We have water!!!! Thank god. I was able to shower in my own house instead of doing the morning walk of shame. It put me in a much better mood. We had breakfast and Linda (the owner) asked me if I could accompany Guadalupe to the market because she had to pick up food for everyone for lunch (even though that would make me late for class). So, Lupe and I hopped on a bus and went to the market in the center of town, bought 6 roasted chickens, about 3 pounds of tortillas and a bucket of salsa. Lupe rewarded my assistance with a terrific glass of horcata from one of the little shops. It was sooo hot out, and we had so much stuff to carry that we took a cab back. Lupe invited me to a cerimony for her daughter (that she says looks like me, which I thought was sweet because her daughter is beautiful) but it is happening the night that I leave, so I can't attend. That meant so much to me, though, and it made me think about how hard this job must be for them at times... taking us into their lives completely for the time that we're here, and then having to let us go just as easily. But then, I suppose I could look at it the same way for myself. These women are my friends now, and I probably won't get to see them again, at least not for quite a while. It makes me grateful for email :-)
I returned to class, had classes then lunch (that was supplimented with mole made in the cooking class. I never really liked mole before, but I think I have a new appreciation for it). I had two more classes and then I was free for the rest of the evening. I've been invited to go out on thursday as a good bye evening with my secret charlante, her friends and some other students, but I don't have any high heels here (I can hear the gasp coming from you all. yes, I have been without heels for three whole weeks... and it feels great... but I miss them). So, I decided to go downtown to buy some heels here, because they have great/crazy/painful shoes here, and I want some. There is a street here (Calle de la Independencia) that has about 4 shoe stores on every block for about 10 blocks. So, I checked several out, and picked out my favorites, tried them on and was told that they were "muy padres" by the girl that works at the store....
Now, "muy padres" translates quite loosely to "really cool", however, as most of you can tell it literally translates to "very father". Just as in the states, in Mexico, all things male=good, and female=undesireable. Many curse phrases, or bad things, include the word "Madre" here. Grrr. So, anyway, my shoes are cool, they're really tall, and I'm probably going to break something on the uneven sidewalks here. Cross your fingers for me Thursday night :-).
I kept shopping, stopping at a used book store, a bakery, and a pharmacy for various things, and then I went back to the market downtown. I spent about 45 minutes there, just walking and taking some pictures. I bought some vanilla and a huge sunflower and my bag was starting to get a little heavy, so I headed toward the bus stop to go home.
I came back to the school, ate some guacamole from yesterday and printed out the practice placement test for the ISU spanish program. I was really scared, because that is one of the big reasons I'm here, to test well at ISU. So I took the test, and it had some sections that I was still unsure about, but I scored it, and scored right into the class that I had been hoping for. I'm really excited and I feel like I'm so much more prepared for classes now than I ever could have been just studying at home.
I'm still in disbelief that I'm leaving soon. I'm really getting to know and love this city, and I hope I have the chance to come back here someday. I ran into this girl from Canada here that told me that she's renting a furnished (but shitty) apartment for $150 a month, and there is running water and a sufficient bathroom. So who knows, maybe in a few years I can come back, stay there and catch up with all mis amigos Veracruzanos.
Thanks again to everyone for writing to me. I must check the guestbook 5 times a day and I am always so excited to hear from you all. Have a wonderful day tomorrow!! Abrazos, Tracey
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