Taxco and a Change of Seasons

Erin and I went to bed on Saturday night planning to go to Teotihuacan the next morning, and woke up on Sunday to rain. The internet said it was also raining in Teotihuacan, and we didn’t want to get all the way there and not be able to climb the pyramids because they were wet and slippery. So we decided to go to Taxco, which is only about 1.5 hours south of here, instead. Just as Erin was stepping out of the shower, all the electricity went out. And it didn’t come back like it usually does. We continued getting ready, and bundled up well because it was cloudy, drizzly, and chilly. Our timing was really bad, and we just missed the bus to Taxco, so we had to wait another hour. But when we got there everything was fine. Taxco is known for its silver, and you can buy pretty much any kind of silver jewelry you can imagine for low prices. In the market and in the stores they weigh the piece you want and price it in grams. You have to be careful to make sure what you’re buying is really silver, which is confirmed by a little stamp on the side of every piece. Erin and I had great shopping luck, and we both came home with our pockets full of silver. Unfortunately, we also missed the bus on the way back, and had to wait another hour. Grrr. We got back to our apartment to find that we still didn’t have electricity! Francois (the landlord) said that he called the electrician and he didn’t know what was wrong (some electrician!), so we probably needed to call the electric company. Unfortunately it was Sunday, so they don’t work, and yesterday was a holiday, so they didn’t work either. Francois asked the neighbors to hook us up, and he ran extension cords all the way through the yard so we could both plug in our refrigerators. As of this morning, we still don’t have electricity, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the electric company doesn’t come until tomorrow. But we can plug in a lamp to the extension cord, and even our modem so we can still get online, just as long as our computer battery lasts. Luckily the gas and water have nothing to do with electricity, so we can still use the stove and over, flush the toilets and take hot showers. It’s not too much of an inconvenience, but when Erin and I are taking our contacts out by candle light in the bathroom, we kind of feel like we’re camping.

This weekend also appears to be marking a change of seasons as the temperature has plummeted. Lows in the single digits (Celsius) and highs barely reaching 20 (again, Celsius, where do you think I am?). Usually our apartment warms up during the day when the sun shines in, and before this weekend it had never dropped below 19 C/67 F in my bedroom. But since we haven’t had sun in a couple days, and the low overnight temperatures have been accompanied by uncharacteristically strong winds, we woke up to 15.5 C/60 F in our room this morning. That’s how cold my room in Madrid was all the time before I moved to a new house. We got some extra blankets and pushed the beds together because cuddling really helps keep us warm! We’re leaving the beds that way until further notice. We checked the weather forecast and the temps should go back up a bit in a couple of days, with lows only in the teens and highs in the mid-20s. Apparently the coldest months are January and February, so I think this weather is atypical for right now. It honestly wouldn’t be that bad if the sun came out every day because it would warm up the house a bit. The only heat in Cuernavaca is solar heat. Now I was told that this was the City of Eternal Spring, so I have a total of 4 long sleeve shirts, plus a few light jackets. I went and bought another sweater yesterday, but if anyone wants to send warm socks or sweaters, email me and I will gladly give you my address. While you’re at it you might also send some stuffing and cranberry sauce since my Thanksgiving meal may end up being a bit sparse. I guess I can always serve turkey tacos.

Halloween, Mexican Style

Erin and I went to Mexico City the weekend before Halloween for a costume party being thrown by some other Fulbrighters. The three girls have a big apartment in a nice part of the city, and they told us we could spend the night with them and go back to Cuernavaca the next day (it’s only about an hour bus ride). We took advantage of the day by going to the Frida Kahlo museum (very cool), and going to the Zocalo. Of course we went to the Zocalo on the one day the Palacio Nacional was closed (there were “events” going on in the square, so they closed it off!) so we didn’t get to see all the famous murals by Diego Rivera and company. We also had the good fortune of seeing the Mexico City Metro in action. It only costs 2 pesos to ride (less than 20 cents), and it goes pretty much anywhere you’d want to go. But there were so many people on it, and when you stop at a station people literally shove you out the door. We found the people in Mexico City to be in more of a hurry than down south in the ‘burbs. We didn’t like it. But when we asked for directions they were just as friendly and helpful as the people in Cuernavaca, only they have a different accent, so that was fun.

The Halloween party went great. The girls decorated the whole place and we had tons of food and drinks. Erin dressed up as an 80s rock star, and I was a girl at a slumber party, slippers, pig tail braids, stuffed animal, and all. There were a few Fulbrighters that showed up, but most of the guests were the hosts’ coworkers, so we didn’t really know very many people. We still had a good time though. The costumes were really cute.

The other exciting part of the weekend was seeing Sara, my friend who I met studying abroad in Spain. She was in Mexico City for the weekend for a wedding, and we luckily got to meet up for lunch on Sunday. It was great to see her, and kind of crazy to see how paths cross.

November 2 is Day of the Dead in Mexico, honoring the family members who have died. The best celebrations are in the state of Michoacan, so Erin and I trekked out there to have a look. We went to Patzcuaro, which is a cute, old town near a lake. Supposedly there is a ceremony every year where they row out to an island in the lake with candles on the canoes. We heard that it was breathtaking, and we were really looking forward to it. But when we got there we found out that there was no such ceremony, I guess they don’t do it anymore, I’m really not sure. We went to the island at night and all we found were a bunch of drunk Mexicans. Not our idea of fun. We went back to the hotel and the women who work there told us that there were better places to go, so they took us to a cemetery in a nearby town. The biggest celebrations are in the people’s homes where they make “ofrendas”, which are kind of like altars to their deceased relatives, and in the cemeteries where they decorate the graves with flowers, candles, and food, and hold all-night vigils. The cemetery we went to was really impressive. It wasn’t very big, but it was beautifully decorated, and we were glad we went. Unfortunately it wasn’t the experience we were hoping for, but at least we got to see some ofrendas.

We went to Morelia, the capital of Michoacan, before returning to Cuernavaca. There were also a lot of exhibits and events going on there, so we spent the day roaming around the city, and had a delicious meal of traditional “comida michoacana.” Because the only accommodations we could find in Patzcuaro were way out of our price range (but we stayed there anyway), we decided to save a little and stay in a crappy little hostel in Morelia. It wasn’t dirty except that the first room we stayed in had a leak in the sink, but the next room was fine. But there were no seats on the toilet, no shower curtain, no door on the bathroom, and pillows that felt like old cotton balls. They also only gave us one towel for the two of us. When I asked for another one, the reply I got was, it’s only one towel per room. But there were two beds!! Oh well. Erin and I got back to the hostel at 11, got up at 6 and went straight to the bus station. Not something I’d like to do for more than one night, but in the interest of money, it wasn’t that bad.

It was a Friday when we got back to Cuernavaca, and we decided we wanted to spend the entire weekend at home because we had been traveling too much. So we bought some food, did our laundry, and rented some movies, and then just sat at home. We sun bathed a little bit in our yard (it was 85 degrees in the shade), cooked some good meals, watched a bunch of movies, and talked to our boyfriends online. Not a bad way to spend two days at all I think. We needed to recover a bit.

America 2, Pumas 0

Erin and I had the pleasure of attending our first soccer game in Mexico, which just happened to be a huge rivalry between America and Pumas, two Mexico City teams. The Fulbright Commission organized everything, so we just had to show up in Mexico City and they took us (there were about 20 of us who went) to a restaurant for lunch and then to the soccer game (and paid for it all, too!) The restaurant was pretty nice. They had three tables lined up for all of us to sit, but really it was too much, so they decided to take a table away. Now comes the good part. Which of the three tables did they take away? Yep, the middle one. They took all the plates and silverware off the middle table, then picked it up and carried it over the table that was on the end, nearly hitting another Fulbrighter in the process. Then they picked up the end table (with all the plates and glasses still on it!) and moved it over to meet with the other table. Now wouldn't it have been easier to just take one of the end tables away? Apparently not in the Mexican pysche. Well, anyway, it was hilarious to watch, and none of us could quite believe that it was happening! Then Tim (the Fulbright coordinator) told us that the Commission would pay for our first alcoholic beverage, but that we would have to pay for any more after that. The automatic response was: TEQUILA! I'm not sure who picked the bottle or if the waitor just chose it for us, but we all had shots of Jose Cuervo Reserva de la Familia, and huge bottle of dark tequila that was absolutely delicious (you sip tequila in Mexico rather than just shooting it down). Well it should have been because when the bill came we found out that it was about $20 per shot! Never again will I taste such fine tequila.... Needless to say, Tim was not pleased. The meal ended up being way more expensive than expected, and he would have to justify to the Commission buying $20 shots of tequila for everyone!

The soccer game was quite an experience. We had good seats and it was a pretty good game, even though I didn't always understand all of it. And forget about understanding the chants that everyone in the stadium seems to know. When we first got to the stadium, we had to go through security. Apparently this can be a dangerous game because it's such a big rivalry and sometimes the fans get violent. That's why I couldn't wear my belt into the stadium, so I had to check it at one of the shady tents outside the stadium. I said good-bye to my belt because I really doubted that I would ever see it again. Then we went through security and between there and my seat, I had my ticket checked and scanned by 4 people. Now seriously, could I have made it that far if I didn't have a real ticket? Well we finally got to our seats and I got to sit in a huge cloud of cigarette smoke. Behind our seats was a little walkway about a foot wide, and that was evidently where all the vendors would walk by to sell their beers, tacos, potato chips, and Ramen noodle instant soups. The bad part was when two of them came in opposite directions and had to pass each other. One of them would step down on my arm rest, practically spilling the contents of his food or beverage tray all over me and my seat, while the other would pass by. This literally happened not less than a dozen times. And a couple times, I did get a bit of beer spilled on me. I was a little frazzled by all the people (Estadio Azteca holds about 100,000 people and it was nearly full!), but my beer helped. I just felt dirty and cramped the whole time. When we left we walked past the midget police barricade. Yes, the police officers were midgets. Okay, not exactly midgets, but not a single one of them measured more than my chin. Very strange to see.... They were all lined up with their plastic shields and helmets. They kind of looked like oompa loompas. Hehe. I did end up getting my belt back, which made me really happy. And we fortunately didn't see any violence erupt, which also made me very happy (we were a little concerned when the taxi driver said, "aren't you afraid to go to that game?"). I'm not sure if I'd go to another soccer game in Mexico. I think it's one of those experiences I can cross off the list. Unless I get persuaded by a certain someone....