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 15th 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!
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