Viajitos y comida... ¡Otra vez!

And just like that, it's been two weeks without a post!  Whoops!  The past two weeks have varied from super-boring to amazingly fun, so I'll just hop over a few highlights :)


Since my last post, I have
- tried to figure out the Mexican postal system

Pop-up mountains!

- avoided going out in the rain
- read a few books
- learned about local music and its history
- found the perfect café (for coffee, dessert, studying, chatting, etc.)
- avoided going out in the rain
- revisited el Museo de Antropología and learned sooo much more
- made a mistake and ordered a chamoyada
- tried not to gain too much weight eating all of this amazing food
- spent a day at the beach with friends
- went to a great concert by the Orquesta Sinfónica de Xalapa
- and said, "See you later!" to one of my best friends here in Xalapa.

I promise I won't go into too much detail on all of these points, but there are a few which deserve some space! First of all, the weather. Though I have found Xalapa to be generally pleasant, the almost constant rain of the past few weeks has gotten old. Fortunately there have been scattered days of full sunshine, so I really can't complain.

The Mexican postal system, on the other hand, is kind of a funny story! When I went to Puebla, I finally found some postcards to send home to friends and family. However, when I went to mail them, the post office was out of normal-sized stamps. So I bought the big ones, and mailed what I could. Unfortunately, for some of the postcards the big stamps wouldn't work, as they covered up the address! After waiting for a week, I went back to get some small stamps... But there still weren't any! Confused (I work in a law firm stateside, so I go to the PO a fair bit), I asked when I could come back and find normal stamps. "Oh, I don't know, maybe next week, maybe in two weeks, or three... We don't really know when we'll get more," was the response. Oh. Okay. (Three weeks later and I still haven't gotten smaller stamps!)

I'll try to keep this food section short - I just can't resist. I think I could go up three sizes while I'm here if I'm not careful! However, I have found a drink that, while not the worst thing I've ever had, is not something I want to repeat. The chamoyada. Made of a strawberry smoothie based in vinegar, with added tamarind and chile powder, this drink is not for the faint at heart. If only I had known... I mindlessly ordered the drink, and off-handedly turned down the waiter's concern and offer to replace it with something else after I tried it.

I'm not going to lie: it was bad. However, I did figure out how to drink it and make it palatable, so I managed to finish it! With that experience behind me, though, I don't think I'll be going back. I will, however, be going back to that café! It's called Cafe Lagos, and is located on a street corner in a charmingly decorated apartment, complete with tall windows, eclectic art, cozy armchairs, great service, incredible brownies, and fantastic coffee! It feels very old-world European style, and the prices can't be beat, either.

I have now spent a few afternoons in this restaurant, with friends or alone, and have found it to be a perfect place for anything. I read most of my book for literature there last week, and I enjoy journaling there, too. Speaking of school work, in my México Contemporáneo class we spent a few periods studying traditional music local to the Veracruz region of Mexico, specifically a son jarrocho. We will be returning to the topic later this week, so be on the lookout for a blog about the son and dance soon (har-de-harr-harr) :)


Last Wednesday we had a random day off of school, so a few of my school friends and I decided to go to the beach! Villarica is a tiny little pueblo about an hour and a half from Xalapa, and it was the perfect quick trip. The water was freezing in my opinion, but with the sun out and a nice breeze, the day was perfect for relaxing on the beach with a good book. We had lunch at a hidden little restaurant which served delicious empanadas, and ended our afternoon hiking up a little mountain/big hill to look out over the ocean on one side and this amazing country on the other. I am constantly surprised by the geography here! As I hope you can see in these pictures, mountains here have a tendency to just appear out of nowhere... Once you get past the weirdness of it, it's quite beautiful!

Isn't it absolutely beautiful?

These past two months here would not have been the same if not for my dear friend, Lindita. I met her the first week I was here, and have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know her and spending time exploring Xalapa with her! As her time in Xalapa came to a close, we went to the Museo de Antropología and Parque Natura together last weekend. As the only ones who came to the Museo around tour time (11-11:30ish), we basically got a free private tour of the museum, which was fantastic! I got so much more out of the trip, and it felt much more relaxed than the time before. We didn't get to spend a ton of time in Parque Natura, but I enjoyed "hiking" a bit and checking out the coffee plants :) For our last big event, this past Friday Lindita, Jared (Lindi's novio), and I went to a concert by the Orquesta Sinfónica de Xalapa, which presented Vivaldi's Las Cuatro Estaciones.

It was a wonderful concert, and the lead violinist, Mikhail Medvid, was fabulous. If you are ever in Xalapa with the chance to go to an OSX concert, don't miss out! I will always treasure these memories of fun times with friends here in Xalapa. Saying goodbye is never fun, but thanks to today's technology it doesn't really have to mean goodbye ;)  Safe travels, and Dios te bendiga, Lindita! Nos vemos :)

Macuiltepetl y Puebla -- Aventuras hacía la magia

I'm still here, I promise!  After a busy week and a half, I have been coerced into writing another entry ;)

Part I: Macuiltepetl

Macuiltepetl is a park here in Xalapa.  Though several travel guides erroneously state that it is a ten minute walk from the city center, it's more like a fifteen minute taxi ride (which is still pretty close!).  The park is actually an ecological zone, and includes a dormant volcano, a trail into the center of the volcano, a museum, a reptile exhibit, a mausoleum, and lots of eagles, among other things!  When I went with two friends the other Saturday, we saw about half the park -- saving some things for later on purpose, and others because they were inaccessible at the time.

The entrance to the park is easy to miss, as it's small and hidden behind foliage.  At first, we started to walk up the maintenance trail, but the presence of about ten armed men made me think we should try somewhere else... And then we found the walking path, parallel but a bit lower.  For those of you inclined to freak out, please don't - the policemen and soldiers are typically very nice guys, and they just ride their four wheelers around the park all day and chat with people.

The walk was beautiful, and I enjoyed taking in the increasingly panoramic views of Xalapa while conversing with friends.  Several people were out running, and several kids were having a blast dragging their parents from play station to "secret tunnel" and up and down everything they could find!

Towards the volcano's summit, we climbed up the lighthouse-like Mirador.  At the top, one of the park employees had one of the eagles, and was trying to get him to fly around.  I guess the eagle wasn't feeling active, though, as he would just take a short glide into a nearby tree and wait to be called back.  After watching the eagle and taking pictures of the landscape for a few minutes, we climbed back down to continue exploring the park.  The only other "big" thing we stopped by on this trip was the mausoleum: a giant green pyramid which houses the remains of famous Veracruzanos.  I know, I should have taken pictures of all of their plaques so I could list them for you... Suffice it to say there was a good mix of scholars, soldiers, artists, and politicians.  Maybe next time I go I'll remember to get some of their names!

Part II: Puebla

This past Friday, another friend from school and I took a quick day trip to Puebla, mostly to scout out the nearby ruins to see if my mom and I would like to further explore them over Spring Break.

Before we went into the city proper, we took a quick taxi ride to Cholula.  Once a separate city and now basically a suburb, Cholula is home to an ancient Aztec pyramid, as well as a colonial cathedral. The cathedral was built right on top of the pyramid, which may actually have been an honest mistake - years before the arrival of the Spanish, the temple had been abandoned, and was soon taken over by vegetation.  It really does seem like a steep mountain, and it wasn't until after we descended that I realized just how huge the pyramid is! It's base is actually larger than any of the pyramids at Giza, if you can believe it!  The cathedral at the top was nice, and I assume the inside was gorgeous.  However, when we dropped by they were in the middle of Mass, so I didn't want to interrupt the service just to stare at the interior decoration.

The courtyard provided stunning views of Puebla, and a clear view of Malintzin, the local volcano which is generally snow-covered and always spewing out smoke.

 Me and the five volcanoes! Guest appearance by Señora Mariposa. Thanks Deb for the photo

Moving on to Puebla. Puebla was the first city in Nueva España built specifically for Spaniards.  This means that the central part of town -- which is well-preserved, if a bit touristy -- feels incredibly European.  If it weren't for the trees and the warm breeze, I could have been transported back to Spain!  The local cathedral has the tallest spires of any church in Mexico, and took 74 years to build.  The city was known in its heyday for its intricate tile work.  Called talavera, the tile was made from the rich local clay and painted and glazed by artisans.  Many of the buildings are still covered in talavera, and they are gorgeous!

We spent the afternoon wandering through the cathedral, visiting the Casa de Cultura to learn about the cathedral's construction, tasting local sweets, visiting an art museum, and enjoying the colonial atmosphere.  Although the conquistadores undoubtedly destroyed a lot of traditional Mexican culture and messed up a lot through their colonization, they did leave behind some beautiful works of art by way of buildings and even entire cities.

 

Our afternoon snack: apple covered in something-I-don't-remember, with strawberries, cranberries, strawberry sauce, and tamarindo powder!  It was a suprisingly excellent flavor combination.

After a very full but fun day, I arrived at my house and just wanted to eat a light dinner and crash into bed.  But no! Our neighbors had invited us over to dinner, so I walked up the street and tried to be awake and conversational for another hour and a half.  I really do like our neighbors, it's just that I was exhausted :)  I got to play with their grandson, a precious one-year-old who was fascinated with me and my hair but too shy to say "hola."  He finally caved and gave me a kiss goodnight before he went to bed, though!

Side note on food: in Puebla, I had a cemita -- a fantastic sandwich!  When I get back home, I'm going to do what I can to replicate it... but I know it won't be the same.  Also, here in Mexico pineapple is a common topping for hotdogs.  I haven't tried it yet (I had the opportunity, but I don't think my brain had enough energy to process the thought of adding new things to my hotdog), but if the opportunity presents itself again, I think it may be a tasty condiment.

As I near the halfway point of my stay here, I feel more and more comfortable with this amazing country.  I'm excited to travel a bit more with friends, and incredibly thankful for the friendships I've made and continue to make.  Living alone in a foreign country isn't easy, but when that country is as magnificent, friendly, and hospitable as Mexico, it's hard to pity yourself! ;)