larger city - where not only did tens of millions of persons move around every day, but they did it effectively and effectively. If I wasn't already, Tokyo convinced me that public transportation is the way of the future.

Dave & I shared a car for 2 years in mexico, but right now we are both working and "living" here without a car. (and without a house or apartment of our own - officially we're just 'visiting' this time) Trying to get around this huge metropolis like a Mexican, without a car of our own, has been challenging but exciting.

This weekend, we took a suburban light-rail train car (pictured above) which was clean, on time, and very fast. Then, we took a metrobus, which was crowded, but also amazing. The past few weeks, my co-teachers and current hostesses have taught me to use taxis, buses, and "combis, a kind of mini-bus the size of a VW bug.

I'm starting to think Mexico really can handle their traffic problems. By doubling their light rail and metrobus routes, they can decrease traffic and increase on-time transit for residents.

In related news, I have also recently used the bus routes in my hometown in the U.S. I live in a city that sold all of it's street cars to Mexico City in the 1950s, and is the only major US city without a comprehensive rapid transit system. These buses are less effective than a light rail system would be, but still friendly and helpful and well-used.

this is talking about Americans: Mass transit is highly desired by the young, highly educated "creative class" who want to get around a metro area after relaxing downtown — without having to designate a driver.

Maybe mass transit is a way that Mexico can help the US develop?

Common Sense, part 1

http://thenews.com.mx/articulo/new-drug-policy-praised-10513

Most Mexicans are fed up with the "Drug War" started by Pres. Calderon when he took office 3 years ago (Mex. presidents serve 1 6-year term). Trying to fight all 3 major drug cartels at one time is incredibly ineffective. Mainly, the drug cartels are better armed and more prepared than the Mexican army, and although they hate each other, they will band together to fight this war. Attacking only one cartel at a time could work, bc the other cartels will basically help the army. Of course, not everyone likes that strategy... aligning itself with any cartel is generally a poor choice for governments. (Although, I have heard that each administration basically cuts a deal with a different cartel - this cartel basically gets federal immunity as long as they don't kill innocent civilians and also keep the other cartels in line. Sounds ridiculous, but it basically worked for 20 years.)

Anyway, the average Mexican - and I - think that the "drug war" is a problem that the U.S. can and should solve, but that the Mex. gov't is currently unable to solve.
problem #1: North Americans buy most of the drugs. If we stopped the demand, either by lowering our usage and/or making marijuana legal, then the prices would drop and fewer cartels would be profitable.
problem #2: All of the guns used by the drug cartels are legally purchased in Texas and then smuggled across the border by U.S. citizens, who are often allowed to cross back and forth without being searched. U.S. border patrol can't regulate firearms, bc that is a states' rights issue.
problem #3: Mexico does not have enough schools for children over 12. Less than half of all Mexicans attend jr. high, less than a quarter attend high school. These numbers are the worst in rural areas, where high unemployment makes the sacrifice of getting a high school education pretty worthless. This means that millions of Mexican young people have 2 options --> illegally cross into the U.S. to work or sign up with a drug cartel. The 'good guys' are the ones who cross into texas to wash dishes, bc at least their mama can go to bed without crying.
problem #4: The U.S. is training Mexican police - who are all corrupt - rather than investing in education or job training in Mexico or drug rehab programs in the U.S.

A new drug policy was announced today by Pres. Obama (see the link above). The new administration is going to make drug policy a public health issue, rather than a public safety issue. This should decrease drug use and drug demand in the U.S., which will help the drug war. This is common sense #1.

Until we get comprehensive immigration reform (common sense #2) and investment in Mexico's education system (common sense #3) the drug war will continue to rage.

BTW - just like on Law&Order, CSI, NCIS, and a dozen other U.S. shows, most everyone who is killed by drug violence is involved in illegal activity. A few innocent citizens can be caught in the crossfire, but this is less likely than dying in a car crash. I am perfectly safe in Mexico, and I encourage others to visit, especially central Mexico, where the drug cartels are a relatively small presence.

Tough to breathe

http://thenews.com.mx/articulo/air-quality-is-bad-for-half-of-the-year-10510

We all know that DF is dirty. Literally. First off, bc it doesn't rain for about half of the year, and 23 million people live there, soil quickly becomes a fine filmy dust that floats everywhere and sticks to anything - your hair, your car, your storefront - which gives the impression that Mexicans don't care about being clean. This is not true. Mexican women will water the dirt in their front yard to keep it from floating into their house.

Mainly, though, Mexico City is polluted. Millions of cars, buses, trains, and people every day in a mountain valley pump a LOT of pollution into the air.

If you live in the midwest US, you may know about ozone action days - those few hot days in the summer when we're encouraged to fill our gas tanks and mow our lawns after dark to avoid hurting the atmosphere? Well, Mexico has those days half of the year. Literally, half of the days of the year, children are encouraged not to run outside, bc it's bad for their lungs. Every other day of the week, people with asthma need to wear a mask if they leave their house.

We're used to it now, if that's possible, although my nose is runny most of the time.

The more things change...

"When are you moving back? Are you already moved in?"
So many well-meaning people are asking me that question, and I"m trying to remember that they haven't already asked it a million times so I should be nice in my answer.
"We are in the process of moving back. It will take a few trips."
When exactly are we moved back? When the truck leaves? When the truck arrives? When we step off the plane? When I don't have any more airline tickets planned? When the GPS is switched to calculate in miles rather than kilometers? Or is the moving day just a date on the calendar?

Two years ago, I was wrapping up my time at LHWL. I was sad about leaving my students, nervous about finding a new job, harried from preparing a complete curriculum for the next teacher, exhausted from running a my last show without David, and completely scared about what the future would hold. I didn't know what the future would hold, and I was scared of the unknown.

I'm feeling almost the same now as I did before. Even though I know where I will live and where I will work and what I will be doing (basically) this summer, I'm still feeling nostalgic. I had the opportunity to work in a high school this week: substitute in a Spanish classroom and help with a drama production. It brought back so many memories. I got a few days to relive my old life and reconsider my next stage.

Taking a year (or more) out of the classroom will feel very strange.

Addict

Hello, my name is Kelly, and I am addicted to the television.
Not the programs, so much. Just the noise. And the sound. And the news.

I thought everyone needed the TV on when they were working. I thought everyone watched the news at breakfast, and at dinner.

Ok, so I'm over-reacting a bit. according to http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/465910/4_signs_that_youre_suffering_from_television.html?cat=25 TV addicts schedule their lives around TV and overreact when they miss a program. That's not really me.

But after a week with no electricity, and then another week with no TV connection, and now 2 weeks with no cable, I'm starting to get used to the silence.

It's like being on vacation.

An earthquake happened in China, and I didn't know about it for a day or two. My students started talking about last night's episode of one of my favorite shows, and i had to admit I hadn't seen it. I can hear noises from the street during breakfast and I talk with my friend(s) during dinner bc there are no newscasters keeping me company.

This very helpful (sarcasm implied) website http://www.articlesbase.com/alternative-medicine-articles/tv-addiction-as-serious-as-drug-addiction-382100.html#axzz0lw8P5n9p
exercising, watching TV, playing board games, and actually leaving the apartment as the cure to my addiction.
So... extra novel from the library - check!
Twilight scene it board game played on a laptop with a battery - check!
Taking a 2 hour bus ride to the nearest starbucks for computer access and to read the novel mentioned above - check!
Yoga on the roof at sunset... well, i'm still hoping to try that one.

Seems like my addiction may soon be cured! Only side effect is watching "Glee" episodes a few days late... but that can be acceptable.

Free Time

For most of 2 school years, I had a loooong commute. Now, we Detroiters are used to long commutes. Driving is how we 'drive' the MI economy. Without cars, we're all out of a job.
But still, 2-3 hours per day, sometimes in stop-and-go traffic, sometimes through 8" puddles, sometimes across precarious bridges, sometimes through narrow mountain passes had become rather exhausting. Few North Americans, outside of southern California, ever have that kind of commute.

So... since I no longer live in Metepec but instead in an apartment building just meters from the school, the popular question now is:
"What are you doing with ALL your free time, now?" Implying that I now have 2 to 3 hours of extra time every day when I used to be driving.

Honestly, I also thought I'd have lots of free time.
I had planned to wake up early, with the sun, and actually make time for exercise and spiritual reflection before school. I had planned to get home early from work with time to bask in the sunshine, reading a novel. I had planned to spend my weekend scrapbooking memories of my time in Mexico.

Yeah, not so much.

Problem #1: While I no longer drive for 2-3 hours per day, a bus trip to the buy groceries, register my cell phone, print my pictures, or pick up something I need for school will take me about 2 hours, even though the location of these places is about 5-10 km away.

Problem #2: With daylight savings time, the sun is barely up before I leave for school, and I am not so motivated to get out of bed before the sun unless I really really have to do it (and most days, I do have to shower and eat before the sun is up. but I don't have to exercise or meditate...)

Problem #3: I spent my first week in the apartments without power. So we spent a lot of time and energy getting electricity from alternate sources, or using as much electricity as possible during the hours when it was on.

Problem #4: I had previously used my car time to my best advantage - listening to books, talking on the phone, buying cell phone minute cards from the guy on the corner. So now, all of those activities are still happening, even though I'm not in the car, so that is not really time 'gained'.

In short, I spent most of my first week settling in, and most of my second week doing school work. Not really exercising, or praying, or relaxing, or scrapbooking. Just living like I normally do.

I'm going to try again in May.

The Other Mexico

After nearly 2 years of living in our beautiful house in Metepec and only 2 short weeks living in a small apartment on the poor side of DF, I have learned a lot about the "other" side of Mexico. I now refuse to call it "real" Mexico, bc the way I was living before was real to me. That cushy way of life is also real to the millions of upper-middle-class Mexicans - like many of our co-workers and friends - who actually live in beautiful houses with manicured lawns and housekeepers and big screen TVs and pantries full of food (kind of like what we call 'normal suburbia' in the U.S!).

But for most working class and poor Mexicans, their daily life is a little different than what I was used to.

As a background, my co-workers who live in the apartments are living off of a salary roughly equivalent to $5.50/hour with unpaid summer vacation. And for those of you who think "well, it's cheaper cost of living there" you're mainly wrong. Some things are cheaper, some things are about the same, and some things are pricier. But living in small apartments, using public transportation, and buying only enough groceries to get you to the next paycheck is always going to be cheaper than how I am used to living.

So, here in these apartments on the poor side of DF, this is what I have learned:

1. electricity, hot water, garbage pickup, internet strength, and working laundry machines are all sporadic and cannot be counted on to be available when needed.
2. standing on a bus for 45 minutes without falling into the lap of the lady next to me is a serious workout
3. carrying my groceries through the market, over the steps across the highway, onto the long bus ride, and then up the stairs to my house is also a serious workout
4. when the electricity and washing machines are not working, it is pretty tricky to carry my dirty clothes, laptop bag, and purse onto the bus to find a laundromat and an internet cafe
5. it is super tricky to keep Mexican germs - picked up during the multiple bus trips - from spreading through my apartment if I don't have hot water to wash my hands when I return
6. shopping for fresh produce saves me lots of money, but then I need to find a place to store all of it in the closet-sized kitchen, which I can't find, so I eat all the food right away, esp. because anything that needed to be refrigerated was probably lost bc we don't have electricity and anything that needs reheating has to be done in the oven bc the microwave isn't working bc we don't have electricity, so within 2 days I have eaten all of the fresh produce I bought and now I need a 2 hour bus trip to go get more.

It's been an interesting two weeks.

Bilingual

Yo x 2

por Jane Medina

Leo por dos
Escribo por dos
Pienso y sueño
y lloro por dos

Yo río por dos
Yo grito por dos
Canto, pregunto,
Intento por dos

Hago mucho más
que hacen todo ellos
Porque yo hablo por dos,
Lo doble que aquellos

Me x 2

I read times two
I write times two
I think, I dream
I cry times two.

I laugh times two
I shout times two
I sing, I ask,
I try times two

I do twice as much
As most people do,
'Cause most speak one,
But I speak two!

Happiness is...

I have been reading about happiness. It all started with The Happiness Project http://www.happiness-project.com/ which was interesting. Now I'm reading The Geography of Bliss where a reporter travels around the world searching for happiness.

Of course, true joy comes only from a relationship with Jesus, and this joy gives me strength to carry on during my roughest days. But most days, when I'm just a little cranky, I'm wondering what I can do to be a little happier.

Today, Happiness was a hot shower in the morning, electricity at night, reading a book in the sunshine eating a cookie, and humming a tune while cooking dinner. The tune was one I remembered from a musical my mom directed a few years ago ("You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown"):

HAPPINESS IS FINDING A PENCIL.
PIZZA WITH SAUSAGE
TELLING THE TIME.
HAPPINESS IS LEARNING TO WHISTLE.
TYING YOUR SHOE FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME.
HAPPINESS IS PLAYING THE DRUM IN YOUR OWN SCHOOL BAND.
AND HAPPINESS IS WALKING HAND IN HAND.

HAPPINESS IS TWO KINDS OF ICE CREAM.
KNOWING A SECRET.
CLIMBING A TREE.
HAPPINESS IS FIVE DIFFERENT CRAYONS.
CATCHING A FIREFLY.
SETTING HIM FREE.

HAPPINESS IS BEING ALONE EVERY NOW AND THEN.
AND HAPPINESS IS COMING HOME AGAIN.

HAPPINESS IS MORNING AND EVENING,
DAY TIME AND NIGHT TIME TOO.
FOR HAPPINESS IS ANYONE AND ANYTHING AT ALL
THAT'S LOVED BY YOU.

HAPPINESS IS HAVING A SISTER.
SHARING A SANDWICH.
GETTING ALONG.

HAPPINESS IS SINGING TOGETHER WHEN DAY IS THROUGH,
AND HAPPINESS IS THOSE WHO SING WITH YOU.
HAPPINESS IS MORNING AND EVENING,
DAYTIME AND NIGHTTIME TOO.

FOR HAPPINESS IS ANYONE AND ANYTHING AT ALL
THAT'S LOVED BY YOU.

Experiences make us happier

http://pagingdrgupta.blogs.cnn.com/2010/04/15/materialistic-people-less-happy-less-liked/?hpt=Sbin

After 2 years in Mexico, I have precious little to "show" for it. 5 extra pounds, maybe, from all the flan and arrechera and sopa tortilla and tres leches and jamaica water and tacos arabes and... well you get the idea. (or maybe you don't, bc it's in Spanish, but just assume that anything with a name you can't pronounce is NOT low in calories!)

We have a few pieces of artwork for our walls and our bookshelves, a few pieces of clothing for our closets, a few pieces of jewelry for special occasions, an amazing bedroom set :) and thousands of pictures.

But I also have a lot of experiences that can't be cataloged on an insurance form. (we're talking house insurance this week in math class). Learning to rely on each other when there's no other friends or relatives or neighbors or co-workers or church acquaintances who know our names or speak our language. Floating on a boat through a canal smelling flowers and watching the birds while debating the history of Cuba in Spanish. Negotiating a lower price on cheap souvenirs and paying double for my avocados. Teaching others how to teach or how to engineer or how to speak English or how to survive in Mexico or how to get through airport security so that after we're gone, even if we're forgotten, we still left a little piece of ourselves behind here in Mexico.

Yesterday at Spanish Class/ Bible Study, we found this question in our book: "What will we do when someone tells us that the best God has to offer us has passed us by?" We had a nice long discussion, in Spanish, about whether or not the Bible supported the assertion that God would let His plans for us slip by unnoticed. We basically decided that no, He would not, although some in the group were still skeptical, asserting that God might put them right in front of us, and we just wouldn't take the chances being offered to us.

Is it possible that God has great things planned for us, but we can decide not to do those things? Sure, I guess so. But is it also likely that no matter what our choices, if we keep coming back to Jesus, He'll keep giving us great opportunities?

The author (of the book we were using for our study) also seemed to remind us that not everything God wants us to do is something we want to do. Or even something we think we're good at. Or something we think is important. A lot of the "best God has to offer us" is stuff we don't want to pick up and take.

Sometimes Jesus calls us to raise babies or care for an aging parent or sick spouse, when we'd really rather not clean up after these people. Sometimes He calls us to lead craft time at VBS when we'd rather not be covered in glue. Sometimes He calls us to make sandwiches for the homeless, when we'd really rather be at home eating steak and potatoes (or, in my case, advocating on capital hill for better homeless funding).

Sometimes, Jesus calls us to move to a new place, where we don't know anyone or anything and we are working for incompetent people and we don't know why He couldn't have called someone else to do this because our lives are really going to be interrupted by this little "break" far away and when are we going to get back to the life we had planned and a slightly larger checking account, Lord?

Sometimes, Jesus explains why He asked us to do this, and sometimes He doesn't.
I'm still not sure exactly why He asked us to move to Mexico, and work here, and live here, and absorb this culture. But I do know that I feel, deep in my soul, that this is where we were supposed to be for the last 2 years, and that even though part of me wants to stay here, and part of me wants to go back to the life I had before this experience, I'm peacefully ok with the fact that our next adventure just might not be anything I had ever imagined.

Jealous, are we?

http://thenews.com.mx/articulo/children-greet-us-first-lady-10415

The First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, visited Mexico this week. She had a youth-focused tour, so she met with some Mexican children, of course, but she also met with the embassy kids - those between 8 & 14. One of the kids at our school got to go! I am super jealous.

Rumor has it that she said only 3 words in Spanish while she was here: "Si, se puede" which roughly translates to "Yes, We Can!" the campaign slogan of Obama 2 years ago. This was also the slogan of the farm workers movement/ latino civil rights movement in the 1960s. So very political. ;)

Another of our students met Barack Obama last spring break & when the pres. shook his hand, told him, "I used to have a haircut like that"! which is true. they had matching afros. This student of mine is a great kid and a reader, so I told him to read Obama's books before he runs for president. All of us teachers have been promised a place in his administration, so we're definitely pushing for this kid to be president in about 20 years. As long as he remembers us.

Teaching doesn't pay much, but I'm basically in it for the side benefits - starbucks gift cards as end-of-the-year thank you presents, calls from alumni saying "you made a difference in my life", parents who say that their kid turned a corner this year and isn't acting out as much as s/he did before.
But honestly, seeing the first couple would be a benefit I wouldn't turn down. If it was offered.

Hermano is watching you...

There's a funny episode of "Arrested Development" where a main character is looking for someone named "hermano" and keeps punching guys until he finally figures out that "hermano" means "brother" and isn't a name so much as a title. :)

Mexico is used to "big brother" watching them. Many Mexicans do live "off the charts" because it's pretty easy to avoid paying income taxes, and also pretty easy to live without an address. Think hermit in Montana, times 14 million, all squished into a tiny polluted valley and you've got Mexico City.

Well, big "hermano" is now watching out for Mexicans, too. The Mexican government, in an attempt to persuade criminals and other annoying persons from using pre-paid phones, has passed a law that all cell phones must be registered with the government. This will be like a yellow pages of cell phones, except that since Mexicans don't have an address, their cell phone number will be listed with their CURP - the Mexican equivalent of a social security number.

Important background information: Currently, most US cell phone users have a contract tied to a credit card, which is tied to a bank account and a permanent address. Most Mexicans have a pre-paid cell phone tied to nothing. US police can subpoena to access those phone records if there is a warrant for your arrest (I think - that could only be on Law & Order, I'm not exactly sure). Mexican police can call your number and see if you're stupid enough to answer.

Anyway, since I am not Mexican, I don't have a CURP. I'm not going to get one, either. It's against the law. But, I still need a "registered" phone, because unregistered phones are going to be cut off from service. Basically, until I register it, the phone company doesn't know I'm a foreigner, so they have to assume I am just a Mexican with a procrastination problem.

Mexicans with this special ID number can just text it to the company to register their phone. I have to take my passport to a very special elite phone service center and ask politely for them to register my phone.

Except, now that I have moved into an apartment on the poor side of DF, registering my phone actually went something like this:

Buying a new phone card: $200pesos
Going to the mall twice(4 bus rides, 2 taxi rides, a car ride, and a long walk): $150 pesos + 4 hours
Finally being able to make a call to the U.S. without a Spanish error message: priceless

Got to love Mexico!

"real" Mexico

"So... are you all settled in?" well meaning acquaintances are trying to small-talk about our recent "move". I should be better at small talk - at least more polite - because I talk so much. But I have this crazy tendency to actually say the truth, or at least something resembling the truth.
So, no. We are NOT settled in. Our truck left mexico 2 weeks ago (today) and isn't likely to arrive at our MI house for another week or so.
we arrived at our house with 10 suitcases (no joke!) and unpacked them. Then, we had to "reorganize" the house to move the renters' items into storage and our items into display.
But really, we've been living at our house, out of suitcases, every time we visited MI for the past two years! So, no, I don't feel "settled" at "home" bc my home is still here in Mexico.

It was very sad to see our beautiful house in Metepec returned to the landlord, to be repurposed for the next family. It was also sad to "leave" Mexico.

But I'm back already!

I flew back to the DF airport, took a taxi to my friends' apartments by the school where I teach, and started work yesterday morning.

I'm more settled in the apartment(s) than I am back home.

And as such, I get to experience "real" Mexico. Not the beautiful, well-manicured lawn and housekeeper-cleaned mansion we had in Metepec. A very small (600 square feet?) apartment. With no hot water. or electricity. I don't own a car. I walk to work.

But I'm still liking it. :) I get to spend time with my friends, and practice my spanish and eat tortillas.

I do miss Dave terribly. But I think he misses Mexico, too, already, so I'm trying to soak up as much "real" Mexico as I can. for him.

"traffic"

Riding with us this weekend, a friend of ours commented that Dave drives "more aggressively than [he] used to". I didn't notice. I thought Dave was driving not only normally but also pretty calmly.

Truth is, we'll have some weeks of driving here before we re-adjust.

Driving in Mexico means speed bumps, crowded lanes, slow trucks, dangerous curves, rude taxis, swerving scooters, jaywalking children, stalled VB bugs, stray dogs, toll booth lines, traffic light lines, left turn lines, right turn lines, short exit ramps, passing police officers, and "hoy no circula" rules (emission testing regulations). This translates to a very stressful stop-and-go driving experience with lots of waiting, bumping, brake slamming, and aggressive driving. I would regularly zip between 3 lanes of traffic - passing cars left and right - and while I was the fastest driver I was still 10 km under the limit.

Driving this morning in Michigan - during "rush hour" - meant straight roads, long entrance and exit ramps, wide lanes, plenty of space between cars, driving 75 miles per hour, lots of signs, and otherwise calm and organized driving. But I just couldn't drive casually. For 45 minutes, I was constantly checking my mirrors for police officers or unruly drivers, I had both hands firmly on the wheel, and I had to remind myself to use the cruise control. I spent most of the time in the right "slow" lane, even though I was driving 5 miles OVER the speed limit. I was so busy driving, I didn't even have time to change the radio channel or drink my tea!

It might be a while before I am so confident driving casually that I can pick up my phone and make a call while driving. Then again, maybe I shouldn't ever get that comfortable.

Tonight at the restaurant...

I knew I had been in Mexico for a while when I...
- thought the gal who took our order had a really good American accent
- saw everyone standing awestruck in front of the big-screen TV and thought "must be a world cup finalist game"

I knew I was in Ann Arbor when I...
- saw that everyone was intently watching Pres. Obama play basketball in his backyard
- the "burger of the month" was a homemade black bean patty

I knew I was in the U.S. when I...
- ordered a water and got an empty plastic cup (to fill myself from the spout for free)
- figured out that Pres. Obama playing bball was a commercial during the NCAA basketball semi-finals

*sigh* Reverse culture shock has already sunk in!

6 hours

6 hours. That's all it took. Only 6 hours to wrap up, box up, pack up, and load up all of our stuff from our house in Mexico onto a big box truck headed to our house in Michigan.

Of course, these 6 hours were bookended by 4 long, hard, stressful days of organizing, sorting, packing, cleaning, saying good bye, and ending contracts. By the time it was over, I was mainly glad that Dave & I had done this a few times and were able to handle the stress without a divorce.

But, in the end, I'm sad to leave. We have loved our time in Mexico. We love Mexico, love the people, the food, the culture, the history, the weather, and also our laid-back way of life here. If only I could have been paid a little better and spent a little less time on Mexican roads, I probably would have signed up for another few years, if that was an option.

Maybe we'll be able to spend another few times here in the future.

Future Plans

As this post is published, big changes are happening in our house.

After nearly 2 years of living in our beautiful house in Metepec, Edo. de Mexico, Mexico, we are packing up. David's "tour of duty" in Mexico is just about over. I'll be staying with friends to finish up the school year here. (As much as I'd love to work somewhere else, God seems determined to keep me here a while longer.)

We have absolutely loved Mexico. We love the sunshine, the friendliness, the beauty, the colors, the food, the music, the language, the history, and the culture. If I could find a better paying job, I just might sign up for a longer stay. Unfortunately, we have known from the time we arrived that our time here was short.

What we have accomplished:
- we now speak Spanish well enough to socialize for up to 4 hours completely in Spanish, visit an history museum with only Spanish-language displays, watch CNN en Espanol and understand what is happening, and fully participate in a Spanish-language protestant liturgical worship service
- we have visited most of Mexico (26 out of 32 states plus the capital and nearly every major city)
- we have learned more about Mexican history and politics than most Mexicans know (I'm teaching Mexican history!)


I also learned how to write a blog. In fact, due to popular demand (since I only have like 5 readers, I figured 3 was a majority...) I've been blogging 5 days a week for the past 6 months. This has been a LOT of fun.
BUT, the time for daily blogging has come to a close. I'll be posting about once a week through April and May, but then our Mexico adventure will be over. For now.

I truly hope that we will have another adventure to share with all of you very soon.

It's all in the carriage

Mexico City has a castle. Most non-Mexicans don't know about it, but it's true. The castle was originally designed as a lavish home for the Spanish viceroy (like the king's ambassador) but wasn't finished before the Mexicans called for independence from Spain. After Mexico got a constitution, they put the castle to work as a military academy. The castle achieved infamy during the war of North American Invasion (oh, you haven't heard of that war? we call it the "Mexican-American War"...) where the cadets at this academy died, wrapped in the Mexican flag, at the hands of the U.S. generals.
I know, I had no idea we actually invaded Mexico and murdered teenagers in the name of war, either, until I moved here. That was the last battle of the war, so that's good.

Today the castle/ cadet academy is a historical museum. Most of the museum is full of really interesting Mexican history that you are probably not interested in hearing. :)

But, there was one exhibit that I thought succinctly showcased a crucial piece of Mexican history.

In 1861, the first Mexican President of Native Mexican heritage was elected: Benito Juarez. He was a very liberal president at his time, and refused to pay debts to rich countries in order to have enough money to pay for education (and other important reforms). The U.S. - likely feeling guilty after the Mexican-American war - and Britain basically ignored the fact that Mexico owed them money. But France demanded payment and when they didn't receive it they sent their own emperor to rule Mexico and oust their liberal president. From 1864-1867 Maximillian of Hapsburg was the emperor of Mexico. This is the carriage he rode into Mexico City to assume his throne:

He had this carriage sent over from France to Mexico on a boat with him, and then he rode it from Veracruz to Mexico City.

Maximillian actually supported many of the liberal reforms that Benito Juarez had promoted, but he also sent money to France for 3 years until the Mexicans revolted and executed him. They reinstated Benito Juarez, who rode to his 2nd inauguration in this carriage:

This carriage would have been made in Mexico City by local artisans.

Today, Juarez is on currency, has his own federal holiday, and is one of the few presidents most Mexicans can name when asked. Maximillian, on the other hand... is best forgotten.

Paricutin

Mexico is built on volcanoes. We're used to mountains and volcanoes now, so this pic might not be super exciting.
Except that this volcano is only about 70 years old!
In 1943, a farmer family noticed lava and ash coming through their fields. They initially tried to scoop dirt into the fissure, but quickly realized that running was the best idea. Within a week, the volcano was 5 stories tall. It kept erupting, slowly, for a year, until the eruption had caused the population to leave the town and create a new town 20 km away. After a year of eruption the volcano was over 1100ft. tall and the volcanic rock had covered the entire town.


Well, almost the entire town. The lava flow left the 2 belltowers of the old cathedral standing, as well as the altar. Town residents saw this as a sign from God. Whether it was a sign of thankfulness for their prior piety or a warning to future generations is unsure, but either way the Mexicans feel that visiting this site is really important.


Not important enough to build a road or a safe bridge, but important enough to drive for hours over ashy roads up a mountain and then climb over a pile of rocks. I didn't feel confident enough to get right up to the altar, but it was pretty amazing to climb over the volcanic rocks.

The Alley of Romance

Guanajuato has an alley of kissing (I blogged that Nov. 4, 2009) but Morelia has a whole street of romance!
A poet named "ortiz" wrote a long poem about the "Romance of my City", referring to Morelia, and when the city renovated part of the town, they redid this alley to be very tourist friendly and also having tiles with lines of his poetry mounted on the walls.
It was beautiful!

Aqueduct

Mexico has really beautiful currency. They use more coins than we do in the U.S., including a $10peso coin which is roughly equivalent to our $1 bill. Each coin and each bill is a different size, to help blind people, and each bill is a different color. The $50peso bill is roughly worth $4USD right now, and has a picture of the aqueduct in Morelia as well as the monarch butterflies from the state of Michoacan. We got our picture taken with the bill in front of the part of the aqueduct on the bill. We even managed to get a pic without any cars in the background!

Morelia = land of morelos

Morelos is famous for a few things - capital city of Michoacan, one of the prettiest states of mexico; its beautiful large cathedral; the site of the aqueduct on the $50peso bill, which I'll blog about tomorrow; and possibly most importantly, the home of Jose Morelos, national hero.
In fact, the city used to be called "valladolid" after a city in Spain, until hometown hero Jose Morelos fought for Mexico's independence. After independence was "won" with a constitution separating them from Spain, the city voted to rename itself. So, "Morelia" was born.

Jose Morelos did not start the Independence movement. But after the priest who did declare independence was executed, Morelos and a few of his friends took up the fight. Morelos was a priest and also a war genius who fought for 4 years before being executed himself. (check out a map of his battles at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Campa%C3%B1a_de_Morelos.png)
Morelos' many military victories paved the way for independence from Spain.

Modern statue of Morelos:


This may be an urban legend, but I had always been told that in a statue of a solider on horseback, if the horse is depicted with one hoof off the ground, the soldier was wounded in battle (and may have died later from the wounds); Two raised hooves indicate that the soldier died in battle. If the statue shows all four hooves on the ground, the rider survived all battles unharmed. I guess that being executed for treason means he died after battle?

The women in this statue are meaningful, also. The woman on the right is holding broken chains in her hand, symbolizing the independence movement breaking Mexico's chains of "slavery" to Spain. The woman on the left is holding fabric that may have been meant to symbolize the flag and also a scroll that symbolizes the constitution.

Morelia

Morelia is the capital of the state of Michoacan, and is about 300 km - 3 driving hours - away from where we live in Toluca. Like every major Mexican city, it has a beautiful downtown cathedral. This particular one is widely considered one of the most beautiful Catholic churches in Mexico. It is built of local pink volcanic stone and combines the architectural styles of Neo-Classical, Herreresque and Baroque because it took almost a century to complete and kept changing styles to follow the modern changes in architecture.
Inside the cathedral, highlights include a silver baptismal font in a side chapel (Mexico's first emperor, Agustín de Iturbide, was baptized here), a beautiful organ with 4,600 pipes, and a 16th-century corn-paste statue of the Señor de la Sacristía. The statue's gold crown was a gift from Philip II of Spain.
Every Saturday at 8pm, they light up the cathedral and send up fireworks behind it. (well, they told us it was every Saturday night, but we went on Sat. night and there was no fireworks)

I really liked how the sun shined into the cathedral when we visited, which made it seem as if God himself was smiling on the chapel.


This is the 2nd largest pipe organ in Latin America:


This pic shows how pink the rock is:

Violence = Less Tourism

Some of the information in the posting is from a CNN article. For the full article, please go to http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/03/19/Tijuana.mexico.tourism/index.html?hpt=Sbin

There was an unfortunate act of violence this last weekend in the border town of Juarez. It is very sad that consulate employees and their families were targeted by drug cartels. Unfortunately, it is not surprising. Embassy and Consulate workers know the danger they encounter when they choose to work for those places. I teach some embassy workers' children; we had a state department employee visit our class. Anyone in known danger is regularly or constantly supervised by bodyguards. Some of them have 24-hour security at their house. It seems that the incident last weekend specifically targeted the employees who were careless - they were in a residential area of Juarez without protection on a weekend evening. I would never do this.

Tourists need to know that they are generally NOT in danger in Mexico. Tourists who are in tourist areas during the daytime are not targeted by violent drug cartels. Just like anyone visiting Manhattan or Chicago or Miami, innocent people are sometimes injured, but that is not limited to Mexico.

Please consider visiting Mexico. If you are too nervous to drive across the border, fly into Mexico. Visit the beach towns or central Mexico, where there is almost no drug cartel presence. Spend money at locally owned restaurants and hotels, tip everyone who helps you, buy cheap stuff in the market, donate to charities, and do volunteer work. Also, ask your government representatives for comprehensive immigration reform and additional gun regulations. (The guns used in the attack last weekend were legally purchased in Texas and then illegally transported across the border.)
Mexico is our neighbor; we cannot ignore them.

Journal Entries: "How can quality of life in Mexico be improved?"

I ask my students to write in their journals every day. When I grade them (which isn't often) I get great insight into their brains. My 7th & 8th grade Geography class is very ESL & LD - most of the students in there speak English as a 2nd or 3rd language, and some of them don't speak it very well, and the few who are "native" English speakers have either grown up outside of the U.S. or have trouble reading and writing in any language due to learning disabilities. It's an interesting class, to say the least, but my favorite (I know, we're not supposed to have favorites, but we do) bc they work so hard and have such good insights. They are excited to learn and I can see improvement from week to week and month to month.

We were learning about Latin America recently, and so I spent almost a week on Mexico. They don't know much about the place where they live bc few of my students and little of my curriculum is Mexican. I wanted them to reflect on what they already knew about Mexico with this question: "How can quality of life in Mexico be improved?" (First, I had to describe what "quality of life" meant, but once they got it, they gave good answers):

by not eating oil foods that make you fat. by not eating so much and doing exercises. by eating just fruits and vegetables. This might be a good idea for the U.S., too!

well, instead of complaining, they could actually do something about it [the pollution] ... compared to where I used to live, Mexico City is very clean Believe it or not, she's telling the truth; she used to live in the Dominican Republic, which shares an island with Haiti.

They should make new laws... we should not spit either. Also they should build everything people needs in one town so that people won't travel for long time. This girl travels over an hour to get to school bc of bad infrastructure and heavy traffic. I think DF is actually trying to build everything in one town... but that town is HUGE!

all of the people should help to change it. because most of the time they complain. Good advice for life in general, don't you think?

i don't think Mexico can get any better. Some people could leave. huh.

they could use more money for a clean country. true.

Why do people keep whining? good question!

Mexico is just one of a kind. My thoughts, exactly

El Juego - the ball game

The Mesoamericans had a crazy ball game. They played in a narrow passageway between 2 stone walls, trying to get a rubber ball into specific locations. They believed that the gods would bless one group, so often there was a lot of gambling around these games, and the losers would be killed as a sacrifice to the gods. At this "stadium" there are hills nearby for common people to watch the game and big rocks sitting nearby as "box seats" for the important people.

I am not sure I would want to be a player - 50% chance of death is kinda scary - and I also don't think i'd like to watch - games sometimes went on for hours. But now it's fun to imagine what the game would have really been like. (no one knows for sure; the game died out when the Spanish came)

El Tajin - Veracruz

Most of the time when we're visiting places in Mexico, I'm reading in our Lonely Planet tourbook. This visitor guide is designed for eco-conscious and budget-conscious active-ish travelers. Most of their hotels are reasonably priced, many of their recommended restaurants are very local-friendly. Since we speak Spanish, this has worked out for us, bc we can go to places most "gringos" can't. Also, this book gives a lot of history about the archeological places we've visited so that we don't have to pay a tour guide to tell us in Spanish about the place.

We assumed that Veracruz would be very tropical, and the very green trees made it seem like we were in a tropical place. Thankfully, though, the temperature wasn't too high when we went. (about 80F)


The Mesoamericans (natives from central America with civilizations before the arrival of the Spanish) were the first to create a 365-day calendar. But they didn't have paper, so no amazing agendas or wall calendars with pictures of puppies. Instead, they used sculptures to remind the townspeople what day of the week/month/year it was. The "pyramid of the niches" is famous at El Tajin bc it has 365 little "niches" or little boxes - 1 for each day of the year. Likely the priests moved a little statue from one box to the next every day to help people figure out what day it was.

Wind Energy?!

some information from this posting came from an article in THE NEWS, the English-language newspaper in Mexico City. For full article, please go to http://thenews.com.mx/articulo/mexico-to-head-wind-energy-in-latam-10310

Baja California is a miserable place to live. Some parts, on the coast, are very beautiful - like Cabos San Lucas, which we visited September 2009. But most of it is wasteland desert. I went for 6 years to Mexicali for mission work; we had to go on Spring Break bc temperatures in the summer can reach 120F. Because of its extreme heat, and lack of local water sources, this state uses more electricity than most other Mexican states (per person) and pays more for it also.

The current Mexican president has decided to invest in Wind energy for this area. It should provide jobs for a largely uneducated workforce, provide cleaner cheaper energy for the residents, and also produce a little bit of extra money that can be invested in government services for the poor.

Maybe the U.S. can learn something from this plan?