This is going to be a long post with lots of pictures!
Today was the second day of classes and so far, they’re great! I am taking two Spanish classes. A conversation class and a grammar class. They’re taught by Mexican instructors, both of which are fairly young women. One is 29 years old and the other appears to be about the same age. There is a grand total of three students in each class so we are going to get to know each other and the profesoras very well! The classes are two hours long which at times is a bit much, but it’s not too bad. The conversation class is going to be super fun. The profe has a car so we will go with her to different places where she can instruct us and then have us practice conversing. Places like markets, cultural sites, and other places where we can just talk with people. Coolest class ever. I have that class two days each week. My other class, the grammar class, is Monday-Thursday with a few Fridays here and there. The profesora is awesome. She is understandable and teaches super well. In her class, we got Spanish names. Mine is Mina which is short for Guillermina. That profesora speaks fluent English which is cool although I haven’t heard her use it since we only speak in Spanish. The university is small but nice. It’s a private school and has air conditioning, thank goodness!
Here is a picture of me waiting at for the second bus to go to la Universidad , the front of the school, me in the courtyard of the school (it was super bright so I’m squinting a LOT), a monument on the way to school, and a bus.
I am super glad I brought a couple of summer dresses because it is HOT and we spend a significant amount of time in the heat when we travel to school. Students here dress up a bit more for school than we do in the US and for that reason, I can't wear shorts. That leaves me with either long pants or a dress/skirt. I don't know how the poor guys do it!
Next is my roommate, Mari, (in the yellow) and a neighbor, Jessica, also waiting with me.
Here is a fairly typical bus. A few are nicer but most of them look like this or older.
And here is the front of the school:
Yesterday, on the way back from school, I was on the bus when I heard
“Hot and dangerous,
if you’re one of us then roll with us…”
Yup…”We R Who We R” by KE$HA. It was the theme song to the talk show that was playing on the radio. I wonder if they understand the lyrics. The other students and I exchanged smiles and laughed a little when it started playing. The talk show was discussing some serious topics such as revolutions and their theme song was by KE$HA, an overrated “musician” who can’t sing and has really stupid lyrics that are generally about a formerly “good girl” turning into a skanky wannabe bad girl who likes to drink and party and...…oh wait. That’s it. There’s no more depth to her. (Sorry Steff and Jackie haha)
After class, we went home for lunch and then….we went to the beach!! There is a bus that goes directly to Progreso (the city where the beach is located). It takes about 30 minutes and 16 pesos (about $1.35) each way. The beach is pretty with light-colored sand and greenish blue water. There are lots of little shops and other interesting things to see at the beach. However, the wind yesterday was CRAZY strong. It kept blowing sand into our eyes, so I wanted to buy some sunglasses. I bought a pair in Provo, but in the process of moving and packing, they got lost. So I went to one of the little touristy shops along the beach. The guy who worked there was very friendly but interesting for sure. First he asked me if I spoke Spanish so I said yes and then he asked me if I had a boyfriend. Even though it’s not true, I emphatically said SÍ! He looked disappointed but told me he had a “special” price for me. So I asked him how much the sunglasses cost and he told me 350 pesos (about $30.50). Obviously that is WAAAAY overpriced so I told him that it was a lot of money and I didn’t have that much with me. I asked him if he would take 100 pesos and he said no. So I thanked him and started to leave when he asked me where I’m from. So I told him Ohio and he said something along the lines of “Oh close to Chicago! I have a special price for you!” Well Ohio is definitely not close to Chicago…closer than Mexico but it’s still pretty far. He said his “special price” was 250 pesos which is still a ton of money for those crappy sunglasses. So I said no and started to walk out of the little shop. He tried to get me to stop again and said I needed something to protect my “green eyes.” He said again that he had a special price for me…225 pesos. So I just said no thanks and left. He definitely liked the “special” price line. I later learned that you can easily find sunglasses for 50 pesos or less. I must look REALLY stupid and naive.
After the beach, we took the bus back to Mérida and went to the Program Director’s house where we had FHE. The bus between Progreso and Mérida is a little bit nicer, newer, and has air conditioning. Una foto:
The bus was PACKED. Multiple people didn’t have seats. At one point “Baby” by Justin Bieber could be heard throughout the bus. Somewhere near the middle of the bus sat two Mexican youth around 16-18 years old with an ipod. Bieber Fever isn’t just an epidemic in the US. It has spread to Mexico as well, afflicting young and old alike.
When it was time to get off the bus, someone yelled “baja’ but it wasn’t loud enough and there were a ton of people on the bus so the driver didn’t stop. One of the guys then shouted SUPER loud, “¡párate!” And by loud, I mean that EVERYONE on the bus heard. There were multiple giggles and chuckles from the Mexicans on the bus and many people turned to stare at the American that said “¡párate!” Why is that, you may wonder? Well, although “parar” means “to stop,” adding the “te” on the end means “stop yourself!” Furthermore, it is used more commonly to mean “stand up.” So, basically he screamed at the bus driver to stand up and the native Spanish-speakers definitely thought it was hilarious!
Anyway, the Director’s house is kind of an “embassy” as he describes it, meaning that we can speak English there. According to program rules, we can speak English no more than 30 minutes each day and only when everyone around speaks English. So it was super refreshing to be able to communicate well again!
After noche de hogar (FHE), we went home. We were going to take a bus but it’s not a super long walk (about 15 blocks) so we walked back. One thing that I am still not used to is the staring and the whistling. Everyone stares at us. Everyone. And it’s not uncommon to have a car or truck full of guys whistle or yell at us. One time, there was a bus with a bunch of boys about 11 or 12 years old (going to a baseball game, I think…) and when their bus passed ours, several of them leaned out the windows and whistled obnoxiously. Starting early haha.
Anyway, today (Tuesday), we had classes again and afterwards we went to the beach again. Today wasn’t nearly as windy and it was super fun! Most of the program participants went this time. (Yesterday it was only 8 of us) We also had time to walk the streets in Progreso (the town with the beach), which was cool.
Three other girls and I arrived a bit later than the others but we had NO problem finding everyone. Among dark-skinned Mexicans was a group of people that were extremely white. From a distance, they were way easy to spot. Here are some pictures of the beach and me enjoying it!
There is a pier and off in the far distance is a hotel.
Next is my roommate, Mari, and I.
One of the street vendors in Progreso was selling Cocos (coconuts) that he hacked with a machete and then inserted a straw. First is a picture of the vendor. It’s kinda hard to see what he is doing, but he is chopping the coconut with the machete.
Another vendor sold pan (bread) from a little van. It was super cheap and super good! I bought a concha for 3 pesos (about 25 cents). A concha is a sweet bread. Here is a picture of the bread sold from the little van:
Next is a picture of a Dominos Pizza restaurant. The reason I am posting it here is to show the way they deliver the pizzas…they don’t use cars. They use motorbikes. With boxes for the pizza on the back. Different but kinda cool.
Another interesting little tidbit is that it’s hard to find a free public restroom in Progreso. You have to pay to use them and when you pay, they hand you a little bit of toilet paper to use. I found one by the bus stop that costs 2 pesos (17 cents) but it was GROSS. There was no toilet seat haha. Here is a picture of a business that offers a restroom for 5 pesos per use (43 cents):
You can see on the right pillar the word “baños” and to the right of that, a woman is standing in front of a white gate. She takes your 5 pesos, gives you toilet paper, and lets you through the gate to the restroom.
So a few more interesting things about where I live. The neighborhood is called “Villas del Sol” and it’s part of what is called “La Rosa de Mérida.” Basically, it’s the more wealthy part of the city and there are a lot of NICE houses. The neighborhoods here are way different from suburban USA. They don’t have obvious entrances. They all kind of blend together and if you aren’t familiar with Mérida, you have to read the fine print under the street names to know where you are. Four of the girls in the program live one street away from me and their family has a maid that does the cleaning and much of the cooking. She’s a 4-foot tall Mayan woman. Super short and super nice. From my bedroom, there is a small balcony. Here are some pictures of the view, one from each side. Basically, you can see other casas (houses) in the neighborhood.
I have been getting to know my mamá a little bit better and she is a LOT easier to understand now. I think this is because of a combination of two things. 1) By being around the language so much I am understanding it a ton better. And 2) She realized we couldn’t understand most of what she said so she is speaking a little bit slower and more clearly. There are some pictures of her and her family on the wall by our bedroom and in one of the pictures she looks like Jennifer Lopez! It’s a photo of her on her wedding day. Not to be weird or anything, but I took a picture. See!
She totally looks like Jennifer Lopez!
