Beauty & Generosity

My life in Mexico essentially revolves around people and food, and this week was no exception.  I got to travel with my small group of fellow Natural Resource Management trainees to two new places in central Mexico: Parque Nacional El Chico and the Barranca de Metztitlán Biosphere Reserve.  I also got to meet with four current volunteers who were fountains of information and experience, and a testament to the power of immersion for learning a new language.  Anytime you hear someone say they arrived in Mexico with little to no Spanish skills and now hear them speaking fluently, it’s a definite confidence booster!

There are so many potential stories to tell from this trip as the landscapes and the people we encountered were so giving in their beauty and kindness.  In the biosphere reserve, we met with a small group in a community of about 130 people and learned about their efforts to conserve natural resources and develop ecotourism opportunities.  They took us on a walk along the river where we ate bananas and guanábana fresh off the trees and saw papayas, pigs, horses and more!  They invited us to an impromptu dinner with quesadillas and my first ever apple soda, and were very gracious hosts. 

 

We had to drive on some narrow, steep roads over those mountains
in the distance to get here, but it was beautiful. 

One of many lovely trees along our walk. 

Jaime and a current volunteer at dinner. 

Serpent-like tree. 

We got to see someone ring the bell for mass here during diner. 

We also visited a cactus farm that was established – in part – to stop illegal poaching of species from the national park and I bought my first plant in Mexico.  Fingers crossed I can keep this little beauty alive and safely transport it from place to place in the coming months!

My precious little plant!

Cactus garden - love that succulent in the background!

In El Chico I got to see a current volunteer working with local children and help read a book to two super cute youngsters.  They won me over when the little girl said I had a pretty name and the little boy laughed at my joke about my Spanish.  Autumn is not a common name in Mexico and a little difficult to pronounce so instead of getting called Amber all the time (like in the states), I usually get called Atún which translates to "tuna." It simply creates more opportunities for me to laugh with people :) It was pretty hot in both places but the skies were clear and that made our long drive and outdoor hikes even more interesting. 

Awesome views while hiking in the national park. 

Our new friend, a lizard on a tree! 

I found Chief Seattle in a tiny town in Mexico!

We stayed one night in Mineral del Chico and it’s a “magical puebla” just like my future site! It was a beautiful little town nestled in the mountains with the most beautiful hotel I have encountered in some time. Unfortunately, we did not get to taste any of the region’s bounty here as we worked past closing time for all the local restaurants.  However, I can verify that Cheetos in Mexico are different than in the US and that they are delicious! 

View in Mineral del Chico. 

Hotel art and seating - so lovely!

Late night dinner view. 

Speaking of food, my new love is a food called “pastes.” I ate pastes filled with potatoes and chicken, mole verde, apples and more and they were ALL delicious.  Also delicious: mango and ferrero ice cream purchased on the side of the road on a hot day. To be fair, that ice cream is probably delicious every day of the year. I also brought home a fruit for my host mom called a "zapote amarillo."  One of the men in Metztitlán gave it to me off a tree and said it was similar to an avocado but sweeter, so in about a week, we’ll see how that tastes as well. 

Breakfast stop for pastes! And an example of local public transportation.

Cool labels on local beer. 

Hotel and mountains in Metztitlán. 

Church in Metztitlán.

Next week I head to my future site for a full week with my new host family and future co-workers, and that will include a 2-day bus trip where I hope I can communicate enough with my counterpart to make that trip a success. I hear that pastes are sadly not popular at my site, but that it is famous for mezcal (i.e. tequila) so maybe there’s a new favorite coming my way soon.