Before I left the US, everyone wanted to know why I decided to join the
Peace Corps. Since I arrived in Mexico,
only 2 people have asked me, and it is kind of hard to explain in Spanish. Based on my experience thus far, I would say
that it is highly unusual for a woman my age to be unmarried and childless, to
have lived alone for many years, and to have willingly left a great job with
good benefits to go volunteer in a neighboring country. Both times I tried to explain all the
different factors that led to my decision but really it boils down to this: I
wanted to change my life. Mission accomplished.
Local church with lovely mosaic.
Typical lunch view.
Reading a GPS unit with Cindy and Pierre.
A little fun on top of the mountains.
Local art.
If you want more spice in your life, learning and doing new things on a
regular basis will definitely help. Every
week here is different with opportunities to see and experience things for the
first time. This past week we went to a neighboring
community for another fertilizer workshop, and in the process I got to see more
beautiful pueblos and vistas. It was a
late night return, in part because this extremely kind family offered us coffee,
corn on the cob, fresh peaches and delicious cake, and you just can’t say no to
food. The kids in the house were also having a great time talking with us and
sharing scary stories about snakes, scorpions, coyotes and some kind of
bunny. I have no idea what was supposed
to be scary about the bunny but I did confirm twice that was the right word, so
this kid was weaving quite the tale.
Lovely views from the countryside.
This weekend was a blend of Mexican and US culture. My host mom Alicia demonstrated the process
for making delicious mango cajeta, which included over 200 green mangos
obtained from trees in the local school yard.
This was a multi-part process that had her elbow-deep in mangos most of
the weekend, but she now has enough filling to create mango cajetas for her family
for the rest of the year! Needless to say, I will be staying friends with this
family long after I find my own permanent housing. We also had fresh tamales filled with chicken
and atale with pineapple, which was delicious. It reminded me of cream of
broccoli soup, but sweet, with the flavor of pineapple, that you drink from a
cup.
I think this was like step 5 in the 3-day process.
Mash and remove the pits with your hands.
The final product!
Another mango treat.
This weekend I also ate totally non-Mexican food – pizza with pineapple
and ham – and indulged in way too much English as the other volunteer in my
office had a friend visiting from the US and we met up with two other English speakers
from Puerto Vallarta. I had to balance all that English with several hours of
exercises in my Spanish workbook and am proud to say that I can now tell you
exciting things like “I have heard that…” or “I will have lived here for one
month…” or “the elephant was attacked” (although I hope I never have to say
that). In other words, I am now SUPER exciting to talk to.
We also taught our first English class this week for a new group of
tour guides, and it looks like that is something we’ll be continuing on a
weekly basis. When I got home I had an
impromptu session on basic English phrases and words for my host family and we
further bonded the next day when they had to take me to the doctor for my first
illness in Mexico. I’m on the mend and I appreciated that
the doctor hugged me several times after it was clear I no longer thought I was going to die.
Teaching English.
First visit to a doctor in Mexico. I think the pink princess TV adds a nice touch.
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