Pili, Paul, y Alexandro

it's only been a couple of weeks but already I feel like a common citizen navigating my way through the crowds and dodging drivers who follow no road rules. reminds me of how in Charleston I always felt a tinge of anxiety when crossing through traffic, such as at 4-way stops. I know, it seems silly, especially considering that here I'm always in arms reach of speeding vehicles and there aren't any traffic lights and the few stop signs we do have aren't taken seriously. so thanks to being here, I've rid myself of my car phobia.

I've also rid myself of personal space. people hug and kiss, even if they're strangers meeting for the first time. the exception is that guys shake hands with one another. this way of greeting is something I've only now gotten the hang of. usually when I met someone I stuck to my tendency of waving at them from afar. after all, I'm used to thinking that shaking hands was a bit too formal. there've been two occasions in which someone's put their head near mine, while I stood there for a couple of seconds until it hit me what it was they were waiting for. one time someone did that to me in the kitchen and I thought they were trying to grab something behind me.

even at the dinner table there's a lack of personal space. instead of asking someone to pass you an item, you simply reach for it. and take for example the streets. most of them are one way because they're only wide enough for one vehicle. and the sidewalks on either side are the same, built wide enough for a single person, so pedestrians have to practically walk against one another, especially when a vehicle takes up all of the space in the road. this also goes for the stairway at my university, which, again, by the looks of it, is made for one-way single-person traffic. and I've had conversations with people in which there was almost no space between us, so it feels like they're hovering. well, at least for me, since I'm short. anyway, now I feel at ease with all of the above.

I'm still getting used to being introduced to so many people, due to my host family having so many friends and relatives dropping by to visit the new baby. and apparently my host mom has a history of welcoming anyone to lunch at our place. it feels like every day I'm sharing the diner table with a new group of people, whether relatives, neighbors, or her kids' friends.

recently my host mom's eldest daughter, Pili, came to visit for the week with her two sons, Paul (6) and Alejandro (2). Paul is a super sweet kid who's currently obsessed with Michael Jackson, and Alejandro has gorgeous, innocent eyes and a diva personality.

these two were endlessly entertaining. and I liked that their mom, Pili, didn't act transformed by motherhood. she seemed like a peer of mine who happened to have kids, and all we did was make fun of them or make the same digusted faces at one another when they did something ridiculous, like danced. Paul would immitate Michael Jackson while Alejandro exemplified natural rhythm to the beats of the music, which was so odd to see coming from someone who's barely 2.

the picture above was taken on top of a mountain. I believe the place is called Cristo Rey, with the large statue in the background being of Jesus.

when they left Saturday night, it was a tearful goodbye. just seeing everyone else crying almost made me cry, but I held back because I felt it was odd for me to feel this close to people I only knew for a week, but my feelings were genuine, nonetheless. being here has made me appreciate family even more.

anyway, they might come back mid-September for another week

I walked to the art school with Mira and Anna and would have enrolled in a life-figure drawing class if it hadn't conflicted with my class schedule. each class is only $20-$30, and that's for an entire semester.

this weekend I went to see State of Play at the movie theater with Mira and Anna. we first walked around the Mega Mart and bought an assortment of snacks. there were all kinds of sweet, delicious-looking baked goods, so we each picked 2. I paid for everyone and the total was a little over $1 USD. however, I finally learned that not everything is cheap. in fact, a tube of exfoliating face scrub costs almost $5. but generally the cost of living is cheap. I know a guy who has a completely furnished two-bedroom apartment with everything (including internet) for only $300 USD, and that's near the central part of the city.

the movie had Spanish subtitles, so not only was it thrilling, it was educational. and afterward we decided to walk through the city instead of sitting in a bar. we got to see parts of the city we hadn't explored before and passed by a street vendor on almost every block. I wasn't that hungry but tempted to try something since everything everyone was selling cost under a dollar.

later today I'm going to be leading a conversation in English at the university. last week I attended a session and ended up being invited to a café afterward with three others, who turned out to be some of the nicest people I've ever met. they all said they'd come to my session every Monday at 5 PM. and at 6 PM there's a French session that I'm gonna start attending, since I still have to take French next semester at EIU.

I also got a hold of Adair, a guy I met in Charleston at Amigos&Friends who now lives in Toluca, which is 3-4 hours away from Guanajuato and 40 minutes from Mexico City. I made plans to take a bus directly to Toluca and to stay with him and his family for the weekend. my host mom told me that Toluca has great food, which must mean it's exceptional, since everything I've eaten in Guanajuato is excellent. in fact, when I get back to the U.S., I plan on cooking the same food