I’ve been pretty busy, especially since my time here in Mexico is coming to an end.
This past weekend was the first weekend I stayed in Guanajuato for the whole weekend. The first weekend I was here I stayed in Guanajuato, but I was just discovering and didn’t really go out. The second weekend I went to visit Carlos and Monica in San Luis Potosi (by the way, I have posted the pictures from that weekend). My third weekend I went to Monterrey and Sabinas. My fourth weekend I went to visit Israel Pulido in Durango. So this weekend I decided to stay in Guanajuato. I had a good time.
Friday night a group of girls went out to eat. Originally we were supposed to go to this castle. It’s not a real castle, but it looks like one. We met up there, it was cool, but we decided not to eat there. It was expensive and there wasn’t anyone in the restaurant. That’s not a good sign. We walked down the hill a little bit and found another place, but they were having a big party for someone, so we couldn’t eat there either. Our next stop was a hotel back up the hill. The food was ok, but the service was terrible. We had a good time though, we always do. After eating we went to a bar called Zilch. It’s our favorite place to go out, it’s really chill and has a good ambiance. Friday nights at Zilch are jazz nights, so there was really good music.
I found my knight in shining armor.
Saturday I slept late and then had a late breakfast followed by a late lunch. Jessie and I went to the movies in the afternoon. We saw Arráncame la Vida and it has one of my favorite Mexican actors in it, José María de Tavira I really enjoyed the movie. I’d like to see it one more time just to understand it a little more. Since it’s a Mexican film, it was in Spanish and had no subtitles. I understood almost every thing; I’d just like to see it one more time.
Me, Megan, and Rita at Zilch
Saturday night we found ourselves at Zilch one more time, it was fun, but it gets a little old, I like going out and dancing, just no one else seemed to be up for that.
When I got home Saturday night I got news that my good friend Sean’s dad was killed after being hit by a car. I was really upset about it and I’m really sorry for his loss.
I woke up at 8:30 Sunday morning. I ate breakfast and watched T.V. Jessie didn’t feel well so I decided to go downtown for awhile before meeting up with a friend. Unfortunately I forgot my camera. My house was too far away to go back and get it, but here’s what I saw.
•A plaza that I walk through every day that usually has a few vendors was FULL of people and FULL of vendors who were selling pirated DVDs and CDs, clothes, food, fruit, vegetables, and ice cream. I was amazed how many people there were and how many families spent the day in the plaza. My original plan was to hang out in that plaza and eat ice cream and write in my journal until 4 when I was meeting my friend, but there were too many people. I searched for another place.
•I decided that I was hungry so I would go in search of this lady who sells gorditas (corn tortillas split in half, stuffed with meat or beans or potatoes). They are extremely good and cheap at 6 pesos (or 60 cents) each. I arrived toward the end of the day and she had run out of several things so I ordered two plain quesadillas. I expected them to be around the same price. Wrong. They were about $1 each. Instead of spending a little over $1, I spent $2.
•I sat in the main plaza to eat my quesadillas and write in my journal. I saw the most interesting fashion statements and some very odd things.
1.) Couples walking one in front of the other. I’ve seen this several times in Guanajuato and I’m amazed every time I see it. How does it work? How does one not step on the other? What if one sped up and the other didn’t? It’s usually the guy behind the girl. Does the girl get annoyed to have this thing on her back? Does she wish he’d leave? Does he like it? Does he just want to walk side by side? These are things I’ll never know.
2.) Fashion: I saw Ugg Boots. Why? It’s really hot. They’re ugly. Why would anyone where Ugg Boots here? I saw girls with really short skirts/dresses and really high high heels. I actually saw one girl roll her ankle but just kept going, she’s a trooper. I can’t really walk in heels.
3.) Music: It’s common here that musicians come and play in front of you for a tip. Many people with guitars or accordions were walking by me and I was hoping that none of them would stop; I had nothing to give them besides a bill equivalent to $20 USD. One guitar player decided to sit a few benches away and play. I was content with that; he wasn’t half bad. The highlight was when he started to sing “I Started a Joke.” I’m not entirely sure who sang it first, but The Wallflowers did a cover of it. I love that song.
•After sitting and writing for an hour, I got tired of it and decided to walk around. I haven’t really explored Guanajuato. I was looking around and there are so many shops and restaurants. I walked in and out of several shops, I didn’t buy anything, but it was cute.
It’s common when I walk around that people whistle at me. I stick out like a sore thumb. I’m white, blonde, and blue-eyed. I must be exotic! Most times it doesn’t bother me and it doesn’t make me uncomfortable unless it’s really inappropriate. It is inappropriate when:
1.) An old man does it, that’s just creepy.
2.) A group of old men do it.
3.) Taxi drivers. Why would I get in your taxi and give you money if I think you’re going to try something with me? Huh?
4.) A group of young men do it.
There are probably other times when it’s inappropriate, but these are fine for now. I’ve never felt threatened by it. At times I’m annoyed, but sometimes I say something back.
Point being, when I was walking around Guanajuato a group of young guys were whistling and yelling things to me. That goes under my list of inappropriate and annoying.
•At 4 I met up with Teryn (from Orange City, Iowa, very close to LeMars) and Emily (she lives at the same house I do, she’s a semester student) for coffee. Since I’ve been here I’ve wanted to go to this café just for a coffee and piece of cheesecake. I’m sorry to say that the fantasy was better than the reality. I ordered a regular coffee and it was just O.K. and a piece of Oreo cheesecake and it was just O.K. I had a great time talking to the two girls. Emily left early to go to the circus. She asked me if I wanted to go, but I really dislike clowns, so I passed. Apparently for the past few days my friends have been seeing lions, tigers, and….monkeys and one camel. Now it makes so much sense, there’s a circus.
Monday was a normal day at school. I decided to go back into town after lunch. I’ve been far too lazy for far too long. I met up with some girls to study Spanish at a café. At this café I had a hot fudge sundae. It was excellent. It had a scoop of vanilla and a scoop of strawberry ice cream, whipped cream, and fudge. DELICIOUS. I also studied a bit of Spanish for my exam on Tuesday.
1 comment:
Ooooh "ambiance," good word choice.
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