Keep me in your prayers! I had a fever of about 103 yesterday. I am sick with something, and hopefully not dengue! They sent my blood off today.
I probably can't post again for a week, but other than the sickness, we are having a great time!
Love,
SB
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Sunday, June 24, 2007
We are still alive!!!
We made it through the first week!
We are weary, but having a great time!
Our host family is wonderful. They feed us lots of great food, and it is all grown just around the corner. Our host dad (Silvestre) is the head of the farmers association so we are lucky! We also have a host mom (who we call na:nah- Oapan Nahuatl for mom), and two sisters, Ofelia and Juanita, that live with us. They are so sweet, and no one will let us do any work! They also have two other daughters, one who lives in Oapan (Roberta) with her husband, two little boys, and little girl (Angelica, who follows me around everywhere even to the bathroom!), and the other lives far away.
I like our Nahuatl classes, but they really hard. Also, the second half of the day (conversation class) is basically taught in Spanish which is hard for me because I was never all that good to begin with and am now rusty.
Today we are in Chilapa. We spent the night here so we could go to a Nahuatl festival in Acatlan. Their Nahuatl is far easier I think. Not only are some of their sounds different, but their greetings are more basic. Here you can say, “Hello mom” or “Hello dad” as a greeting to anyone. In Oapan, you greet based on what the person you are meeting with is doing. For instance, a greeting in Oapan may go as follow, Person A: “You are going to feed cows?” Person B: “Yes, I am going to feed cows.” Person A: “Then go feed cows.” Person B: “You are going visiting?” Person A: “Yes, I am going visiting.” Person B: “Then go visiting.” I am sure you can see the difficulty here. Oapan is the hardest Nahuat to learn according to Jonathan. It is the only dialect with tone!
The Acatlan festival was lots of fun, but everyone kept giving us Mezcal while they ate bull’s bloodl! They did theses crazy dances, and some people even danced on ropes! We also went to a mass at the beautiful little church there.
I’m sorry this update is brief, but the connection is slow and we only have a few minutes. This is also why I have only included four pictures. Maybe next weekend we can find a better connection.
Please remember to keep us in your prayers. Being here is great, but there are so many adjustments in addition to struggling through the language (like no air conditioning in 105 degree weather :o)! Here are few pictures:
Our corn mill!
This is na:nah, though I need to find a picture of her smiling. She is pretty much the cutest little person in the world and can flip tortillas like a mad woman!
Me in traditional dress in my hammock (the only place I can get cooled down).
These piglets remind me of Okie D and make me sooo happy!
We are weary, but having a great time!
Our host family is wonderful. They feed us lots of great food, and it is all grown just around the corner. Our host dad (Silvestre) is the head of the farmers association so we are lucky! We also have a host mom (who we call na:nah- Oapan Nahuatl for mom), and two sisters, Ofelia and Juanita, that live with us. They are so sweet, and no one will let us do any work! They also have two other daughters, one who lives in Oapan (Roberta) with her husband, two little boys, and little girl (Angelica, who follows me around everywhere even to the bathroom!), and the other lives far away.
I like our Nahuatl classes, but they really hard. Also, the second half of the day (conversation class) is basically taught in Spanish which is hard for me because I was never all that good to begin with and am now rusty.
Today we are in Chilapa. We spent the night here so we could go to a Nahuatl festival in Acatlan. Their Nahuatl is far easier I think. Not only are some of their sounds different, but their greetings are more basic. Here you can say, “Hello mom” or “Hello dad” as a greeting to anyone. In Oapan, you greet based on what the person you are meeting with is doing. For instance, a greeting in Oapan may go as follow, Person A: “You are going to feed cows?” Person B: “Yes, I am going to feed cows.” Person A: “Then go feed cows.” Person B: “You are going visiting?” Person A: “Yes, I am going visiting.” Person B: “Then go visiting.” I am sure you can see the difficulty here. Oapan is the hardest Nahuat to learn according to Jonathan. It is the only dialect with tone!
The Acatlan festival was lots of fun, but everyone kept giving us Mezcal while they ate bull’s bloodl! They did theses crazy dances, and some people even danced on ropes! We also went to a mass at the beautiful little church there.
I’m sorry this update is brief, but the connection is slow and we only have a few minutes. This is also why I have only included four pictures. Maybe next weekend we can find a better connection.
Please remember to keep us in your prayers. Being here is great, but there are so many adjustments in addition to struggling through the language (like no air conditioning in 105 degree weather :o)! Here are few pictures:
Our corn mill!
This is na:nah, though I need to find a picture of her smiling. She is pretty much the cutest little person in the world and can flip tortillas like a mad woman!
Me in traditional dress in my hammock (the only place I can get cooled down).
These piglets remind me of Okie D and make me sooo happy!
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Here are some pictures, don't have time to write about them. We are off to the village soon! Keep us in our prayers! We love you!
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Wednesday, June 13, 2007
The Capital City
We did a lot yesterday, but didn't make it to Xochimilco. We may try to go during the day we have here after our class. We did enjoy touring around the city though. Here are some of our pictures:
The House of Tiles. It used to be a home and was turned into a Sanborns.
Some of the tiles.
David in the candy section of Sanborns.
The strangest thing I have ever seen (with the exception of the ladies tent spa posted previously), a giant gelatin dog.
The restaurant in Sanborns.
Real molletes! We make these on Sundays sometimes. I was so excited to have to real deal!
The Basilica.
This is for Sarah S. Aztec ruins beneath the Basilica.
Here you can see some of the tile work.
Inside the Basilica.
Some remains. This guy was buried alive!
The streets of Mexico City.
The Zocalo, third biggest square in the world!
Inside the Palacio Nacional. Can you find Texas on the map :o?
Mexican declaration of independence.
A death mask.
An Aztec Chihuahua!
Wall paintings in the National Palace by Diego Rivera. This one is of Cortez enslaving the Aztecs.
On the right, the lady with the lilies around her head, stands La Malinche. She betrayed her people for the Spanish. The downfall of a nation at the hands of a woman-haha.
The Basilica a few years back.
Cool looking food.
Look at all the people!
A man plucking the remaining feather from a chicken (David took this photo).
The handicraft market.
Our new wine glasses.
David's favorite cheese. It unwinds like a ball. We have looked for it EVERYWHERE in the states. I hope he got his fix!
David at Oxford street.
The Golden Angel.
The House of Tiles. It used to be a home and was turned into a Sanborns.
Some of the tiles.
David in the candy section of Sanborns.
The strangest thing I have ever seen (with the exception of the ladies tent spa posted previously), a giant gelatin dog.
The restaurant in Sanborns.
Real molletes! We make these on Sundays sometimes. I was so excited to have to real deal!
The Basilica.
This is for Sarah S. Aztec ruins beneath the Basilica.
Here you can see some of the tile work.
Inside the Basilica.
Some remains. This guy was buried alive!
The streets of Mexico City.
The Zocalo, third biggest square in the world!
Inside the Palacio Nacional. Can you find Texas on the map :o?
Mexican declaration of independence.
A death mask.
An Aztec Chihuahua!
Wall paintings in the National Palace by Diego Rivera. This one is of Cortez enslaving the Aztecs.
On the right, the lady with the lilies around her head, stands La Malinche. She betrayed her people for the Spanish. The downfall of a nation at the hands of a woman-haha.
The Basilica a few years back.
Cool looking food.
Look at all the people!
A man plucking the remaining feather from a chicken (David took this photo).
The handicraft market.
Our new wine glasses.
David's favorite cheese. It unwinds like a ball. We have looked for it EVERYWHERE in the states. I hope he got his fix!
David at Oxford street.
The Golden Angel.
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