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.
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