Mexico City

After dance class, 7 of us (Megan, Lily, Bryce, Kendra, Miki, Nishelle, and I) walked to a shopping area parking lot where we were able to catch a bus to Mexico City. It was a 2-hour bus ride into the city, and we arrived around 10:00 that night. Once arriving at a huge bus terminal that is bigger than some airports in the United States, we took two taxis to our hostel, where we checked in and got settled before wandering the city for a while. Our hostel, Mexico City Hostel, was in a perfect location, just a block from the Zocalo. We walked around the Zocalo for an hour or so, taking in the Cathedral, the National Palace, and all of the decorations that still remained from the Bicentennial. We were all hungry at this point and decided to grab a bite to eat at a diner-type restaurant a few blocks from the Zocalo, before calling it a night between 12 and 1.

Friday morning I got up around 7:45, showered, and had breakfast at the hostel, which consisted of fruit, eggs, and toast. I decided that wasn’t quite enough and ran to the 7-11 down the street for a donut. We were all ready to go and walked down to the Zocalo around 9:30. Kendra, Miki, and I decided that we wanted to take a bus tour to see all that the city has to offer, and decide what we really wanted to see and do that weekend. The tour was very informative and I am glad that we had the opportunity to see many statues, buildings, and important areas of the city. However, the tour ended up being 4 hours long, which was a little longer than necessary. So, after being dropped off in the Zocalo again, we grabbed lunch at a nice restaurant in between the Zocalo and our hostel. I had a delicious salad, and we all split Queso Fundido with ham, and that was wonderful as well. After that, we walked around the Zocalo some more buying souvenirs from the street vendors and watching authentic Aztec dancers, as well as street break-dancers that we made friends with. After making a few purchases, it started to rain, so we decided to head back to the hostel to relax for a bit. The rest of the group returned and we all ventured out into the rain for a night out in Mexico City. We went to three small, but comfortable and lively bars. Most of the others ordered beers at the first two bars, but since I don’t like beer and don’t really have a desire to try the wide variety of Mexican beers, I settled for a Coke. At the third bar, we all did a round of shots. I had a shot with Tequila in it that was mixed with something that supposed to taste like chocolate….I might as well have just taken the shot straight up, as it was pretty bad. We had wanted to find a place to dance, but there were no places in the neighborhood that we were in, so we just headed back to the hostel between 1 and 2.

Saturday morning I got up once again around 7:45 to shower, have breakfast, and get on the computer before most others got up. Once everyone else was up and ready to go around 10, we left the hostel for another day of fun and exploration. We took the city’s Metro to an area of the city known as Chapultepec. In this area, there is a castle, a large and beautiful park, and several museums. First, we visited the Museum of Modern Art. It was nice and had a lot of artwork, but art isn’t necessarily my thing. However, there were 4 or 5 Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera paintings that were pretty cool. After, we walked through the park for an hour or so, admiring the fountains, the river that runs through the park, views of the castle, and enjoying some cotton candy. We did not end of going to the Castle of Chapultepec this time, but it is definitely something I would like to do next time we are in Mexico City, as the castle looks beautiful and it is supposed to offer amazing views of the city.

Next, we headed to the Anthropology Museum where we enjoyed a quick meal in the cafeteria before visiting two of the twelve display areas. The museum is huge and has so much to offer. You would need at least a day to go through all of the displays. I thoroughly walked through the Mayan display area, and briefly looked at Coastal and Western culture displays. We left the museum around 6, and decided to just start walking through different neighborhoods and areas of the city. We walked through Colonia Roma, where we stopped to have some coffee and delicious ice-ream. Then, we kept walking to Colonia Condesa, which offered many cute and relaxed restaurants and bars. We stopped at an Italian bar to have a drink, and Megan and I split a pizza. All of the little neighborhoods throughout Mexico City have charming characteristics, and I would like to explore more of these neighborhoods in the future. Around 10, we took the Metro back to the Zocalo area, where we took pictures and walked around before heading back to the hostel around 11 or 11:30. Some of the group decided to go out again that night, but it had been a long day, and I was just ready to call it a night.

Sunday morning I got up early once again, had my Mexico City breakfast of fruit, eggs, toast, and a 7-11 donut, and read for a while before others got up. Kendra and Miki were up at a decent hour, so we went to walk around the Zocalo area and do a little shopping. We found a Nike outlet store, and I bought a running shirt for $8…can’t beat it with a stick. J Then, we walked back to the hostel to meet up with the rest of the group. Megan, who had been to Mexico City before, recommended that we go to a restaurant called El Cardinal for brunch, so she and I walked to the restaurant to make a reservation, before heading back to pack up and check out. We were told 30-40 minutes, and of course that would be in Mexico time. So, finally, and hour and a half later we were seated. The restaurant was quite nice and up-scale, and they served us delicious hot chocolate to start. I ate way too much over the course of the weekend, so I just ordered a plate of fruit that would be much nicer for the waistline and the wallet. After brunch, we took taxis to the bus station, bought bus tickets for our return to Puebla, and made the two-hour bus ride back, on which all of us slept the entire way. Overall, it was a fun and exciting weekend! Once again, Mexico City has so much to see and do, and I hope that over the course of the next two months, I have the opportunity to return a couple of times to do more exploring. 

Independence Day Weekend

Wednesday morning I took advantage of my extra day off and slept-in until 11 or so. Then, I met up with Lily and Bryce in Puebla’s Zocalo to walk around and look at all of the decorations of Independence Day. I think that Puebla’s downtown area is very cute and welcoming as it is, but with the excitement and change in atmosphere for the bicentennial, you couldn’t help but smile and join in the excitement. We walked around the market area that was set up, which contained hundreds of food and souvenir stands. Around 7, I took the bus back to my house and had a little bit of down time before some of Margarita’s family started to arrive around 9. One of Margarita’s cousins had friends that were from Portugal, and they had a little boy, Mateo, who was 3 and very cute and energetic. I had fun playing with him for a while and interacting with other members of the family.

At 11 pm, the Grito de Delores took place, and does so every September 15^th at 11. The President of Mexico rings the bell of the National Palace and repeats a cry of patriotism that names many of the heroes form the Mexican War of Independence. He ends with several rounds of “Viva Mexico!”. This Grito de Delores takes place in towns all throughout Mexico, and it would have been cool to be in Puebla’s Zocalo to witness the Grito in Puebla, but at the same time, it was nice to be able to see everything in Mexico City and experience it with my home-stay family. After, we ate lots of food (tostados, chalupas, etc.) while watching the fireworks and performances in Mexico City. Some people left around 1, but 6 of us that were still here decided to play Monopoly. I don’t think that I have actually ever finished a game of Monopoly in my life. I remember when Grandpa and I used to play all the time, and after an hour or so we would just count our money. They do not believe in this method in Mexico, so 4.5 hours later we finished the game. After this exhausting game, we did the only thing to do at 5:30 in the morning, and ate again. We talked and laughed while looking at pictures for a little longer, and finally around 7 am Thursday I crawled into bed.

Thursday and Friday I did not do much at all, but it was really nice to have time to fully relax, read a book, and watch movies. Saturday evening, we went over to Margarita’s mother’s house. Most of the same people that were at Margarita’s on Wednesday were there, as well as her son Paco, his wife, and two kids, who I had yet to met. We ate, talked, and played Bingo, before heading back home around midnight. Sunday morning I slept in once again before getting up to do a little homework. Around 1, Lupita, Margarita, her sister, and her sister’s daughter drove to the cute little town of Atlixco, which is about 30 minutes from here. We had lunch in a small restaurant, and I had a delicious torta. Then, we walked around Atlixco’s Zocalo area, and Margarita and her sister bought some plants and pots. On the way back we stopped at a great ice cream and coffee place called Topolinos. This is a chain at least in the Puebla area, and there is actually a small Topolinos on my walk to school. I had a yummy blueberry covered ice-cream bowl. We drove back home and I completed my homework and talked with my parents. It was a nice and relaxing Independence Day weekend, and I am glad that I got to spend so much time with Margarita and the rest of her family!

Week 4

Sunday was a nice and relaxing day to myself. I did not make plans with any of my friends, and I did not have plans with Pamela and her family or Margarita and Lupita. So, I took advantage of the personal time and slept-in until 10 or so. Margarita had left me a tamale for breakfast. Apparently there are four different kinds of breakfast tamales: salsa verde, salsa roja, con mole poblano, o dolce. I think I would probably like the mole poblano or dolce ones, but they didn’t have any left at the market when she went, so I was stuck with a salsa verde tamale. Definitely way too much spice and flavor for breakfast. A week or so ago, we also had some sort of tamale for lunch, and I think that was probably my least favorite meal so far. So, I think I am going to steer clear of the tamales in the future.

After breakfast, I showered and got ready before heading back to the huge market area that I had visited with Margarita and Lupita two weeks earlier. I did a lot of looking and some bargaining with the vendors, but only ended up buying some red, white, and green beads for Independence Day. While I was walking around I ended up running into Bryce, Lily, and Megan, which is weird because we all feel like the town is so big and the odds of seeing someone you know should be small. It looked like it was going to rain, so I walked back to the bus stop and took the bus to the Wal-mart closest to my house. I had been craving baked goods, so I stopped and got a donut and muffin, as well as a shirt for Independence day. Then, I walked back to my house to work on a little homework before Skyping with my parents.

Monday we found out that we did not have classes on Wednesday that week either, so with an upcoming 5-day weekend, Monday and Tuesday went by pretty quickly. Monday I had a normal day of classes, followed by an English lesson with Pamela, where we focused on feelings, emotions, and descriptions. After the lesson, I stopped at a department-type store called Suburbia, where I bought a t-shirt that advertises the country’s bicentennial, as well as another red tank-top that I could wear out at some point that weekend. Tuesday was another normal day of classes, including my dance class at night. After, Lily, Bryce, Megan, and I went with Mario, a boy in our dance class to a mall area known as Angelopolis. There, we grabbed a bite to eat, before driving to Cholula and having a few drinks at Tiki. I had a delicious strawberry daiquiri. From there, we walked around for a while with the intention of finding a club to dance at, but there were long lines to get in, and we did not feel like waiting. So, after admiring the great views of the Church of our Lady of Remedies at night, we took taxis back to our houses around 2. 

Photos from Cuisine Course, Tepoztlan, and More!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53451713@N05/sets/72157624812164695/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53451713@N05/sets/72157624936867572/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53451713@N05/sets/72157624812225849/

Excursion to Morelos & Tepoztlan

Today we had our first of two excursions, and we traveled to a state just west of Puebla, Morelos, where we visited the town of Tepoztlan and Tepozteco National Park. We all met at the school bright and early and made the two-hour drive to Morelos. Along the way we made a couple of bathroom stops, and we were closer to the active volcano than we are in Puebla, so we also stopped to take some pictures of Popocatepetl. We arrived in Tepoztlan around 10 and started to make the steep and treacherous trek up the Cerro el Tepozteco (hill of Tepozteco, but definitely more mountain than hill). The hike was quite demanding and took a little over an hour to reach the top. I have adjusted pretty well to the altitude here and I have been running a few times a week, but I was still struggling and had to stop every so often.  Bryce and I stuck together and went off the beaten path a couple of times to climb waterfalls and take advantage of photo-ops. When we finally reached the top, we were able to see and climb the Prehispanic Pyramid and take advantage of the amazing views. We hung out at the top for a while, fought off the crazy badgers, and prepared ourselves for the decent. Although the way down was not as physically enduring as the climb up, I was certainly aware of how high up I was and made sure to step cautiously. When we reached the bottom again, my legs were quite shaky. But, I loved the breathtaking views and physical and outdoor aspects of the climb, and I would definitely return to do it again!

When everyone made it back to the bottom, we walked to a restaurant near the city’s Zocalo, where we rehydrated and had delicious chicken enchiladas. After lunch, we walked to the Ex-convent and had the opportunity to walk around and explore for a bit. The entrance for the convent had an amazing design for the bicentennial that will be celebrated this upcoming week. It was a huge arch/entrance-way that was made completely from corn and beans, and then glazed to hold it all together. Make sure to check out pictures of this…it’s something you can’t exactly explain, but is definitely amazing! Once we were finished at the ex-convent, we had some free time to visit and shop in the street markets. Around 4, before the rain could move in, we met up and loaded into the bus to return home. When we arrived back at the Ibero, it was pouring, so Megan, Kendra, and I took a taxi home. I grabbed something to eat and have been working on homework, the blog, and uploading photos since I’ve been back. It was an exhausting day, but definitely fun and worth it. Make sure to check out pictures from this last week. : ) 

Shopping & Socializing

Yesterday, I woke up around 9, ate breakfast, and decided that since I didn’t have to be anywhere until noon, I would go back to sleep for a while. It was a great decision and much needed! J At 12 I met Miki and Kendra at the Ibero and we made the 10-15 minute walk to the mall. This mall was nothing like what I expected, and was  upscale and American. There was a Lacoste, Zara, Puma, Apple store, etc. . So, while it was nice to be in a mall that was quite developed, I did not find the bargains that I was hoping to. But, I still ended up buying a dress that was on sale for 99 pesos ($7-8), a pair of jeans, and a skirt. After going into the majority of the stores, we walked over to California Kitchen, which was like a deli, but also had a buffet bar and quite a large menu. I ordered the California Club Sandwich. While I have been enjoying the food here and really like the majority of what I try, it was nice to have a sandwich and fries! After a great lunch, I walked back home and got myself organized for the night ahead and the excursion tomorrow. Then, I Skyped with my parents for a while, before taking a shower and getting ready.

We were all to meet at the Ibero at 7:30 to take a taxi to the location of this house party. However, at 7:30, it was down pouring and extremely windy. We all waited for it to calm down a little bit, and met up a little later. Margarita was wonderful and drove me to the Ibero so I didn’t have to walk in the rain and in heels. It was just Bryce, Megan, Miki, and I, so we grabbed a taxi and headed to the house. The house numbers were not marked, so we had to do some investigating to find the house, but eventually did so. The party was supposed to start at 8, and of course when we walked in around 8:30, we were the first ones there. We have learned our lesson, and in the future will go by Mexican time…if it starts at 8, show up at 10. The party was for most of the international students, but a lot of other students and their friends ended up coming, and it was a nice group of people. The party was outside under a large tent, but it was very nicely decorated and arranged, and the house itself was a mansion. There was also a separate tent area where they had hired someone to make food: chalupas, Mexican corn on the cob, etc. So, for 50 pesos, we received coupons for different foods, drinks, and Jell-O shots. We had a great time talking, interacting, and dancing with our small group, as well as many others at the party. Knowing that we had to get up early in the morning, we called for a taxi around 12:30, and I arrived home around 1. Parties here in Mexico have definitely surprised me so far, but in a great way! 

English Lessons & First Cuisine Course

Since I had to go to Casa del Sol on Monday, my first English lesson with Pamela was on Wednesday afternoon from 4-5. After classes in the morning, I came home and ate lunch before walking to the bus stop to take the first bus en route to the grandmother’s house. At this point, I can either walk four long blocks to the street of the house, or I can take a bus. Since it was a beautiful, sunny day and I was early, I decided to walk. I still arrived a couple of minutes early, but Pamela and I got started right away. We just talked for the first 10-15 minutes, exchanging and translating ideas from Spanish to English. Then, she had an English workbook from school, so we did a few pages from the book, before I made a memory-type game with compound words. I don’t now what exactly I need to be focusing on with her, but I am sure that any chance that she has to improve and use English, it is beneficial. In future lessons, I will try to come with a theme of the day and some sort of game to play or song to sing, in addition to working on pages from her workbook. I left around 5, and told her that I would see her the following Monday. I knew that this weekend with the excursion and homework, I would want some free time on Sunday, and did not necessarily want to commit to spending the day with the family again. So, maybe we will do something next weekend over the long holiday weekend.

After the lesson with Pamela, I was in a bit of a hurry, since I had my first cuisine class at 6, and we had to be at the school at 5:45. So, I took the bus for the four long blocks, and then waited for the next bus that would take me back to the stop near my house. On the way back, the bus stalled out, so we had to wait for another bus to come up behind us and everyone hustled onto the alternative bus. This seems to be a common occurrence with the busses in Puebla. I quickly made the 15-20 minute walk to the Ibero from the bus stop. Thankfully, I got there with a little time to spare, and I was not the last one there. A few minutes later, Chef Maricielo Arellano picked us up in a van and we went to her large kitchen/catering area. It is about a 10-minute car ride from campus, but it is nice that we will be allowed to use her facilities. She is apparently a famous caterer in the Puebla area and you can often see her face on vans or billboards advertising the company. So, it should be great working with her. This first night we talked a little bit about Prehispanic utensils, many of which we still use today, and had the opportunity to use that evening. That night we made panuchos, which are typical of the Yucatan area of Mexico, tostados, and salsa roja. We all split up the duties and cooking, and Kendra and I were in charge of making the salsa. Although this sounds quite simply, it was actually quite a process that included frying/grilling the onions, chilies, cilantro, and tomatoes, slicing all into extremely small pieces, using an ancient bowl and stone to smash the salsa more so, and finally adding some final ingredients and stirring. After we were all done with our individual tasks, we had a delicious looking meal in front of us! Everything was very good, and I am definitely looking forward to future courses this fall. 

First Week at Casa del Sol

Monday, I returned home after my two classes in the morning, completed some homework, and ate with Margarita, before I had to walk back to Casa del Sol to start my volunteer hours. I was there for 2.5 hours and the majority of this time I spent playing with pre-school aged children in a gymnastic and fun room type area. The majority of children immediately run up to you and give you big hugs, and they fight over you for your attention. It is nice to be in such high demand and to be able to interact with the kids, but it is a sad reality that most of the children want all of the attention because they don’t have parents and don’t receive as much attention as most children do. The time on Monday went by relatively fast, although we were all definitely tired after playing for that long.

Tuesday, I had class from 8:00-11:10, and after class headed back to Casa del Sol to complete 3 hours of volunteer work before going home to eat and then to dance class. During this shift of volunteering, I was assigned to help in the baby/toddler section, which I was initially thrilled about. However, the children were sleeping when I first got there, so I had to label, fold, and organize the laundry. This would have been completely fine, except that the lady in charge of this area was the most anal lady I’ve ever met. I understand that they have hectic schedules and organization is key, but this lady was just over the top. So, after an hour or so of doing everything wrong, I was finally done with the clothes. The children were up and needed to be changed before lunch. There were already too many volunteers in the area, so I was asked to make cotton balls. The cotton comes in a large section (4-5 ft) and then I had to break it into smaller sections before separating it into even smaller sections. Then, I had to form the cotton around my finger and make sure it was firm enough so it would not break in the water. Two hours of cotton ball making later, I was more than ready to leave. I do not mean to bash the program or the people associated with it, because all they do for these kids is absolutely amazing and a blessing, but I would like to interact more with the children.

On Wednesday, I decided I was not necessarily willing to commit to 8-10 hours of volunteering, on top of courses, English lessons, and time to explore, a week, so I went to talk to Ignacio. I expressed how grateful I am to have the opportunity to work with children and volunteer at the Casa del Sol, but my original commitment had been for 25 hours, and the jump to 8-10 hours a week seemed a bit extreme. He didn’t recall ever seeing that we had only agreed to 25 hours, but once I pulled up the e-mail indicating this, he agreed that it was quite a bit different. So, he has lowered it for me, and I now only have to complete 6 hours a week. This is still much more than the initial 25 hours, but something that I am willing to do, at least for now. I have now figured out my schedule and I will spend 2.5 hours on Monday afternoons and 3.5 hours on Tuesday afternoons at the Casa del Sol. I just hope that future time there allows for continued interaction with the children!

My 2nd Week in Puebla

Last week, my second week in Puebla, was kind of a boring week, and a week of adjustment. Monday afternoon I had a meeting with the father of Pamella, the 7 year-old girl that I will be giving English lessons to twice a week. We discussed what he was looking for from me, compared our schedules, and decided that Sunday I would spend some time with the family to get to know everyone and help the family as a whole with their English skills.

Tuesday, I had my second dance class in the evening. We continued working on the dances we started the previous week (Cumbia, Salsa, and one other?). While I definitely don’t think that I am a great dancer, I feel confident that I have mastered the basic steps for each of these dances. We will see how it goes as the class and moves progress. The teacher, a very attractive young Mexican man, is wonderful. : ) Most of the men in the class can do the basic footwork without a problem, but these dances require the man to lead with his hands by pushing and pulling the woman at the appropriate time. The men in the class haven’t quite gotten this down, so when we change partners and I have the opportunity to dance with the teacher, it is like a completely different dance.

Wednesday was just a normal day that consisted of classes, eating, running, and napping. It was very nice to have so much free time in the afternoon after classes. Classes have continued to go well. My grammar and language class has pretty much all been review, but it is good to reiterate major concepts in the Spanish language. There is a lot of writing for this course, but it is not difficult, and for the most part I do not mind it. The Latin American Literature course will probably be the most difficult class this semester. Thus far, we have been reading literature from Aztec and Mayan cultures. Because their languages were so much different from ours, some of the translations and concepts have been difficult, but I think once we move into conquest, colonial, and independence literature, the readings and ideas will be easier to grasp. I really like my conversation class, other than the fact that it is at 8 in the morning. It is really relaxed and we usually spend have of the class talking about our lives or activities that we’ve participated in recently, and the other half of the class we focus on a theme such as descriptions of people, Frida Kahlo/Diego Rivera, or words associated with news and television. I have my first exam tomorrow in my grammar and language class, but I am not too anxious about it and think I will do well.

Thursday morning I woke up around 5 in the morning and was extremely sick. After a week and a half, Montezuma’s revenge hit me, and hit me hard! Let’s just say that I spent the majority of the day in the bathroom, and when not there I was trying to sleep. Unfortunately, we still cannot figure out what I ate or drank that made me sick, but hopefully it is a one-time deal and my body is adjusted to everything now. I was irritated that I had to miss my two courses and dance class Thursday day, but there is no way that I could have gone anywhere.

Friday morning I was feeling a little better, but I still had not eaten anything and I had no energy. I had a meeting at Casa del Sol, the foster home where I will complete my volunteer hours. So, I did my best to eat some frosted flakes and get myself up and moving. By accepting the scholarship through the USAC program, I committed myself to 25 hours of volunteer work. However, when I arrived on Friday I was told that I would have to complete 8-10 a week, which is a huge difference. I decided I would give it a week and see how it went. Despite the time commitment issue, Casa del Sol is a wonderful, non-profit organization that offers a safe and loving place for children who need it the most, and I am glad I will have the opportunity to spend some time working with adults from the organization and the adorable children. Before leaving, we were told to report back Monday afternoon at 4 to complete a few hours. After the meeting, it was raining, so Bryce and Lily came back to my house, which is the closest to the university and Casa del Sol, for a little bit. They decided to go see and movie, but I still did not have much energy and just wanted to lay low for the night. So, I ended up watching the Notebook, doing a little homework, and calling it an early night.

I was supposed to have paid Margarita my first installment of the home-stay fees on Friday, but since I was sick Thursday and did not have the energy to make the walk to the bank on Friday, I knew I would have to give up on Saturday and go. Thankfully, Margarita and Lupita were wonderful during the time that I was sick, and Margarita told me that my payment was the last thing on her mind, she just wanted me to feel better. So, Saturday morning, I made the trek to the bank and withdrew 6000 pesos, which is only like $450, but it was pretty sweet when the money just kept coming…like winning the jackpot, haha. I also went to Wal-mart and stocked up on shampoo, lotion, etc, and snacks, so hopefully I should be set for a while. When I was in the Wal-mart, they were giving out all sorts of free snacks and samples. I didn’t try any since I was still not eating much, but I think I could have had a meal there if necessary. One of the taste-test stations that they had set up was for Baileys Irish Whiskey. They had mini cups and you were to sample it by taking a shot…only in Mexico! It rained pretty much all afternoon on Saturday, so I decided to take it easy again and just have another relaxing movie night.

Sunday morning, the family that I will be providing English lessons for picked me up at 11. The family is just a couple and their daughter, but their nephew, Fernando, was spending the weekend with them. It was still raining, so we drove the bus route that I would take to get to the father’s mother’s house for the lessons. We have arranged that on Monday afternoons from 5-6 and Wednesday afternoons from 4-5, I will go to the grandma’s house, as this is where Pamella goes after school while her parents are still working. Then, on weekends that I do not have field trips through the USAC program, or trips planned with friends, I will spend a morning or an afternoon with all the family. One weekend we will talk completely in Spanish, and the next completely in English. It sounds like the family likes to go out and do things and see places on the weekends, so hopefully I will have some fun experiences with them.

Once showing me the route for lessons during the week, we returned to the family’s house. Pamella had a little homework to complete, so we all worked on that before playing chess, card games, and a game from a magazine that Pamella had. Then, we all sat down to eat a delicious chicken salad with an assortment of fruits in it. I was finally starting to get my appetite back at this point. : ) After comida, we watched some old home videos for a little bit. Then, they took me back to my house around 5. It was a fun and interesting afternoon, but I had not really planned to spend the entire afternoon with them. At least now I will know that I should allot the majority of the day to the family. I think this will be a great experience, and I think that my Spanish will improve just as much from lessons as the family’s English. That evening before going to bed, I finished up my homework, skyped with my parents, and spent some time talking with Margarita and Lupita.