Costco en Mexico//Costco in Mexico

Sometimes, you just need a taste of home, and for me, that taste was a bite of Costco Pizza. Yesterday my Spanish class ended at 10:30, and with free time until 4:30, that meant my friends and I had plenty of time to explore. And, by exploring, I that meant we found America's favorite mega-store and treated ourselves to greasy goodness. Who knew Pizza could be so good?! After eating, we went inside, marveled at all the foods we have been missing, and most assuredly tried all the samples. Then, Laura and Cristina and I  ended up buying a a massive amount  of Nature Valley bars to keep us satisfied throughout the day. Thank you Kara for having a Costco membership. There you have it friends, just another day in Mexico:)

Hasta Luego, Emily

Keep in mind, prices are in pesos;) 

One of my highlights of the week. 

Hace Una Semana//After One Week...

It has already been one week since I have been here in Mexico, yet it feels like it has been months. Time here is of a completely different essence; we eat at all times of the day with meals scattered throughout, church services last two and a half hours, parties last until six in the morning (though I only stayed until 8), group conversations go on for hours upon hours, and the only schedule/routine I have now is going to change in three weeks...Welcome to Mexico!

So far there have been ups and there have been downs, with some things harder for me to face than others. To cover more of the broad spectrum of the week, I thought I'd share a few of my feelings:

My Ups:

• Frijoles are everywhere here and can be added to any meal. For those of you that don't truly know me, beans are just about my favorite food in the world. 
• My group is incredible, and hands down the best WIM team ever to existed. I love every single personality they bring to the table, their open hearts, and their determination to truly make the most of Mexico.
• I live close to el centro, the historic center of Querétaro. I always have somewhere to explore like new coffee shops (which there are lots of), very yummy restaurants, and the houses of my 5 friends that live nearby too.
• There is always something going on. Whether it be a blessing or a curse, at this time its a blessing because I always an activity to do, a place to go visit, or something to keep me having fun!
• I have a younger sister here. I love having a little sister to talk to, laugh with, go ice-skating with and plus, she is even willing to help me with my Spanish homework!
• God is good, and my health is good. Though two days in I had terrible stomach problems adjusting, God has healed me and now I feel great!

 Some photos of a lunch out....my night life....and something I was so glad to find... a Mocha Frappe :)

                                      

Los Arcos//The Arches
Old Aqueducts, and a very famous part of Querétaro

Laura y yo//Laura and I
In front of Los Arcos at night!

My Downs:

• To get anywhere, you walk or you pay. I like to walk, but sometimes I miss the ability to drive, and here I can't which limits the places I go. I either walk for an hour or I pay to take a Taxi- which gets expensive after a while!
• I can't always do things by myself. Though Querétaro is the safest state in Mexico, for extra  precautions I can't always go everywhere and do everything alone. It's very frustrating when I can't be completely independent,
• I always want to spend money. There are so many activities to do here it is hard to say NO! Plus, the dollar is worth more than the peso, so everything is really "cheaper" than America, but makes it hard for me because every little thing adds up.
• It's hard for me to be patient with long services, meetings and conversations. This is one of my weakest character traits- I'm not a patient person. However, Mexican time (like I said) is different, and things that are supposed to take one hour usually take three...so much patience is needed. I'm definitely learning how to be still, and be here now!
• My professors talk extremely fast. If you think taking notes in English is hard, try it in Spanish with fast talking professors. Love 'em, but boy am I going to have an interesting semester. 
• The bus/transportation system here is very hard for me to use. In other words, the one time I tried to take it home from ITQ with Brad and Laura...we took the wrong route for an hour before finally getting to our destination. 

Otherwise......

This week in all has been great. I have.....

-had all of my classes at least once

-spent countless hours with people from my WIM team

-walked more miles than I can count

-ice-skated with my sister

-experienced public transportation for the first time

-completed a transaction at a Mexican bank

-found and attended a Christian church

-climbed the 3rd tallest monolith in the world! 

Monolith you say? Yes! This weekend our group took our first trip to Peña de Bernal, which is quite famous! We climbed up approximately 70% of the monolith to an incredible view of the city of Bernal. (To get to the peak you have to get a permit and gear). After enjoying God's handiwork we got lunch in Bernal and I tried the famous Mexican Gorditas which are pocket-like tortillas stuffed with multiple types of cheese, beans and meat. Of course, my favorites were the ones with the beans stuffed inside.  ¡Delicioso! I also finally had horchata, a sweet rice-milk drink spiced with cinnamon. Our group closed off our day  with shopping for souvenirs, enjoying the beautifully quaint and historic town, and eating (always eating!) pan dulce con queso. It was in all an incredible day and an incredible chance to truly partake in God's beauty:)

La Peña de Bernal

WIM chicas

Top of Bernal

God's handiwork!

Erin, Laura, Betsy and I

Mom, Look, I'm falling!

Restaurant Time

Horchata and Coke

Gorditas

Bernal's Beauty!

As of now, I'm off to bed to begin another week of classes and fun. Thank you again for taking the time to read about my little adventure in Mexico. If you have anything you have questions or comments about, don't hesitate to email me at emily@pihls.com or leave a post.:) I love hearing from you! 

Blessings from Mexico, 

Emily

Un partido de fútbol/ A soccer game

The pictures pretty much sum up what my night consisted of...people everywhere...Tecate everywhere (which as a type of Mexican beer was the only other drink sold besides coke...not even water was offered) and a whole lot of die hard soccer fans. Tonight I cheered on los Gallos Blancos...the team of Querétaro and what an experience it was. The difference in fanfare and cheering, the difference in the amount of beer consumed and also thrown when there was a goal, and also the amount of security needed to control such a wild crowd- all of these differences made this a very new experience for me. Still, Los Gallos won against las Chivas 2-0 and of that I am thankful. :) what a fun way to end my first week here! Tomorrow we are off on another excursion to Peña De Bernal! I will let you know how it goes Sunday!:) Buenas noches.

Más fotos!

Here are some other photos that I took of my house for you all to see. I felt a tad bit sick to my stomach today because of the food adjustment but I pray my health improves tomorrow! Otherwise, today was exciting as we went to one of my schools today (Instituto tecnológico De Querétaro)! Tomorrow I begin classes...and my first class begins at 6 p.m:) Lucky for me! Well goodbye for now!

Estoy Aqui!//I am Here

I have arrived!!! One day later and I am in Queretaro, and I already love it! I don't even know where to begin when talking about my family, my room, or my adventures thus far. I will try and break it down so I don't become too side-tracked with my thoughts.

1. Mi Familia//My family- I love my family! Compared to the other families that my friends have, my family is very young, including my parents. I already call my parents madre y padre, and my brother and sister, hermano y hermana. Thankfully, I feel very included and welcome here in this house. My mom, Irlanda, is very kind and always asks me if I need anything or how I am feeling. My dad, Jorge, is very funny and likes to joke around, he is extremely nice, and is a lawyer in the city. My sister, Andy, already feels like a sister because she is only 4 years younger than me; we have a lot in common and we love to laugh together about anything and everything. She LOVES music, and very often plays American artists like The Script, Flo Rida, Taylor Swift, and Maroon 5- everything a teen in America would listen to. My brother, Jorge (junior) is very funny too. Today we ended up playing with his Nerf guns which he is very proud of and loves to shoot everywhere. I enjoy spending time with my family, and love having kids in the house as compared to only adults. I feel right at home:)

2. Mi casa// My home- I have a very modern home in the city of San Javier. It is two stories with 4 rooms and a large living room, dining room and kitchen. My room is small, but I enjoy having less space because it feels "homey" like my room at Westmont. I have a twin bed, a bedside table, a desk, a door less closet, three drawers and a lamp. I brought some pictures from my house, so it feels like my own space, which is very nice. I don't have a backyard or a front yard, but there is a balcony outside my window where my family does laundry. Thankfully because of the balcony I have a large window so I can get air during these really hot days in Queretaro.


3. Mis aventuras//my adventures- Queretaro is beautiful! There are incredible buildings all over the place, with the most beautiful architecture. The downtown of Queretaro is called el centro, and I have seen it in both the daytime and at night. Last night, my sister and mom and I went to el centro after shopping at Sams Club for food. My mom allowed me to choose cereal for breakfast, so I got some Honey Bunches of Oats. Even the Sams Club is very Americanized, with lots of similar brands and items. After shopping we went to el centro and the night life on Saturdays here is incredible! This week in Queretaro is a music festival, so there were about three different bands playing last night. We stopped at one of the shows, and I watched a group called La Creacion Collectiva  that preforms some type of modern dance and music with very flamboyant costumes. Last night we also walked around the plaza de armas, one of the famous plazas of el centro. We didn't arrive back home until about 12:30 a.m, so this morning I slept in very late, until about 10:30 :)

This morning was very restful and I spent time helping Andy and Jorge prepare for school by covering their textbooks with book covers. At 2:30 we all went to a very nice restaurant for comida (a large meal) with the other families and I finally got to see the other members of my WIM team. I loved seeing everyone with their senoras! We had a wonderful meal with very traditional Mexican plates. I had very tasty Tortilla soup, lots of bread, and for my main course, a plate with a chili stuffed with meat. It was different, but good. My favorite part though was the dessert, which included delicious flan. After lunch, I ended up hanging out with Brad, Laura, Alysha and Betsy, all who live in el centro, and who live the closest to me. Together we went to Brad's house for more food and socializing with his family and older brother. His family is much older than mine, and his house is entirely opposite of my modern one. I enjoyed recognizing the differences between houses and families, especially the styles. Whereas my house is very modern, clean and uncluttered, his house is very cluttered with trinkets of all types and is very small and older. Once done at Brad's, our little group ended up walking about 2 hours around the city. We explored stores,  walked on new streets and through it all, I truly got a taste of what Queretaro is like. The streets are very small here, but the culture is rich and intriguing. Over 90% of Queretaro is Catholic, so there are churches and cathedrals everywhere, and each is very different. As of now, I feel very safe in the city, especially when I walk around with my friends. This being said, I am extremely excited to explore more, and eager to truly feel as though Queretaro is my own city.

4. Mis Sentimientos//My feelings- I feel great so far, both physically and emotionally. My body has adjusted well to the food, and I pray no complications ever arise.  The last two days have all been a blur and I am extremely tired. However, I am surprised at how quickly all of my Spanish skills  have come back to me, and when I talk I feel confident and comfortable. The most difficult part is definitely listening though because everyone talks extremely fast. Nevertheless, when the conversation is directed to me, people usually talk slower, which is a huge blessing because my ears are still adjusting to only hearing Spanish. In the span of four months though, I am sure listening will become easier. Even over these last two days I feel like my ability to speak and my vocabulary has grown immensely. Hopefully, I can continue to grow more familiar with the language, and eventually become bilingual- that is definitely an aspiration of mine!

Well, I feel as though enough has been said for now. For those who have made it through this entire entry, thank you for reading everything I have said! I miss my friends and family and wish that everyone had the ability to experience the beauty of Queretaro. I only pray that through my words and my eyes you can grasp at least some insight into what central Mexico is truly like!

 Buenas Noches!
Emily

Mi cuarto//My Bedroom!

Una Vista en Queretaro//A view en Queretaro

La Ciudad es muy hermosa//The city is very beautiful

Mis amigas Laura y Betsy!

Una catedral//A Cathedral

Una estatua//a statue

Vamos a Queretaro!

On the plane and ready to go! Two hours until arrival. We are all tired but happy to be together and excited for this journey as it has finally come. Adios!