Taylor Goes Global

On the Road, Again!

2009-03-07T12:44:00.002-05:00

After a long hiatus, I am back to globetrotting! Starting on Monday, March 16th, I will be heading out to Los Angeles and San Diego to investigate grad schools as well as visit family. Later that week, I will be boarding a plane to the Netherlands for the Harvard World Model United Nations conference in The Hague. I will also be scooting into Amsterdam for a few days, too.

Rest assured, you will find me blogging all along the way. Funny pictures and hysterical stories are sure to follow.

Have a wonderful Spring and happy traveling! See you all next week...

Happy Birthday, America!

2008-07-04T12:43:00.003-04:00

I'm officially back in the United States. I am happy to be back, but I am sad about all of the fun that I am missing down in Oaxaca. Mind you, I'm not missing the protests and feeling sick in a foreign country. However, I was really looking forward to my stint at Puente a la Salud Comunitaria. However, there's always next year. I could look at the bright side: I have a prepaid ticket on Mexicana to use before April!

So, thanks for reading and leaving comments! Check back regularly, because I'm always on the go. There are a few other trips in the works. I will definitely be returning to Mexico, and I could even be going to The Hague, Netherlands! We'll just have to see. Now, I will be updating my blog Taylor's View quite regularly. Be sure to check it out! It's located at http://taylorsview.blogspot.com!

Thanks again! Happy travels!

Oh, and I haven't forgotten the second post of my Michoacan trip. It will be appearing shortly!

On The Way Back

2008-06-28T14:05:00.000-04:00

As this post is appearing, I am sitting on a plane about to take off for Atlatna. I will be passing through Atlanta before continuing to Jacksonville, FL. From there, I will ride down to Ormond Beach to spend a few weeks. Look for more from Florida soon!

Bittersweet Day

2008-06-27T14:56:00.002-04:00

Please forgive me for not posting the details of the rest of my trip to Michoacan. They will be coming in short order, so don't worry!

Today has been a rather tough day. First thing this morning, we had to say goodbye to Nikki. She has been staying in our house for about 3 weeks and it has been really fun hanging out with her. I think just about everyone in the living room this morning had a tear in their eye. Thankfully, we got to go to dinner with her at El Midi, a cheap but tasty French restaurant in San Fernando. Also, we are saying goodbye to our house today. The family is moving into a new house today. I'm excited about spending our last night in the new house, but I'm also a bit sad about leaving the old one. It was a good house!

We're also saying goodbye to everyone down here at Bagel Cafetin. Sandra and Bere have been great friends throughout this month. I will miss coming here in the evenings to get homework done, eat a cookie, drink a limonada, or just hang out. They are two extremely nice and fun people and EVERYONE should stop by when they visit Guanajuato.

So, I am on my way to Florida by way of my hometown of Atlanta tomorrow. I think it's crazy that I will be only passing through Atlanta and not leaving the airport. But, I shall actually spend time there in mid-July.

So, I will talk to you all next from Ormond Beach. There, I promise I will write about my trip to Michoacan even more.

El Viaje Michoacano: Waterfall and Uruapan

2008-06-23T20:10:00.006-04:00

To say that I had an action packed weekend would be an understatement. You could argue that it was over packed. Fun out the wazoo? Yes, of course. Exhausting? Definitely.
We started out on Friday morning at our normal bus meeting location, Jardin del Cantador. We had to be there by 7:30 and we made it about 20 minutes early. Finding the buses, however, was a different story. We looked all around that huge garden until they finally appeared. We got on board, secured our seats, and then we were off. Our trip to the city of Uruapan, Michoacan was nearly nonstop, however, we ran in to a huge traffic jam in the state capital of Morelia. From there, we took a detour and ended up having to stop at an Oxxo (a Mexican 7-11). We eventually made our way to the most beautiful waterfalls you can possibly imagine.

We got off the buss and were immediately greeted by hoards of people trying to rent us their horses. It was a nice thought, but I have legs that work just fine. After navigating through the set of horses, we began down the trail. After a walk of about 20 minutes, we found the first waterfall. It was huge and beautiful, however it was extremely polluted. It was slightly better than the smell that you sniff when passing over one of the sewer vents here in Guanajuato. However, it was not entirely different. We hiked down a slightly longer and tougher trail to the second waterfall. There, we encountered crystal clear water and a little wading pool at the base. It was nearly the perfect waterfall. I just wish I could have spent more time there. I could have swam around for hours!

After the waterfall, we headed to the hotel and to the center of Uruapan. The hotel was wonderful. It was extremely clean and well decorated. It may not have satisfied the ultra snobby American's wishes, however, since it was only $35 a night, it was wonderful. I would stay there again in a heartbeat. After showering and dropping off our stuff in the hotel, we then ventured into the main Plaza of Uruapan to find a place to eat dinner. Yeah, so good luck with that one. The only places to eat around the center are street vendors. We were slightly wary of eating street food after our problems with food down here thus far. We eventually found a little cafe a few streets off the center and were satisfied with their offerings. I ended up eating a grilled chicken hoagie. Very Mexican, eh?

After dinner, we headed back to the hotel and flipped on the TV. There was everything from Tyler Florence fixing tacos (dubbed in Spanish, by the way) to oldie Mexican movies. However, we settled upon Hotel Rwanda. Lance had never seen it, but I had seen it a time or two before. If you've seen this movie before, you know that it is not a good one to watch before you try to get a good night's sleep. It was frightening enough to give Lance some creepy dreams which caused him to wake up in the middle of the night, proclaiming that we had to go. I advised him that it was 1:00 AM and that I was going back to sleep.

I Saw Jesus!

2008-06-18T21:57:00.002-04:00

Well, I actually did! Not him really, but I saw an ultra large statue of him today. Lance and I traveled with our program to the top of a mountain about an hour outside of Guanajuato to a place called Cristo Rey, or Christ the King. There stands a rather large statue of Jesus. Take a look for yourself!

The trip up there was extremely intense. We departed Plaza de la Paz at around 5:00 PM and got up to the statue around 6. We took the highway out of the city, however, once we got to Silao, the highway turned into a old cobblestone road. This extremely windy and narrow road (with no guard rails) took us to the top of the mountain. It's so narrow that cars heading in the other direction have to move over and stop to allow other cars to pass. Once we got to the top, we spent 40 minutes looking around before heading back to Guanajuato.

Before heading to Cristo Rey, Lance and I had a wonderful dining adventure. Since we had to be in the Plaza to catch the bus up to Cristo Rey two hours after school ended, we decided that we would eat in the center instead of going all the way back home. We chose Casa Valadez, which is known as Guanajuato's swankiest and best restaurant. Indeed, it was elegant. We had three waiters attending to us and that made the service amazing. I had a wonderful Milanesa de Pollo (a very thin friend chicken breast) with rice and french fries. Lance had the "Burger Texano" which looked amazing ... and I don't even like meat. Both of us at there for about $20 total including tip ... and this is one of the fanciest of restaurants! Lance and I will be splurging there again.

Well, this will most likely be my last blog post before I head to the wilds of Michoacan on Friday for my trip to waterfalls, volcanoes, and who knows what else. I am really looking forward to it! I will be sure to tell you all about it when I get back on Sunday.

Also, a note about photos. TelMex, the one and only phone and DSL provider here in la Republica Mexicana, has been experiencing some problems. So, uploading photos has been a long process. Rest assured, all photos should be updated by 11:00 PM Atlanta time.

What a Final Weekend!

2008-06-16T21:51:00.003-04:00

I'm exhausted after merely thinking about what I will be doing this weekend! Lance and I are in for an action packed natural adventure in Mexico's beautiful state of Michoacan. So, here's what we will be doing day by day:

On Friday, we will leave Jardin del Cantador at 7:30 AM. We will travel fo4 4 hours to Tzararacua and Tzararacuita, two supposedly beautiful waterfalls. We will hike 30 minutes to get to them and then have the chance to swim at the waterfall. I've been told that the water is extremely cold, so I'm not sure that i will take them up on the offer to swim. However, I will certainly take the hike! Later, we will go to the city of Uruapan and stay at the Hotel Victoria. We will then have a free evening to look around.

On Saturday, we have a long and tiring day! It all starts with a buffet breakfast and then we head out into the wilderness. We will ride on a horse for a total of 6 hours, all the way to the Paricutin Volcano and back. We will stop along the way to see a church that was destroyed in an eruption and later climb all the way up to the peak. We've been told to expect tons of rain. According to our program coordinator, we will hurt in parts that we didn't even know we had. Later, we will return to the hotel for some much deserved rest.

Sunday will also be an action packed day. We will be heading to the little town of Patzcuaro and to the national park there. Hopefully, it won't be too intense because I'm sure we will be sore. We will be back in Guanajuato by 7:00 PM.

I'm really excited about this trip! I think it will be tons of fun! Who knows if I will be able to function the following Monday, however.

Today was just your ordinary Monday in Guanajuato, which makes it a good one. We went to school, came home for lunch, and then went to our favorite Bagel Cafetin to do some homework. I'm happy to report that I finished my final essay for my literature class! So, all I have to do is two presentations! We had a party this evening for Cesar, the little two-year-old who turned two today! Some of Queta's and Julio's friends came over and we had a great time! I had the best cake at the party. It was like a Tres Leches cake, but chocolate and cherry flavor! If only Sam's Club made a cake like that in the US... On another note, our friends at Bagel Cafetin invited us to the cafe tomorrow morning to try out one of their new menu items: pancakes and fruit! I can't wait!

Well, that's all for now! I hope everyone had a wonderful start to the week!

Wow! A Semi-Mexican Town in Mexico!

2008-06-15T19:27:00.006-04:00

Yes, it's Dromingo again. That means Lance and I are taking it easy around the house and getting some homework done. We did venture down into El Centro for a muffin and some lemonade between breakfast and dinner. But other than that, we've been pretty lazy creatures. We deserve it after this long school week and an exciting Saturday.

Yesterday was our excursion to Dolores Hidalgo and San Miguel de Allende with our program. We left the Jardin del Cantador at 8:30 on our way to Dolores Hidalgo. This little down, which boasts itself to be the cradle of Mexican independence, is about an hour-and-a-half away from Guanajuato on a very windy and bumpy mountain road. A few people got sick, and I was not far behind them. It was a really rough ride. We arrived at the bus station and soon found out that this town was tiny. There are maybe 2 main streets and a central plaza. It's beautiful, but tiny. While there, we visited the main church where Miguel Hidalgo and his friends contemplated the best way to beat the Spanish / French and gain Mexico's independence. Later, we visited Miguel Hidalgo's house. The history of this place was fascinating.

The most interesting part of Dolores Hidalgo is the many flavors of ice cream that they have. At one corner of the main plaza, one can find several ice cream vendors selling every flavor from Tequila to Vanilla to a mixture of shrimp and octopus. Some of the flavors were just disgusting. One of the most popular among the group was Avocado. First, I tried the Tequila ice cream because it came heavily recommended. I wasn't aware that it was actually ice cream made with Tequila. I thought it would just be Tequila flavored! But no, there was Tequila involved. It was tasty, so I finished the little Dixie-cup that I had. Later, Lance and I both got a cone with a sort-of Vanilla ice cream with walnuts, pine nuts, and pecans. Now, I don't normally like nuts, but this ice cream was expectational. After we had our ice cream, we returned to the bus station and continued to San Miguel de Allende.

I was really interested to see San Miguel after all of the things I have heard about it. I read in a book that it has been over taken by a bunch of retired Americans and Canadians and turned into a southern colony of the United States. I read that the people would all speak English and all act as if they were not Mexican. Well, I was presently surprised. While there is a great number of Americans and Canadians in San Miguel, I don't think the town has completely lost its Mexican character. I spoke and heard plenty of Spanish and I ate plenty of good Mexican food. However, if you enjoy speaking English in a foreign land, this is your destination. What really shocked me was the condition of the buildings. Many places in Mexico can't afford to maintain their old, colonial-era buildings. Here in Guanajauto and in Oaxaca, you can see these buildings beginning to fall apart. However, San Miguel has made a good effort to keep everything clean and maintained. Seeing this alone was worth the trip.

They say that San Miguel is a shoppers paradise, but I didn't buy anything. Well, I did go to an awesome cafe and buy churros with a glass of "Chocolate Frio." The churros were AWESOME! The chocolate was just okay, but I would drive back to San Miguel for just the churros alone. When I told Julio and Queta where I went, they told me about how that cafe is owned by some famous Mexican actress. You would never know that by the prices. I just paid $3.30 for a big Chocolate Frio and an order of 3 churros.

So, it was a fantastic weekend. Now, it's off to a short week at school. We don't have any classes Friday because we will be headed off to the state of Michoacan for a trip into the jungle, literally. I'm told we will be riding on donkeys for 6 hours on the way to an active volcano. I'm really quite excited about this! I will get more information tomorrow at our meeting and I will pass it along!

No Rain!

2008-06-13T23:42:00.002-04:00

I'm happy to report that we have dried out here in Guanajuato. I can't say the same for my shoes, however. They are still a bit on the damp side. Regardless, we have enjoyed really great weather the past 2 days. Highs have been in the low to mid 70s and lows in the 50s. I actually wish I could experience weather like this year round!

Yesterday was pretty darn fun, if I do say so myself. As we do all weekdays, we started off at school. After school, we had lunch but then quickly returned to the Centro Historico for our time at the Don Quijote Iconographical Museum. This place was pretty interesting. It had paintings and all other sorts of art depicting Don Quijote de la Mancha. Now, I now very little about the book itself, but the art was beautiful. After that, we headed to Bagel Cafetin since we had a little time to spare. I had my normal limonada and Lance and I both got a chocolate chip cookie. It was delicious. The whole atmosphere was ruined, however, by a bunch of older American ladies who barged in to the cafe. They were EXTREMELY loud and quite rude. One of them asked us in Spanish if a table was occupied. Lance and I both replied, but she seemed to not understand. So, I told here that nobody was there. Then she tried to correct my Spanish. The only problem is that my Spanish was correct. So, didn't spend too much time hanging out after our limonadas and continued on our way.

Our next stop was our school (the wonderful Universidad de Guanajuato Escuela de Idiomas) for a concert by a Cervantino band. These people dress up in middle-ages Spanish attire and parade around the city playing songs and inviting people to join along in their procession. Since it was supposed to rain, the canceled the procession part (called the 'Callejoneada') and were just supposed to play in the auditorium. However, it didn't rain, so we had the procession any way. So, we walked through the narrow streets of Guanajuato listening to songs such as "Ay Ay Ay Ay", "De Colores", "Besame Mucho", and "Guantanamera". It was a ton of fun! Along the way, they even pointed out some historical buildings and the stories associated with some of the city's plazas.

Today has been a little more subdued. Lance, Nikki (another exchange student living in the house), and I went to Plaza Pozuelos (the mall) to go see a movie and eat dinner. We saw Prince Caspian from the Chronicles of Narnia which was completely in Spanish. It was just okay. I'm not one for movies with long fighting scenes. But anyway, afterwards we went shopping in the Mega (Mexican Wal-Mart type store), and then ate dinner at Subway. Yes, a chicken sandwich with American cheese hit the spot perfectly.

Tomorrow, we are heading on an excursion with our program. First stop is Dolores Hidalgo, which is known as being the birthplace of the Mexican Revolution. In the church in Dolores, Miguel Hidalgo and his amigos hatched the plan to break free of French control. And, yes, I said FRENCH control, not Spanish control. You see, at the time of the Mexican Revolution, Mexico was taking orders from a Spain occupied and controlled from France. Bet you didn't know that! After Dolores, we are heading to San Miguel de Allende. This town is famous for its many artists, many of them American expatriates. I'm a little interested to see how this city operates with the massive number of Americans living there. I shall see! I hope to post pictures at some point on Sunday!

Also, in other news, I have cancelled my trip to Oaxaca on account of protests within the city and still not feeling well. I am extremely disappointed, as I was really looking forward to working with Puente and experiencing the city for an entire month. However, that will have to wait for a different time.

We're Building an Arc

2008-06-11T19:31:00.003-04:00

It's still raining.

I think it has been raining, with maybe a 3 hour break in the middle of the day today, since Monday afternoon. Streets are covered with standing water, the underground tunnels and streets have been flooded, and traffic across the city is at a complete standstill. Someone even died in one of the flooded tunnels last night. Thing's are getting crazy around here. At this rate, I may have to swim back to my house by the time I leave here. Getting here was a feat in itself. I had to wade across quite a few ankle-high, raging rivers.

Other than the rain, everything is still fine around here. I'm not feeling as well today as I did yesterday. I've had a bit more stomach pain than I did. But, I hope this is just my stomach being finnicky and nothing more. Carlos, my literature professor, canceled our next group presentation, so I am thrilled about that. I can now enjoy my Thursday in peace. Tomorrow, we have scheduled a visit to the Don Quijote Museum and a Callejoneada. The Callejoneada is a famous Guanajuato-style street party where people follow musicians in old-world Spanish clothing and drink wine out of flasks that they were given for the occasion. This callejoneada is being organized by our study-abroad organization, so I doubt there will be any alcohol involved. I am interested to see how it is like.

So, it's hump day. It's been a quick week in some respects, but a long one in others. I am missing being at home with everyone, but I am having a great time here. I'm 1/3 of the way through my whole trip, which is hard to believe.

Thanks for all of your comments and I hope that you all will continue to do so! Have a wonderful rest of the week!

A Rainy Day in Guanajuato

2008-06-11T00:57:00.002-04:00

Indeed, it has been a very rainy day here in Guanajuato. It was overcast and cool this morning when I left for school, and it has progressively gotten worse. By the time lunch came around, the rain started coming down in sheets. The sky looked ominous enough for us to catch a cab home. As soon as we entered the door, the rain started with fury. Yes, it was that hard. We even had a good amount of water rush into the house.

On another note, it has been a rather sad night around here. Queta got a call earlier today that her mother had been put in the hospital for some type of infection. We know her mother because she came to Guanajuato from Salamanca (an hour away) to take care of us the last time that Queta had to go to Leon for the day. She is a very, very kind lady. So, I think things took a turn for the worse this evening and the whole family went to the hospital in Salamanca. That meant that all 5 of us students living in the house had to fend for ourselves for supper. We went down to the store in Plaza Embajadoras to buy some pasta and ingredients to make pasta with tomato sauce. Well, we succeeded and the pasta was actually pretty good! The best thing is that the whole meal cost 3 bucks. That's a big portion of pasta for all 5 of us for just 3 bucks! I love this country.

I now find myself sitting in the living room, waiting for the family to come home. It's raining really hard outside and I hope they make it home safely. Lance and I are staying by the door because we have had to lock it ... in a way where it can only be opened from the inside. There's a little bar that we pull across the doors so that they can't be opened at all from the outside. They mostly do that when they go to bed for security reasons. However, we have had to do it today because the dogs have been pushing the doors open and coming into the house. So, it may be a long night waiting for them to get home.

On another note, I feel much better today. I think the food poising is gone for now. However, you never know if it will resurface. I surely hope not. I hope that medicine that I took in 4 painful shots will be strong enough to kill everything. We'll just have to wait and see.

Ouch!

2008-06-10T00:23:00.006-04:00

As you well know, from reading my last blog post, Lance and I have been dealing with a bout of food poisoning caused by Domino's Pizza. It has been quite the adventure, so why don't I just chronicle it for you.

It all started on Saturday. We finished our trip to Valenciana and headed to Domino's in Plaza de la Paz. Lance and I were both excited about having a good pizza. We both ate our own personal pan pizzas and left. Both of us felt a little iffy right after eating, but we assumed it was just that "Wow! I ate too much!" feeling. We went on to the mall to catch a movie and then went home. Soon after getting home, Lance became quite acquainted with the bathroom. Later that night, so did I. The only thing, however, is that I was dealing with high fever. I was freezing cold when I went to bed, so I put on my sleep pants and a sweatshirt. Three hours later, I was hot and had uncontrollable shaking. I cannot ever remember feeling that bad ... being hot, sweaty, and unable to control the movements of my body.

Morning came and Lance and I still felt horrible. Queta (our host Mom) told us that she would take us to a doctor if we needed to go. After we told her what we experienced during the night, she said that going to the doctor would be the best idea. So, we got ready and went out on a rainy Sunday morning to the hospital. Believe it or not, the hospital is right next door to Domino's in Plaza de la Paz. We waited just a few moments and Dr. Lucero Gonzales saw us. All three of us (Lance, Queta, and me) went into the exam room and the doctor took a look at us. He asked us all sorts of questions and listened to our stomaches. He then diagnosed both of us with a Gastrointestinal Infection. I must say, he was a very good doctor. Polite, patient (and we needed patience with our Spanish), and very very thorough. The best part was that seeing him only cost $20.00.

So, Dr. Lucero Gonzales typed out our prescription on his old style, non-electric typewriter and we went off to the pharmacy. We had to buy 4 doses of an injectable antibiotic, 4 syringes with needles, a stomach calming medicine, Dramamine, and a fever reducing medicine. All in all, it cost about $90.00. So, after we got done at the pharmacy, we headed back to the hospital and went to the nurses station to get our shot. So, she took the syringe and vile that I bought and then proceeded to give me the shot...in the rear end. It was very painful.

What was also painful was our shot that night. Queta also happens to be an ex-nurse, so she gave us the shots. While she is a good shot giver, her shots seem to last longer than the nurses'. So, after our shot that night, we went to bed. The next morning, we left the house and went directly to the hospital for our third shot. By the time we got to the university for class, we were barely able to sit. My bottom was (and is) incredibly sore! We came back to the house tonight, just to have Queta inject us with our fourth and final shot. Yes, it hurt and it is still hurting. I don't know how I'm going to sleep because BOTH sides of my bottom hurt.

I am happy to report, however, that I have felt much better today. Very little nastiness still remains. Hopefully, tomorrow will be even better. Through research, I have narrowed it down as to what caused our illness. I can't find anywhere that says that the drug we are using is used for run of the mill Botulism. However, I know it is used for things like Salmonella and E. Coli. Based on what I've read about unclean food here in Mexico, I think Salmonella is the most likely culprit. Thankfully, this medicine is really strong and should get rid of it.

I must say, I have been very impressed with what I have seen of the Mexican medical system. Cheap, clean, efficient, and quality. I am not happy, however, about the immense number of shots that I have had to receive...

Oh. And did I mention that I have seen 3 scorpions in my room within the past hour. Two of them have been in or on my bed! Just a nice thought to leave you with.

The Water's Fine ... Just Don't Eat the Pizza

2008-06-08T13:51:00.005-04:00

So, as I'm writing this post, I am laying in my bed nursing a nice little gastronomical infection. Yep, that's right! Food poisoning. Lance and I started feeling ill last night and eventually went to the hospital this morning to see a doctor. He told us that we had food poisoning and gave us a boatload of medicine to take. The best part is that we have to get 4 shots of an antibiotic! We had the first one this morning and my rear end is a bit sore. The next one comes at about 10:00 tonight. Yay. Believe it or not, the cause is believed to be pizza from Domino's. Oh well ... I guess I won't be eating there for a while.

However, before we got sick, we were having a great day! We left early in the morning to go to the Mummy Museum. That place was just disgusting. You would think that the mummies would be old, say from the time of the Aztecs. Oh no! They are anywhere from 100 to 30 years old! Gross! Just look for yourself.

After that, the depression continued. We went to Hacienda del Cochero which was used for torturing enemies of the Spanish colonial government. It was pretty, however.

After the torture house, we went to the mining town of Valenciana. There, we toured an old silver mine and saw a beautiful church.

Once we returned to Guanajuato, Lance and I headed to Domino's (aka Bad Food Central)in Plaza de la Paz before going to the mall to look around and see a movie. We shopped around in "Mega" which is like a Mexican WalMart Supercenter. After poking around in there, we headed to the theater upstairs and saw "What happens in Vegas..." COMPLETELY in Spanish. I was proud of myself because I could understand it! Woop woop!

Okay, so now its back to my liquid food diet and bed rest. My, this is a wonderful start to the week. It can only get better from here!

Un Poquito de Estres

2008-06-06T20:09:00.002-04:00

Wow! I had no idea that life in Mexico could be so stressful. Heck, I didn't even know stress was a known concept here. We had to give our presentations today. Now, I'm pretty decent with one-on-one Spanish conversation. However, if you add giving a presentation to 30 other people, things get a bit complicated. I stumbled across a few words and I'm sure I was incomprehensible for a few points. However, compared to many others in our class, I think I did pretty well.

One girl's presentation went something like this:
"Like, voy a hablar sobre ummm the Aztecas. Ellos fue like un gran pueblo and un like powerhouse as well."

I'm proud to say that my part was ENTIRELY in Spanish. Thank you, very much.

So, Queta is out on the town today. She had tons of work to do interviewing people and writing stories for the next edition of her newspaper. On her way home, she is picking up a new exchange student from a different program. It will be nice to have another student here in the house. She is leaving the same day as us, so we will have a friend for the duration. We're hoping we get to introduce her to Bagel Cafetin this evening.

So, that's the news and notes from El Bajio (another name for Guanajuato). I know, nothing too exciting. Just school work and a new student. We're heading to Valenciana and the mummy museum tomorrow, so I will have some exciting news for you soon.

See ya! Que tengan un buen fin de semana. And, no, I'm not translating.

Sweet Revenge

2008-06-06T00:05:00.003-04:00

Finally, my day of revenge has come. This morning, within the span of just 20 minutes, I had the opportunity to wash a dead scorpion down the drain and I kill another myself. I think he was attached to my suitcase and fell off when I set it on the ground. The shoe was quickly applied and he (or she) is now in scorpion heaven. I even took a picture for you.

In other news from the Land of Frogs (that would be Guanajuato), today was a rushed day. We went to school and later visited Diego Rivera's house. That was a pretty interesting museum. Diego and Frida where a strange couple. Anyway, after our little adventure, our attention turned to schoolwork. Our essays and projects are due tomorrow, so we had to rush to get everything done. As of 11:15 PM, our presentation is still not done. However, my essay has been completed and I even had it looked over by my grammar professor. We spent about 3 hours tonight in Bagel Cefetin (our favorite cafe) doing our homework. We like to take advantage of their free WiFi. Everytime we go in there, we like it more and more. Bere, the owner, is incredibly nice. A few of the regular customers came in around 9:00 PM and remarked that there were actually "good looking men" inside. I guess I should take the compliment. So, Bere took pictures of us working and they will most likely end up on their website soon. If you are ever in Guanajuato, you MUST stop by! It's great!

So, we are about to write off another week of school here in Guanajuato. It's a little stressful having all of this stuff due at once, but I'm enjoying every minute of it. This weekend is going to be fun as we are going on a tour of Valenciana, a mining town in the mountains surrounding Guanajuato, and exploring several of the museums around town. Of course, I'll take plenty of pictures and will report back regularly.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Feels Like School

2008-06-04T22:44:00.000-04:00

Before I go into details about what's going on in class, let me fill you in on what I'm experiencing at the moment. I'm sitting on my bed, next to an open window. Someone down the hill is playing the violin, there's a soccer game in progress just below our house (which is strange because the big Mexico vs. Argentina game starts in 20 minutes), someone around is playing strange 80s music, dogs all around the neighborhood are barking, and the neighbors are burning a fire. Oh, and we have a crying two year old in our house. Sensory overload, you might say? I say no. I think it is simply amazing that you can be in one place and experience all of these things. Literally, I am sitting on my bed and I can see or hear every one of these things.

But anyway, it is now starting to feel like I'm in the middle of a semester. I have a paper (which I have finished EARLY ... go me!) and a presentation due on Friday. Next week, I have another paper and presentation due as well. On top of that, I have a grammar class to think about ... but it's an afterthought at this point. So, to put it plainly, I am extremely busy and I have too much to do! But, come three weeks and I will have no more schoolwork until August!

When that time comes, though, it will be bittersweet. I will say good riddance to schoolwork, however, I will certainly miss the lifestyle here. I love not having to be anywhere until 11 AM. I love being able to pass the time at a cafe, watching the people go by and striking up interesting conversations with the owners. I love all the little plazas and their different personalities. I could definitely see myself living here ... even more so than Oaxaca. Don't get me wrong, I'll take Oaxaca too.

So, as a general status update, I'm doing very well! I'm still enjoying muyself immensely and I think all of you should hop on the next plane down here and visit me! But, call me first so I can make arrangements!

I've Been Scorpioned

2008-06-03T00:14:00.004-04:00

Well, my friends, I had my first physical contact with a scorpion today. As I was getting out of the shower today, I stepped on something that squirmed beneath my feet and I immediately jumped. A sizable scorpion (about the size of a baby crawfish) scurried as fast as it could away from me. I was able to use the little stool beneath the sink to kill it. So, that’s how my day began … with an enormous scare. And, no, it didn’t sting me. How? I have no idea.

School was pretty normal today. In grammar, we are still reviewing the subjective tense and in literature we are beginning to talk about the Mexican Conquest. I find the history of Mexico extremely fascinating. If you thought our history in the United States was extremely violent and turbulent, you have got to see what these people have been through throughout the years. Bloody civil conflicts, dictatorships, political corruption, death squads … you name it, they’ve had it. I think it’s extremely interesting to look at the Mexico of yesteryear and compare it to today’s Mexico. Modern Mexico began as a very strong Aztec empire. It was thought that Tenotchtitlan (now Mexico City) was one of the most scientifically advanced and well planned cities of it’s time. The Aztecs reined over people and land all the way from Central Mexico all through Central America. Then came the Spanish, who defeated the great Aztec empire and killed off an astonishing number of people. As a matter of fact, it is believed that the population of Aztecs went from near 25 million at the time of Colon’s (NOT Columbus … that was NOT his name!) arrival to 6 million only 30 years later. War and disease were the main culprits. Out of this ruined civilization has risen a relatively prosperous country. Sure, they have problems, and they tend to me much harsher than their more developed peers. However, when you take into account all that this country has been through, they are doing incredibly well. You can compare the problems of Mexico’s history to the problems throughout the history of African nations. Yet, in Mexico, prosperity has ruled whereas in Africa disparity has gained an awful grip. Even democracy has taken hold here, although it just really arrived 8 years ago. More on Mexican democracy later…

But, back to what I did today… this evening we went to our newly found favorite café, Bagel Cafetin. The lady that runs it, Bere, is extremely nice and even struck up a conversation with us. I think we will be returning quite frequently. I had a bagel sandwich with 4 cheeses today and it was heavenly. Not to mention the lemonade … yum!

This is going to be an extremely busy week. I have a paper and a presentation due by the end of it. And, yes, both of them have to be completely in Spanish. I’m curious to see how I will do on my first true Spanish paper. Anyway, that’s all for today! Hope everyone’s week got off to a great start!

Dormingo

2008-06-01T20:21:00.004-04:00

Yes, I know what's going through your head. "Dormingo?" Well, its a word that was created by Lance's and my host family to describe Sundays (or, in Spanish, Domingos). It's a mix between the Spanish word for sleep (dormir) and Sunday (Domingo). Hence, you get "Dormingo." This family uses Sunday as their sleeping day. That's exactly the type of day we have had. We woke up at 10, at a HUGE breakfast at around 10:30, went to a cafe to do our homework, came back around 4 for lunch (it was Domino's!), and now we are just laying about and writing blog posts. This is exactly my kind of day!

We really deserve a slow day after the week we have had. From waking up at odd hours for fights and excursions, from being in class for 4 straight hours every day, to thinking and speaking in Spanish all of the time, we are exhausted! We are especially exhausted today after waking up at 4:45 AM yesterday for a trip to Teotihuacan, the ancient Aztec ruins just outside of Mexico City.

We left el Jardin Cantador just shy of 5:45 for the nearly 5 hour trip to Teotihucan, which is located pretty much in the suburbs of Mexico City in el Estado de Mexico. We arrived there around 10:00 and toured around until 3:00 PM. The place is incredible. If you have ever seen a postcard with pictures of pyramids in Mexico on it, they were most likely from here. These are the most excellently excavated ruins in all of Mexico. We spent the day listening to our professor Carlos tell us all about the pyramids and we explored on our own. We even climbed to the huge Pyramid of the Sun! I can't really do them justice in words, so you will have to go over to my photo page and look for yourself. I will post them in a special section called "Teotihuacan."

As this first week comes to a close, I can't even begin to tell you how much I am enjoying this. Yes, it is hard being away from home. First and foremost, I find being away from my family is the hardest. A distant second is the organization and cleanliness of American life. However, the beauty of both the city and the people here make this distance easier to overcome. Not to mention the food. We'll not even go there about how many calories I'm consuming per meal...

Anyway, tomorrow begins another week and I can't wait to get it started! Stay tuned for details! (And, yes, the week in Latin America begins on Monday and ends on Sunday. Okie dokie?)

It Keeps Getting Better!

2008-05-30T22:53:00.003-04:00

As usual, today has been a wonderful day! I will spell it all out for you. However, I must tell you that I am currently watching Braves baseball on ESPN in Espanol. It is rather interesting watching the Braves in Spanish. So, if random words appear during my post that is why.

So, this morning started out with our morning exercise routine. No, we didn’t do exercises, but heard the lady lead them over the intercom from the elementary school. Then came breakfast. Queta and Julio spent almost all day yesterday in Leon and didn’t return until late at night, so Queta’s mom came up here from Salamanca (1.5 hours away) to watch all of us and ensure that we had food. She’s the typical Mexican grandmother, always cooking for and spoiling the kids. She called us “mis reyes” or “my kings.” That’s not too untypical of a pet name … Paula is “mi reina” or “my queen.” But anyway, I had a nice breakfast of a quesadilla with turkey ham. It was an interesting flavor, but very tolerable. After that, we headed to school.

Darn! They just lost in extra innings!

Grammar was really fun today! We spent the first hour practicing the subjunctive tense. By the way, this us the 100th time that I have reviewed the subjunctive. Anyway, after the break we played a game similar to charades. Actually, it was more like a mixture of Pictonary and charades. But, when it was my turn, we got no points at all. Let’s just say that I can’t draw work a flip. After that fun game, we had cake! Two people in our class had birthdays, so Alma (our program director) brought cake for the entire class. The catch was that the two birthday people had their faces pushed into the cake by Alma herself. We then had our literature class, which was spent discussing the poems of the Poet King. His name started with an N and I can’t even begin to pronounce it.

After school, we headed back to the house for lunch. Then, we rested before heading back out. We went down into the center of the city and discovered a new plaza. It’s called Plaza San Fernando and it is huge and quiet. Finding a quiet place in this town is a feat. However, San Fernando seems just about perfect. There are tons of cafes all around and even a nice little French place. The odd thing about the French place is that it is a buffet and it is cheap. They sell food by the kilo. After making this awesome discovery, we met up with a friend and walked a little bit around. We went to a bakery where we went absolutely crazy. We got a whole tray full of baked goods … easily 3 pounds worth. And the price? 30 pesos! That’s slightly less than 3 dollars!! I love this town.

And, finally, we can’t come back to the house before stopping at a café. We went to Café Santo, which is this awesome café that is on a little bridge over a street. It’s for sure the coolest café in the city. I had a lemonade (Mexican style with mineral water) and a crepe with cajeta. Cajeta, for those of you who do not know, is caramel that is made from goat’s milk. It was awesome! I got a crepe and lemonade, Lance got a crepe and pineapple juice, and we only spent $8 in total!

So, the moral of this story: come to Mexico and eat amazing food for pennies … literally.

Tomorrow, we are off to Teotihuacan which is one of the most amazing sets of indigenous ruins left in Mexico. We have to be at the Jardin Cantador at 5:30 in the morning! The bus leaves at 5:40, with or without us. Teotihuacan is located in the State of Mexico, just to the west of Mexico City, so it will be a rather long day trip. But, I’m looking forward to it! Yay!!

Oh, and I have posted new photos. Be sure the check them out! We also saw a parade today and there are some awesome pictures from that. Hasta luego!

"Uno, Dos, Tres, Cuatro, Cinco, YA!"

2008-05-29T00:33:00.004-04:00

UPDATE: No, I did not have a decapitating cold. That would be horrible. What I did have, however, was a cold that was not incapacitating. Sorry for the confusion. And, yes, I know the difference.

Wow! That’s really the only way I can describe the time I am having here. The city is too beautiful to describe. The pictures that I have posted or one that you can find elsewhere simply do not do it justice. You just have to see to believe. Now, I know I’ve told you that Oaxaca is beautiful beyond words as well. Guanajuato, however, is even more so in my humble opinion … which means nothing. On the other hand, I will say that Oaxaca has Guanajuato beat in terms of culture. You simply cannot find a place with a more diverse set of cultures than Oaxaca. But, oh well!

Today, as all 3 days have, started with me listening to a lady yelling exercises into a intercom system at the school just down the street. “Uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, YA!”She says that about 10,000 times … at 7:45 in the morning. Today, however, we added to the mix and heard a man saying something while playing retro songs like “Staying Alive” and “YMCA.” I woke up feeling a little better than I did yesterday. I think I may have caught the little cold that Paula has been dealing with for the past few days. Although I’m still not 100%, I feel much better. Thankfully, its not one of those INCAPACITATING colds.

School was a little bit different today. Our grammar class was cut short because we had an ”intercambio” with a Mexican student. That means that a few of us American students were assigned to Mexican students. Jade (a fellow study abroad student from Florida) and I were assigned to a girl who has just been studying English for about 6 months. We spoke for the first little bit in Spanish and then switched to English. For only studying 6 months, she spoke very well! We had to help her in Spanish just a little, but she was pretty competent in English. We started explaining to her what a Southern accent was and she got lost. On the other hand, Lance’s student invited us to her home. We’ll see how that goes.

In other news from Guanajuato, Lance and I are enjoying the café scene here. There are countless cafes around the city and we have made a point of going to them. Today, we tried out Bagel Cafetin. It’s on the way to school. Tonight (and last night) we went to Café Atrio, which is near the university. Cafes are a great place in Guanajuato to meet up with friends, do homework, or just sit down and take in what is happening in front of you.

Now, as I’m writing this, the wind is blowing extremely hard. I seriously think the tree outside my window is going to fall and land on me. Hopefully there will not be scorpions in it. Eww.

¡Hasta mañana, gente!

Escorpiones

2008-05-27T17:50:00.002-04:00

That's the Spanish word for scorpions. I just had lunch a few minutes ago (and yes, they eat lunch between 2-4 here) and we had a nice little conversation about scorpions. I had read, and overheard other people's conversations, about the many scorpions that call Guanajuato home. During the rainy season, which is starting now, they like to come inside to get a little cozier. One of the teachers at the university said that most likely, our families will tell us that scorpions are not a big problem in the house. So, I decided to ask Enriqueta about her assessment of the scorpion situation in this house. The answer I got was surprising. She's like "oh yeah, we kill one almost everyday." So now, I am officially paranoid. I will be shaking out my shoes and checking my sheets before I go to bed every night.

As for the rest of today, it has gone pretty well! Our classes started at 11 (how cool is that?) and we came back home for lunch. I just a little bit, we are going to head out and shop for my cell phone. We may even see a show tonight at el Teatro Principal. We'll see how that goes. I'll let you know if we do anything exciting. Lance and I are still pretty exhausted. It takes a lot of energy to get accustomed to the high altitude AND to speaking Spanish 24/7. Although, I will admit that Lance and I cheat when we are walking to school and nobody can hear us. Shhh...

Also, I have posted just a few pictures of my trip thus far. You can find them by clicking on the link to my photo page.

Hasta luego!

First Day in Guanajuato

2008-05-27T00:15:00.002-04:00

So, today was my first day in Guanajuato. I will just say now that it was both amazing and exhausting.

First of all, let me lament about the streets here. First and foremost, you never walk on a street or path that is flat. You are always walking up or down. On top of that, the sidewalks are big enough to fit one foot. So, you may have one foot up on the sidewalk and the other on the street, just inches from tires of big, huge buses. However, the narrowness of the streets adds to the charm of the city, which has a very European flair. It is very evident in the Jardín Union (Union Garden) where you can see endless sidewalk cafes around a little plaza.

As for our homestay arrangements, we are living with a terrific family. Julio and Enriqueta are the parents, and they have two children Paula (7) and Cesar (2). They are both incredibly sweet. Paula has a serious affection for pizza flavored Goldfish. In fact, she has nearly depleted his stash. Every hour, or so, that we are home she comes into our room and holds out her hand. She then leaves to eat them in peace, and then comes back a good bit later to thank him. As for the parents, they live very busy lives. Julio works for the state government, promoting business ties and economic development. His job is about 40 minutes away in the city of Irapuato, which is the second largest city in the state. So, he leaves around 8 AM and comes back around 8 PM. Enriqueta, on the other hand, works from the house. She is a journalist and is the principal editor of a newspaper here in town. She works hard and, on top of that, cooks meals for us. I truly could not have asked for a better family.

Today was our first day of school. Yes, we just arrived here yesterday. We certainly hit the ground running, as they say. We woke up around 7 and then had breakfast in the kitchen. It was a wonderful breakfast of yogurt, toast, apples, and mango. Maybe I was just extremely hungry, but it was delicious! We then had to be at the university at 9:00 for orientation. Since we had no idea where we were going, Enriqueta accompanied us. We ran a little short on time, so we had our first experience on Guanajuato’s public transportation system. It was awesome! The bus was clean, it had seats, and it dropped us off right in front of our building! After out orientation session, we began our classes. Lance and I are taking advanced grammar and Mexican literature. Both of the professors are extremely nice and relatively easy to understand. After class, we hit a little snafu. Enriqueta told us to meet her in front of the Teatro Juarez (Juarez Theater) at 3:00. What we didn’t know was that the director of the program told her that she was to pick us up at the university. So, when we weren’t at the university, she sent Ide (the domestic worker) down to the Teatro Juarez to find us. After we returned to the house, we enjoyed an amazing lunch of chicken enchiladas and pasta alfredo. While it wasn’t a combination that I would have imagined, it worked very well. El Azteca should start serving pasta alfredo as a side dish. It goes well with spicy chicken enchiladas.

As if all of the above activity were not enough, we then returned to the Centro (downtown) to meet people from our program for a tour around the city. We visited many of the important sights, including the huge statue that you can see from all around the city. It was fun, but it seems like it turned into the bar hopping tour. All of the best bars were pointed out by our student tour guide, and she gave us information about the best beers and price specials. While I really do appreciate the gesture, I most likely will not be taking advantage of the 1,000,000 beers for $2 special.

That brings me to now, where I am sitting on my bed writing this blog post. I just finished my homework for tonight, reading two pages of an Aztec creation myth. I understood just a little of it, but not too much. I guess it will become more clear in class tomorrow.

Pues, esta es mi cuento de lo que paso hoy. Era un día fantástico y espero que el día de mañana vaya a ser tan bueno. Estoy bien cansado y me parece que voy a dormir ahorita. ¡Horale! ¡No sabia que todavía son las 11 de la noche! Por ahora, hasta luego! Que descansen todos.

(So, this is the story of what happened today. It was a fantastic day and I hope that tomorrow will be just as good. I am pretty tired and I think that I am going to go to bed now. My goodness! I didn’t know it was 11 o’clock already! Bye for now. I hope everyone gets some rest!) … by the end of this summer, you should be able to read the above paragraph without translation 

En Route to Mexico

2008-05-25T09:35:00.000-04:00

Well, the day has come! It's 6:35 AM an my plane is taking off for Mexico as I speak. I hope I will be able to find an internet cafe or something to give you an update once I get there, but it may be a day or two.

Until then, feel free to leave messages on this blog by adding a comment. You can also email me with any questions, comments, or concerns at taylorgoesglobal@gmail.com

See you soon!

So, Here it Goes!

2008-05-24T16:35:00.003-04:00

I'm all packed up. With the exception of a shirt that is currently enduring the rinse cycle, I am all set to go. My suitcases are by the door, my room is completely packed up in boxes and in the back of a smelly cargo van, and I've mentally checked out of the ATL. This will be an interesting journey. Spending two months in a foreign country and returning to a completely new home is how it's going to roll this summer.

So, I'm off to the airport in just 12 hours. Yes, its going to be a short, short night. The next post you'll see from me will be from Guanajuato. See you there!

Oaxaca Linda

2008-05-21T20:07:00.003-04:00

I'm packing up my bags, getting ready to go to Guanajuato on Sunday. I had a bit of a heart attack this morning when I heard a report on FOX News mention that American Airlines is going to begin charging $15 to check just ONE BAG! However, I called American and my fears have been eased. I can now take two bags, 50 lbs. each, free of charge. Hip hip hooray!

In other news from Taylor...

After getting caught within the midst of protests in Oaxaca two years ago, I'm always keeping an eye on the news there. Thankfully, there have not been any serious problems since los federales (or the Mexican Federal Police) came into Oaxaca and restored order in early 2007. Now, on the national scene, there has been quite a bit of turmoil. Many hot button issues are now being hotly debated both in Mexico City and in the rest of the country. Among them are judicial reform, electoral reform, and the privatization of the government owned oil company, Petroleos Mexicanos or PEMEX. The debate over PEMEX has sparked a demonstration or two in Oaxaca, however, things don't seem to be getting out of hand.

I tell you all of this because I was doing a news search about Oaxaca, and I had a pleasant surprise make itself apparent. Instead of finding a story about how violent Southern Mexico is or how many top police officers have been assassinated, I found an article and slide show singing the praises of Oaxaca. The New York times has put together an amazing slide show and story about the city. If you want to get a preview of what I will be returning to, take a look! CLICK HERE for the article. CLICK HERE for the slide show.

Well, it's off to packing again. I guarantee I will be doing this up until the time I leave. I'm an OCD packer. I can't help myself.

Seems Familiar!

2008-05-20T13:40:00.000-04:00

I'm flying to Mexico on American Airlines. This commercial is eerily similar to my last experience on American. Take a look.

Yes, I Have a Family!

2008-05-19T21:25:00.001-04:00

Imagine, if you will, me sitting at my kitchen counter with a clear view of the mailbox, anxiously awaiting the arrival of the mail lady. Every car that passed by grabbed my attention. This was me earlier today. Why might I be so anxious for the mail? Well, I was informed that the information regarding my host family and other important things would be arriving early this week. Well, it did!

I can't tell you how excited I am about my host family. First of all, the mother of the family is one of the editors of a local newspaper in Guanajuato. Also, the father of the family works for the Guanajuato state government. They have two children, a girl who is 4 and a boy who is just 1 year old. They live in a house that has 6 bedroooms and it is extremely close to the center of the city and only a 5 minute walk from the university! This seems like a perfect fit! Oh, and did I mention that Lance an I will BOTH be staying there? Yep! That makes the whole deal even sweeter!

I still have no idea which classes I will be taking. I just hope that I will be in the advanced classes. If not, we may have a bit of a problem! I'm sure everything will work out the way it is supposed to be. That is, everything will fall into place once I actually get myself ready to go and get down there. As of this moment, my suitcases remain unpacked. I'm too busy packing up my room for the move. And, yes, we are moving out of our current house. But don't worry, I'm just moving to somewhere else around Atlanta! No bigee! However, my new house and surroundings will be a surprise to me when I get back to the US in July.

Okay, I think I have said enough for tonight. I better get my room into a livable state before it gets too late. And I have to be at school all day tomorrow to prepare for MVPS's first graduation.

I will talk to y'all later!

Looking Ahead: My Goals for Mexico

2008-05-12T20:08:00.000-04:00

As you all know by now, from reading my bog, I will be spending two months down in Mexico. One will be spent studying Spanish at the university in Guanajuato and the other will be spent doing an internship / volunteer stint at a non-governmental organization in Oaxaca. Learning opportunities are sure to abound. So, below I have listed some goals for this experience. I promise that I will update you on my progress of these goals throughout the trip.

1) Improve upon my Spanish. Now, this seems like an obvious goal. What student goes down to Mexico without this goal in mind? However, it seems as if I have come to a Spanish learning plateau. This past semester, I had my first formal Spanish class in nearly two years. I think I knocked off some rust. However, I found that I was relearning many of the things I learned back in high school (subjunctive, etc.). Now, it is my hope to retain these newly relearned Spanish skills and improve upon them. My wish is to sound more like a fluent Spanish speaker and be able to understand others better.

2) Gain more independence. This will definitely be a test of independence. I have never before spent two whole months away from home. I will have to do everything myself. At least for the last month, there won’t even be a roommate around to make sure that I am doing what I am supposed to be doing. This will be a good exercise in independent living. It’s scary to think that this concept is just 1.5 years down the road.

3) Gain a sense of professionalism. Perhaps this is something that’s more for polishing than for development. I have worked for almost two years now, and I know how to act and what to do in an office setting. However, I am entering new territory and will have to develop new working relationships. I think this will be good practice for diving into the working world once I graduate.

4) Be more open minded. Now, I’m a pretty open minded fellow. However, I mean this in a gastronomical sense. I am the world’s worst picky eater. I planned on being less choosey about my food when I was in Korea, but that food was just too hard to handle for me. In Mexico, however, the food is slightly more familiar and not has hard on the stomach, believe it or not. So, I want to have the ability to try anything and everything. If I find out I don’t like it, so be it. I can’t definitively say, for certain, unless I have tried it!

5) Dispel the myth about the ‘Ugly American’. It really saddens me that we have this reputation around the world. I hope that I can show people that many of us Americans are actually open minded people who want to learn about other cultures. I think we are less ethno-centric than what the rest of the world gives us credit. Additionally, it is my hope that fellow American’s not act in this way. Especially with regard to language. If I hear another American down in Mexico remark about the inability of Mexicans to speak English, I’m going to scream. We’re in MEXICO! Speak SPANISH! Don’t we ask the same of our foreigners in the US?

I leave in less than two weeks! Yay!!!!

Fancy Some Down Under?

2008-05-10T21:41:00.002-04:00

If you get a little sick of all of my stories about Mexico in the weeks to come, why don't you check out what my friend is up to Down Under? Jordan is a great friend of mine who I have known since I was a baby. He is heading to New Zealand, Australia, and Fiji for about 40 days! His pictures are bound to be amazing, so do yourself a favor and look at the pictures, salivate over your keyboard, and book your trip down there! Just click here to see Jordan's photos.

Hey! Look! It's Me!

2008-05-06T16:24:00.002-04:00

Dr. Taylor, my academic advisor at Berry College, was nice enough to think of me when it came to be her turn to choose someone for the "Student Spotlight." So, you can now read all about me on the homepage of Berry's Evans School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences. So, take a look!

The 20 Day Jitters

2008-05-04T15:32:00.000-04:00

Can you imagine the misery? I'm smack in the middle of final exams and my summer vacation begins in just two days. Between now and Tuesday morning, I have four exams. British Literature, Geology, Spanish, and Comparative Politics must all be done before that time comes around. Allow me to say that I am only ready for one of those three. Well, there's always caffeine and midnight studying.

Anywho, Lance and I are 20 days out before beginning our trip to Mexico. I absolutely cannot wait! If I were to leave tomorrow morning, I would be ecstatic. Although I am am excited beyond belief, I am also a bit apprehensive. I still have no idea who I will be living with. I assume that I will be living with Lance, but in who's house I have no idea. I still don't exactly know which courses I am taking. Also, I'm not exactly sure what our itinerary will look like. All I know is that I have done all on my end that I can possibly do. I'm just waiting for the study abroad agency to do their thing. All of this information would be nice to know, but I guess I will just have to wait.

On the other hand, I have been in contact with the people who will be hosting me as their volunteer / intern. I'm still waiting to hear about on which projects I will be working, but everyone seems extremely nice and I cannot wait to get started.

Well, I will keep all of you posted on what happens. The plane leaves bright and early at 6:35 in the morning on 25 May. I will be on it if I can wake up early enough.

Amazing Summer

2008-04-12T20:25:00.001-04:00

During the closing days of the semester, its extremely hard to realize that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. These past few weeks have been traumatic. I can't tell you how many tests and assignments I've had to endure. However, this past week, I have been able to line up a full summer of activities that will blow my socks off. I can't wait! The next 24 days cannot come quick enough. So, here is what I will be doing:

First of all, I will be leaving May 25 for Guanajuato, Mexico. One of my best friends and future roommate, Lance, will be there with me as well. We will spend a month studying Spanish and Mexican Culture at La Universidad de Guanajuato for an entire month. Additionally, we will be staying together with a host family and exploring all that central Mexico has to offer! For those of you who know how much I love Mexico, you can imagine how excited I am about this. I am unusually excited about this because one of my favorite people is coming with me.

But wait! The fun continues!

Even though I will have to deal with the trauma of not having Lance with me, I have lined up a volunteer (quasi-internship) stint with Puente a la Salud Comunitaria in my favorite city of Oaxaca! The organization, whose name in English is Bridge to Community Health, promotes the cultivation and use of amaranth in local villages. Amaranth is a grain that was harvested by the indigenous peoples of Mexico way back when. Puente is striving to resurrect this nutritious grain as a way to stimulate local economies and fend of malnutrition, a chronic problem in rural Mexico.

I seriously cannot wait for this experience to begin! Although I will be spending two months away from home, I can't even begin to imagine all of the things I will learn. I like to consider myself well versed in the culture and ways of Mexico. I have a feeling that I will be pleasantly shocked at how much I still have to learn.

As I did last year, I will be blogging during the entire trip! Check back with this page often! Also, you can check out Lance's and my blog at http://miguelyteo.blogspot.com. That one will most likely include a good number of Spanish posts. Hey! It's a learning experience!

Just FYI ...

2007-10-09T23:35:00.000-04:00

Did you know that I have a new blog? Yep! Its at http://taylorsview.blogspot.com

There, I will be posing my take on things from politics to life to whatever. Nothing is off limits! So, for some off the wall commentary and a view into this strange head of mine, surf on over! Again, its http://taylorsview.blogspot.com

See you there!

PS. I will resume posts on this blog when I once again travel somewhere.

Here We Come!

2007-07-26T20:24:00.000-04:00

Well, this month has flown by extremely fast. It's sad to be leaving all of our new friends here, but we are extremely happy to be coming home! We shall see you on Friday night!

Joint Security Area

2007-07-24T02:05:00.000-04:00

I just returned from our field trip to the Joint Security Area (JSA) within the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and it was, by a long shot, the highlight of my trip. I cannot even begin to explain the whole experience in one blog posting, but I'm sure going to try.

For those of you who don't know, the JSA is the only location along the heavily fortified border between South Korea and North Korea where soldiers of the two nations stand face to face. There are also several buildings right on the border where meetings between North and South take place from time to time.

We started out early this morning (at 7:10 AM) and departed for the JSA in the SWU buses. After about an hour, we came to the entrance of the secured area. A solider boarded our bus and checked the passports of everyone and then allowed us to proceed. We then drove a little farther into the secured area where we encountered another South Korean soldier who checked our passports again. This soldier, however, stayed on our bus was our tour guide. He spoke English extremely well (with near native fluency) and was also very funny...which was a great relief after some of the tour guides that we have had this month.

After boarding a UN Command (UNC) bus, we stopped at a "briefing hall" slightly before the beginning of the JSA where we were briefed about the history and purpose of the JSA. Our guide explained why the border was set up in this way and told us about a few interesting incidents that took place at the JSA. The most notable incident was when two UNC soldiers were axed to death by North Korean soldiers after the UNC decided to chop down a tree that the North Koreans thought their "Dear Leader" had planted. Even though it sounds like cutting down a tree would not be a big deal, it could only take one wrong move to cause a big incident.

The next stop on our tour was the infamous JSA. We got out of the bus and climbed up to the top of an observation tower where we could get a good look at the area. This is where the creepiness began. Almost immediately, North Korean soldiers on the other side of the border appeared and started looking at us through binoculars. Also, North Korean soldiers peered out of one of the buildings (called the "Monkey House" because of the antics of the North Korean soldiers in there) and looked straight up at us. After looking around in the tower for a while, we then went down to one of the buildings straddling the border. Our guide said that this building was used to hold meetings between the North and South on a variety of issues. Along with us in that building were two South Korean soldiers standing at attention. They have a special taekwondo pose that is supposed to intimidate the the soldiers in the North. Our guide told us a little bit about the room and then let us venture around it. He was sure to tell us not to exit the other side of the building as it lead to "Communist North Korea".

While in the room, we were surrounded by North Korean soldiers on three sides. That is a rather creepy feeling! Although they did not peer into the windows, as I had expected, they did constantly watch us from their observation towers and from the stairway at their main building. After seeing the JSA, we were taken to the "Bridge of No Return" where North Korea dropped off a couple thousand POWs and gave them too options: go to the capitalist South or go to the communist North. Whichever they chose was to be permanent and there was no chance to reverse their decision...hence the name.

To me, it is interesting to see this living and breathing conflict in real life. As many are not aware, the Korean War is still occurring. While the two sides are not currently fighting, the war was never ended by a treaty or truce, therefore BOTH Koreas are still in a state of war. Only an armistice was signed to create an extremely fragile peace. It is easy to understand why they say that one false move could lead to an all out war. Quite frankly, its surprising that the hostilities have not resumed given the immense amount of tension that can be felt in that area.

This was quite an eye opening experience and it is one that EVERYONE who comes to Korea must do. Once you see how things are at the DMZ, you can begin to understand the mindset that the South Koreans have towards the North and vice versa.

Shabu Shabu

2007-07-23T12:07:00.000-04:00

Hello everyone! Let me start off by apologizing for my slowness in posting this past week. We have been extremely busy with lectures, group projects, and the dreaded term paper, so it has been hard to find the time to sit down and write a full post. Well, my clothes are in the dryer and I have about an hour of free time ... so here it goes!

It's extremely nice to go to a college, such as Berry, that has a global reach. There are two people here in Seoul who are current Berry students who have been living over here throughout the summer. One lives here every summer while the other is completing an intensive program at another university. We have been lucky enough to meet up with both of them during our stay. This past Saturday, Erin (the Berry student who is doing a program here) and her friend Becky (from Emory) took us out to an AMAZING restaurant. The concept was called "Shabu Shabu" and it was quite tasty. Let me explain...

The meal starts when the server brings a huge pot of broth made from kelp and sets it on a burner in the middle of the table and brings it to a boil. Then, a mixture of vegetables, rice cakes, and fish balls is added and cooked for a few minutes. Once that has been eaten, beef is then cooked in the pot. Since the beef is paper thin, it only takes a few seconds to cook. Once the beef is eaten, noodles are put into the broth. And after that, the server makes a porridge with the remaining broth, rice, eggs, and seaweed. Everything is eaten with an amazing hot sauce! Now, this sounds like something that I would NEVER even consider eating right? Well, since our friends were taking us out and I was extremely hungry and sick of eating just rice, I decided to give it a try. Boy, was I glad that I did! The rice cakes and potatoes during the first part of the meal were superb. Next, the beef (and I never eat beef) was amazing. Then, the noodles were good beyond imagination. The porridge with the seaweed was a little hard to eat at first, but after mixing it with some hot sauce, it turned out to be pretty good. This was by far the BEST meal that I have had in Korea!

Afterwards, we ventured a few subway stops away to find a waffle stand that serves up the best waffles you could possibly imagine. They make a fresh waffle, slather it with honey and icing, and then hand it over to you. It was just amazing! You can also get it with ice cream in the middle, however I heard that the icing was the better choice. The best part about it was the cost...just 600 won! (Thats roughly 60 cents!) I will do my best to imitate this recipe when I get home. It was so tasty that it would be worth visiting Seoul in the future just to get a waffle. Watch a video of the lady preparing waffles. This is actual footage of the actual lady ... its crazy! I have no idea how she does it!

Well, tomorrow we are off to the DMZ. We are going to be going to the place where North and South Korean soldiers meet toe to toe. I am really excited to see this in real life! If I understand correctly, we will be going into the conference room that crosses the border. I will be sure to tell you all about it ASAP.

Oh, and all of us are excited that we are coming home on Friday! We have had a blast here but we are all ready to get back home to see everyone!

Until the next post .... Ciao!

Housekeeping

2007-07-16T12:09:00.000-04:00

Thanks for visiting my blog! I hope you will make this part of your daily web routine.

For those of you who are new to the blog, I would like to extend to you a special welcome! If you decide that you would like to leave a comment (and I LOVE comments :), just click on where it says "comments" and type away! For those of you who have been leaving comments, MANY THANKS!

Also, I am happy to announce a new feature! For those of you who would rather read in Spanish or Korean, you can now just click on the link in the top left corner for a translated version of this blog.

Para todos quien hablan espanol, usted puede leer este blog en espanol! Haz click aqui!

The Homestay

2007-07-15T03:17:00.000-04:00

To say that I was nervous about the homestay part of our program would be an understatement. I was terrified. I was told that we would be staying at a public bath instead of visiting her home. I was very disappointed about not being able to see how Korean people lived in their homes. On top of that, I was not too comfortable about going to a public bath based on things that I heard from other people. Well, luck was on my side and everything turned out fine.

We set off from SWU at about 10 AM and headed to COEX mall to see a movie. First, I ate lunch at Sabarro and got some great pizza. We then saw Oceans 13 and it was pretty good! Afterwards we were treated to some Bingsu, or traditional Korean ice cream. It had tons of good fruit in it and I plan on eating it again in the near future. We then ventured to Seoul Tower. We opted out on the cable car as the line was extremely long. Instead, we walked all the way to the top of the mountain. My legs were REALLY hurting by the time we made it up there. We bought tickets to go to the top and it was awesome! The views were quite amazing.

After spending several hours there, we then decided to go to the public bath. This is when I started freaking out. We got on the subway and then walked to where the public bath was. Then, the good news came! It was closed for remodeling! We then were invited by one of the girls to her house where we were treated like kings. In just a few minutes notice, they found space for us to sleep. They were extremely hospitable and I am grateful for their hospitality. It will be one of the experiences that I remember for the rest of my life.

The home where I stayed was very modest. It was at the back of an alley and on the third floor of a housing unit. It consisted of one small main room with 3 small rooms and a bathroom adjoining the main room. It was very plain and it did not have many luxuries. I could not spot or feel any AC. All of the windows were open and all of the beds were draped by mosquito nets. We were all exhausted, so we slept like rocks.

This morning, we were treated to a delicious breakfast. It looked more like a lunch or dinner to me, however. I am told that Koreans eat just about the same things for all three meals. Breakfast is not a lighter meal here as it is in the west. After a few more hours of socializing and enjoying watermelon, we took the subway back to SWU where I find myself now. All of my friends from Berry should be arriving soon and I hope to hear how their experiences went soon.

GOOD NEWS! I uploaded ALL of the photos from Week 2, so enjoy them by going to my photo page.

Roadtrip!

2007-07-10T20:29:00.000-04:00

We returned last evening from a great road trip down to the town of Gyeongju in the southern part of South Korea. We had an amazing time!

On the way down to Gyeongju, we stopped at the "Korean Folk Village" where we were able to get a glimpse of the traditional Korean life from way back when. They had a village of peasant people and a village for royal people. The buildings were magnificent and the different exhibits were extremely interesting. We had a nice Korean lunch and then we continued on our way to Gyeongju. The only bad part about the folk village was that we only got two hours to explore. We could have spent the whole day there (or even two)!

We arrived at the Hotel Hyundai in Gyeongju early Sunday evening. The hotel was very nice, with one exception. It smelled like someone was pickling kimchi in the hallway. It was the most disgusting smell I have ever smelt. The room, however, was magnificent. All of us were worried about our roommates at first. They told us that they would be assigning us new roommates for that trip. I was lucky and was assigned to a room with Lance and Brandon, one of Lance's suite-mates. All of us Berry people congregated in our room to watch CNN (just about the only English TV channel) and eat some snacks.

The next morning, we ventured to a couple of Buddhist temples around the city. One was on top of a mountain and it was EXTREMELY cold up there. I came prepared with a jacket, however. Most people were taken off guard. We ventured around looking at temples and tombs all day and then returned to the hotel. By the way, the temples were AMAZING! I wish I had some more pictures from the insides of the chapels, however the sign read "taking photography prohibition". Seoul Women's University rented out the nightclub in the hotel for the participants of the BIP so we enjoyed our evening down there.

After our night at the nightclub, we headed for Hyundai Heavy Industries. It is the largest shipyard in the world and it was quite a site to see! I also wish I had photos of this, but we were not allowed to take pictures. We returned to SWU and had a great pizza party! It was great to have pizza because I had not eaten anything except rice for about three days.

Today, we had a taekwando lesson and we got to watch a great Korean movie depicting life on the DMZ. We then headed out to COEX Mall to watch Harry Potter! It was a fun evening!

It's almost 1 AM, so I am going to call it a night. I will be posting pictures at some point tomorrow. Have a great week!

It's Not All About Me

2007-07-07T05:22:00.000-04:00

If you would like to take a look at the blogs of my fellow Berry friends who are in Korea with me, here are the links!

A Northwest Georgian In South Korea - this is the blog of Lance. This is Lance's first time out of the US and he seems to be thoroughly enjoying it.

i cant use chopsticks - here is the blog of Becky. She is an English major so her writing, obviously, is superb!

Nayu in Korea - this is Nayu's blog. She has not found the time to post anything as of yet, but when she does, it will be great! Si usted habla espanol, lee este blog.

Music, Music, and More Music!

2007-07-06T20:25:00.000-04:00

Yesterday (Friday) was music day at the good ole Bahrom International Program here in Korea. We started the day with an awesome lecture on Korean traditional music from a renowned traditional music group. They gave us a wonderful performance using traditional Korean rhythms and beats. They also dressed up in some snazzy traditional costumes. We then got to try our hand at playing the instruments. We all had problems getting the beats down, however we had a great time. When it was time for the BIPers to give their performance, we didn't sound that great. However, it was extremely fun at that is what matters.

Later yesterday evening, we went to the center of Seoul to watch NANTA, a theatrical spectacular that has been running in Seoul since the late 1990s. It takes traditional Korean music and mixes it with a contemporary setting. The premise of the story is that there is a big wedding feast that must be prepared at 6 PM. The time at the beginning of the show is about 4:30. There are three chefs and one mischievous nephew of the boss. They all goof around quite a bit, however they eventually come up with a meal. The entire time, they are using pots, pans, kives, whisks, and any other kitchen thingee you can think of to make music. It's sort of like a Korean version of the musical STOMP, but its different. It is quite possibly one of the best theatrical performances I have ever seen. And believe me, I have seen my fair share of theatre. If you are ever in Seoul, add this to your list of things to do.

Seoul is proving to be quite the destination. I could easily see myself coming back for a vacation here!

Well, tomorrow, we are off the city of Gyeongju. It's in the southern part of Korea. It was the capital of the Silla dynasty in ancient times. We will be doing all sorts of neat things down there, so I am looking forward to it. I am especially looking forward to the 5 Star hotel!!

Grape Juicy, Please!

2007-07-05T11:16:00.000-04:00

Seoul can be a shocking experience. Everything is different here than it is in the United States. The light switches, the elevators, the bathrooms, the customs, the people, everything is different. This throws people into a state of shock when they first arrive. Thankfully, I'm beginning to come out of that shock slowly but surely.

One funny difference between here and home is the language. Koreans speak a language that is completely different than any I have ever heard. Furthermore, their English is a tad lacking. Because of the vast differences between our two languages, Koreans have a hard time grasping our vocabulary and grammar. This leads to some funny translations. For instance, at breakfast every morning we got grape juice out of a bottle that says "Grape Juicy." I eat frosted flakes out of a box that says "Corn Flights". Also, you can find some pretty funny tidbits of wisdom plastered on things. Tidbits such as "Love and cough are hard to hid" and "I think its time to tell you a secret. You are the one who is keeping me warm."

The funniest experience with language came today at lunch when one of the Korean students said my face looks like "poo". I said an awkward "Thank you!" and then I asked some of my friends from Berry what that was all about. We came to the conclusion that she must have meant "Winnie the Pooh". So, I asked her if that is what she meant and she said yes and then looked embarrassed when someone told her the meaning of "poo".

In other news from Seoul, yesterday we visited the Changdeok Palace (click on link for more info). Construction began in 1405 and it still looks as if it were new. It was truly amazing. If you are ever in Seoul, you MUST visit this place! It has a way of bringing far eastern history to life.

We also visited Seoul Tower yesterday, which is Seoul's famous observation tower. It is perched atop a mountain and only accessible by cable car. We took the cable car to the top and enjoyed the view. It's amazing to see how big Seoul is from the air. It is absolutely enormous.

Today, we had a lecture about the Korean language which was interesting. We learned a few key phrases and attempted to learn how to read Hangul, which is the Korean writing system. The man said that a smart person can learn it in one morning and a dumb person can learn it in 10 days. I think I'm among the dumb people.

Later in the afternoon, we visited a pottery museum where we were able to make our very own traditional pottery with the help of a world famous artist. This was, by far, the best thing we have done as of yet. I can't wait until my finished pot arrives!

A NOTE ABOUT PHOTOS: Check out the photo page! It has been updated, however, there are very few pictures from Changdeok and Seoul Tower, as my battery ran out! I will try to get a few more pictures from someone else posted soon!

Have a great day and HAPPY LATE 4th of JULY!

Good Food At Last!

2007-07-03T11:26:00.000-04:00

Since we have arrived here in Seoul, we have been served almost exclusively Korean food. With the exception of the hamburgers for breakfast the other morning, it has all been strictly Korean. Up to this point, I have eaten just rice. But tonight, we went to a great Italian place in the Myeong-dong district of Seoul. Its comprable to Atlanta's Buckhead (but Myeong-dong is much bigger and much better!). I ordered a delicious pasta dish that had a great, slightly spicy red sauce. I may have just been hungry, but it was some of the best pasta in recent memory. I hope we will have the chance to return before we leave at the end of the month. It was great!

We also learned today how to get to Outback Steakhouse and TGI Friday's. I'm sure there will me more great dining experiences ahead. Until we go to one of these places, I will work on trying to like Korean food!

Have a great day!

Hamburgers for Breakfast

2007-07-01T20:01:00.000-04:00

I can't believe it, but I made it! We arrived at Incheon airport at around 5:45 PM Seoul time on July 1st. (That would be 6:45 AM eastern US time.) We then sailed right through immigration and found ourselves in the arrivals area looking for the people from Seoul Women's University to pick us up. Luckily for us, they were right outside the door. Unluckily for us, the bus was located at the complete other end of the airport. So we lugged all of our luggage from one end to the other, arriving at the bus even more exhausted than when we got off the plane. We then settled in for a one hour bus ride to the SWU campus.

Upon arrival, we lugged our luggage to the Bahrom Education Centre. This is the ten story building that we will be living in for the next month. Our dorms, our cafeteria, and our classrooms are all in this building. Next, I promptly went to bed after saying hi to my new roommate, Fabio from Brazil.

The next morning (that would be yesterday), I woke up and went to breakfast. What was on the menu? Well, it was none other than hamburgers. Yes, HAMBURGERS for breakfast. There was also cereal, so I was able to eat at least something. We wondered around the campus for a bit before heading to the opening ceremony where we all had to stand in front of the entire group and introduce ourselves. We then ate cake at the reception.

Last evening, we headed out to a shopping district near the University. We looked around and found some pretty interesting stuff. I haven't bought anything yet, but I definitely found some things that I may want to go back and buy a little later. We also stopped into a little cafe and had a Coke! It was a great evening!

Thus far today, we have had a lecture about issues facing Korea (more on that later) and we had an ice breaking event where we played human bingo and had a scavenger hunt. We are heading to Seoul Tower after dinner, so look for some neat pictures tomorrow!

Check my photo page now to see the latest pictures from Korea.

Have a good day!

Welcome to Seoul!

2007-07-01T08:12:00.000-04:00

Well, we made it! After an exhausting ride, we got to Seoul just about 3 hours ago. I'm going to bed, so I will have to tell you all of the details later. Good night!

The Improved "Taylor Goes Global"

2007-06-27T02:31:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the improved "Taylor Goes Global" blog. I've added a few new futures and I've gained a few more capabilities. All of this done for you, my dear reader.

...Okay so I can't sleep and I'm bored. That is why it got redesigned. But anyway, please check back often as posts from Seoul and beyond begin this week!

Where Am I Going, Again?

2007-06-24T22:03:00.000-04:00

This is a post that I wrote for my travel group's blog. Be sure to add this page to your favorites as well. I will be mainly posting things on 'Taylor Goes Global', however I will contribute to the group blog regularly as well. You can also check out
posts from other BIPers on the group blog. The address is http://berryinkorea.blogspot.com

It's 10:00 PM and I find myself sitting on a seventh floor balcony overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. I have gotten virtually no sleep for the past week and I'm in a bit of a frazzled state. Depressed? Not really. Happy? Definitely no. Horrified? Absolutely. It's less than seven days before my departure to Seoul and I have not even begun to prepare. My suitcases stand empty down in the basement. My shopping list is over a page long. And my brain is not even the least bit prepared for what I'm about to experience.

I'm about to take a giant leap. For starters, I have never been away from my family for more than two weeks. I come home from school every weekend like clockwork and I spend every ounce of spare time with them. The thought of not having my two little brothers around for an entire month is rather traumatic. Being away from the Fearless Leaders (that would be the parents) for a month is also rather scary. Secondly, this will be the first time that I have ever been in a place where I cannot communicate. I have lived my life completely in the realm of English and Spanish speakers. For once, I get to be the one who is clueless. I'm used to making fun of people for being in that situation. I guess my repayment is forthcoming.

I also know very little about where I am going. Being the travel nerd that I am, I am always seeking information about my dream destinations. In fact, I feel quite confident that I could lead you on a complete tour of Buenos Aires or Sydney within 10 minutes of stepping foot in those cities for the first time. Seoul, on the other hand, has never come across my mind as a possible destination. The first time I ever read anything about Seoul was right after I got my acceptance letter. Even after reading two books on Korea from cover to cover, I still feel clueless. I guess the best thing to do is dive right in and figure out everything on the run.

This is going to be an interesting adventure. I am excited beyond belief, but at the same time I am extremely horrified. Between the time I land in Atlanta and then take off again for Seoul by way of Los Angeles, I have about 12 waking hours to get everything in order. In that time, I must do my shopping, pack my bags, and mentally prepare. Will it get done on time? You betcha. Will I still be in one piece by the time I meet everyone at the airport at some ungodly hour? That remains to be seen.

Houston, we have pictures!

2007-06-18T12:09:00.001-04:00

The moment you have all been waiting for has arrived! I have FINALLY been able to load my pictures from Oaxaca and post them to my photo page! Please, please, please take a look! Here is your link: http://picasaweb.google.com/teodoro1188/Oaxaca2007

Stay tuned for information on Korea! It's just around the corner!

Flight History

2007-05-30T13:44:00.000-04:00

I found this neat website that allows you to put in all of your previous flights. After you enter everything in, it calculates some pretty interesting statistics for you. Take a look at mine. I have only been able to insert a fraction of all of my previous flights, but its still pretty neat. The address is http://my.flightmemory.com/teodoro1188

Look for a new posting about my recent trip to Mexico (plus pictures) soon!

Sorry for the delay...

2007-05-18T11:38:00.001-04:00

Okay, so here is the deal. I am having a hard time getting my photos from my camera to my computer. Trust me, I am working dilligently to resolve the probem. I hope to have a few more posts and tons of pictures up by the end of the week. Please, check back often! I promise there will be more to see in the very near future!

Mexican Water

2007-05-08T20:53:00.002-04:00

Have you heard one of those horror stories about how people go to Mexico, eat a salad, drink a Coke with ice, and brush their teeth and end up becoming extremely sick? Well, I have and it made me extremely paranoid about the safety of the water during my first few trips to Mexico.

Guess what I have done this week. I have had 10 gazillion Cokes with ice. I have eaten fruit washed in tap water. I have eaten a Popsicle from a street vendor, and I have brushed my teeth with tap water. What has happened to me? NOTHING!!

According to my friend Emilio (the water expert), state and local governments throughout Mexico have improved the quality of water. Furthermore, in cities like Oaxaca, much (not all) of the tap water is brought in by trucks (they call them pipas) and put into great big tanks. The water that comes from the truck is purified! Amazing stuff, hunh? Let me show you how it works:

1) Emilio fills up the truck at his purification plant (aka purificadora).

2) Emilio drives his truck to his customer´s home or business.

3) Emilio takes the big hose and pumps the water into the big tank.

4) Emilio gets paid.

5) Emilio drives the truck buck.

Now, I would not advise driving down to, say, Michoacan just to drink the water. In fact, I would advise you to stick to the bottled water as much as possible. However, don´t let that paranoia take away from your vacation. Eat from that REPUTABLE street vendor, eat some fruit, have a salad, and don't freak out if you open your mouth in the shower. Enjoy your vacation to one of the most amazingly beautiful nations on earth.

As they say here .... ¡disfrutalo!

Responding To Your Comments

2007-05-08T20:53:00.001-04:00

Thank you so much for your comments! I really appreciate them! Here are responses to some recent comments.

1) Mexican Food

As you might expect, Mexican food is completely different down here than what we are used to in the United States. Chips and Salsa ... forget it! Most meals start off with a soup. My favorite is one called "Sopa de Fideo" which consists of chicken broth, tomato paste, garlic, cilantro, and little noodles. If you add a drop of crushed chile pepper, it is perfect! It is quite possibly my favorite soup ever. The soup(and subsequent main course) is served with fresh tortillas. The tortillas are made with corn, not with flour!! There is a tortilla making place practically next door to the place where I am staying, so we always get delicious tortillas fresh off the tortilla press. Main courses normally consist of a meat and a side item or two. My favorite is "Milanesa de Pollo" which is a very thin chicken breast that is breaded and fried. It tastes a lot like Chick-fil-a´s chicken. Other main courses could be enchiladas with chicken, boiled chiken, flank steak, or beef tacos (always soft and open faced with refried beans, cheese, and guacamole). If you are really adventerous, you can eat things like pigs feet, cow brains, etc. The possibilities are endless. A real "Oaxacan" main course is called "Mole". Its a chicken dish served with a sauce made from chocolate and different spices. It is a very interesting taste! Side items almost always include rice and beans. You could also have something similar to our mashed potatoes (except they make it really runny and add cilantro). Veggies are also served quite often. As for dessert, they rarely serve it after a meal. That does not mean that they do not have amazing sweets, however. My favorite sweet thing is a "churro relleno" that is a churro filled with chocolate, caramel, or a coffe and cream mixture. I love the caramel! Also, they have some of the most amazing pastries that you could ever imagine. Oaxaca is also famous for its hot chocolate. They take raw cocoa and add spices to make a delicious treat.

One interesting thing about authentic Mexican food (at least here in Oaxaca) is that it is not served extremely spicy. Most Mexicans add a nice dallop of crushed chile paste to kick up the spice a bit. So, if you are not a fan of really spicy food, you are in luck!

If there is anything else that you would like to know about Mexican food, please let me know!

2) Then vs. Now.

Oaxaca had a turbulent summer last year. Thousands of disguntled teachers and left-wing rebels (for lack of a better term) set up shop in the Zocalo (main square) and trashed the place beyond recognition. I can tell you from first hand experience that it was filthy. Now, the city of Oaxaca has cleaned it up and it looks better than ever! Click on the links below to compare. (I cannot add photos to the blog from this computer.)

Now: http://www.jornada.unam.mx/viajera/oaxaca/zocalo.jpg
Before: http://www.narconews.com/images/jun14_zocalo_fire.jpg

Please do not hesitate to leave more comments! I would love to answer your question!

NOTE: The spell checker is in Spanish on this computer so its pretty much useless. Rest assured, I will correct any and all errors in grammar and spelling when I return.

So, What has he been doing all this time?

2007-05-08T20:53:00.000-04:00

Wow! What an amazing city! This place continues to amaze me. Just one year ago, it was in the midst of a nasty civil conflict between the state government and the left-wing "APPO" movement. Now, the city is extremely calm. The entire city has banded together to repair the damage caused by the disturbances and it now looks great! Allow me to tell you what has transpired over the past few days.

On Saturday, I arrived here at around 11:00 AM. Now, I know this does not sound like a big deal, however I was able to fly here without stopping in Mexico City! For those of you who have been through Mexico City´s airport, you know how much of a disaster it can be! But, just one quick stop in Houston and I am in Oaxaca! As soon as I got to the house, I went out with my friend Emilio to deliver water. You see, this city is soo old (currently celebrating its 475th anniversary) that many of the houses and business do not have access to tap water from underground pipes. My friend owns a water purification business, so he cleans up the water it takes it to the people. For just three bucks, he will dump a whole truckload of water into your massive tank that you have on your roof! Pretty neat, hunh??

On Sunday, Emilio and I took his dog on a walk around the city. We ended up walking down to the centro historico or Zocalo for breakfast. I had some of the most amazing quesadillas that you can imagine. Afterwards, we climed up cerro fortín which is the big mountain that you can see from wherever you are in the city. Up there, they have a big statue of Benito Juarez watching over all of Oaxaca. Juarez was the first democratically electd president of Mexico and Oaxaca´s favorite son. Later that night, we headed out to the movies and saw the new Ninja Turtles movie. We didn´t see it by choice. It was the only movie that had tickets left. I wonder why??

Yesterday was the first day of school. I went up to Becari Language School for class from 9-1. Wow! What an amazing place! I am one of only three students there and I get my own private class!!! I´m learning a ton of new things and having tons of fun. The other students are retired ladies from Los Angeles and Chicago. Tons of fun! Last night, Emilio and I went out for churros rellenos which are churros (fried bread) filled with either caramel, chocolate, or cajeta (a coffee/cream mixture). They are SOOOOO good. I may just have to open a churro shop when I get back to Atlanta. Afterwards, we delivered water to a little taco stand and returned home for the evening.

Today, well ... its still going on! I´ll have to inform you of todays happenings a little later.

A note about pictures ... I dont have any way to post pictures from this computer. However, first thing on Monday, I will post some great pictures!!

Have a great day!

Hello from Oaxaca!

2007-05-07T00:13:00.000-04:00

Hey there! Well, I made it to Oaxaca. I just need time to write something! I will be posting as soon as I can find that time! I am very sorry for the delay!!!!

Cleared for Takeoff

2007-05-04T21:55:00.000-04:00

The last final exam has been turned in, the last paper submitted, and the last piece of trash removed from my now impeccably clean dorm. Thank goodness the school year is over! It's now time to take to the skies.

My first destination is none other than the beautiful city of Oaxaca de Juarez, Mexico. With is amazing colonial streets, baroque churches, and shaded plazas, this city is hard to beat in terms of its beauty. While in Oaxaca, I will spend time with my adopted Mexican family, the Tovar's. Ana Maria and Cristina Tovar own a beautiful, traditional Mexican parador or bed and breakfast just outside of the historic center. They are magnificent hostesses. Believe me, they have some of the best food on that side of Mexico City. Cristina's children, Emilio and Lorena, have become great friends of mine. They are great guides! The know Oaxaca like the back of their hands. I am hoping that they will take me on an excursion outside of the city to one of the many indigenous villages. That's always an interesting and fun experience! I will also be taking language classes at Becari Language School. I am really looking forward to that!
(The picture depicts the way the Zocalo looked the last time I was there.)
As I prepare to leave for Oaxaca within a matter of hours, I am hearing some interesting news. According to the San Antonio Express, protests have once again broken out in Oaxaca. The APPO, an organization that proclaimed itself the 'true' government of Oaxaca, has organized the protests and claims that it is planning more. During my last visit during August of 2006, protesters invaded the Zocalo (town square) and camped out there for months. They completely ransacked the place and caused millions of dollars worth of damage to the historic buildings. Two people, including an American journalist, lost their lives in the midst of the violence. I hope and pray that there will not be a repeat this summer. Now that President Calderon has taken office, I have confidence that the Mexican federal government will take a more proactive roll in preventing another fiasco. Rest assured, if I feel my safety is being put at stake, I will be on the next flight to the US. My hosts will do anything to ensure the safety of their guests, therefore I feel confident that this is going to be a great trip!

I will do my best to update my blog regularly. Finding a computer with internet access can be a rather difficult task at times, so I cannot give you a 100% guarantee that I will post every day.

Ladies and gentlemen, please make sure that your seat belts are securely fastened and your trays and seat tables are in the upright and locked positions. We have been cleared for takeoff and it shall be an amazing ride!

See My Photos

2007-04-24T23:17:00.000-04:00

I am happy to announce the creation of my new photo web page. There, you will be able to see photos from my trips in addition to what you will see on this page. Trust me, once I start uploading, you will not be disappointed! Just head on over to http://picasaweb.google.com/teodoro1188 and check it out for yourself!

Hello Mirjam!

2007-04-14T12:11:00.000-04:00

My "international experience" will begin even before I leave the USA! Mirjam, a student from Switzerland, will be staying with us during the month of May! Our whole family is excited to have her in our home. I look forward to learning about her culture and sharing some of our culture with her. We met her for the first time last night and she is just a load of fun! It will be an AWESOME May for all of us!

So, welcome Mirjam!

Oaxaca? What?

2007-04-08T00:17:00.000-04:00

Before I leave for beautiful Oaxaca, Mexico, I thought I would give you a little background on this city. For starters, the name of the city is pronounced "Wa-hock-ah". I have no earthy idea how "Wa-hock-ah" comes out of "Oaxaca". But anyway...

Oaxaca is located in southwestern Mexico, just south of Mexico City and north of the state of Chiapas. The area has been inhabited by Mixtec and Zapotec indigenous peoples for centuries, but the colonial city was founded in 1532. Today, it is one of Mexico's cultural capitals. It is well known for its arts, indigenous culture, and cuisine. Speaking of cuisine, Oaxaca is famous for "Mole", or chicken that is cooked with a sauce made from chocolate, among other things.

Traditional Oaxacan Mole

While in Oaxaca, I will be taking Spanish classes and enjoying this wonderful city. This is one of my favorite cities and I'm sure it will be a nice reward after a long school year.

See you from Oaxaca!

(PS. The commenting should be enabled for this post, so comment away!)

Hi there!

2007-03-29T16:15:00.001-04:00

Hi there!

I'm Taylor and I'm a college student from Atlanta, Georgia. I will be traveling all around the world this summer and I want YOU to be a part of it. While I'm traveling, I'll tell you what I see and do. I'll be sure to post some pretty amazing pictures as well. I should start posting things from Mexico in early May. Look forward to a month's worth of posts from South Korea in July. So, while your waiting for my exciting travels to begin, let me tell you about myself...

I attend one of the most amazing and most beautiful colleges in the world, Berry College. I am one of the pickiest eaters on earth. No beef, pork, fish, veal, lamb, or anything meaty except for chicken, please! I hate veggies and I like my food fried (Hello! I'm from Georgia!) My odd eating habits ought to make for some interesting travel stories, right? As for my hobbies, I love to travel and keep up with world events. I think that there is nothing better than sitting on a couch with a bowl of ice cream and watching BBC World News. I am a huge Atlanta Braves fan and I would live at Turner Field if I could. If there is any other random thing that you would like to no about me, leave a comment and I might just respond. Speaking of comments, I invite you to be a part of my travels by commenting on my posts. Don't be scared, just comment!

So, now that you know about me, let me fill you in on this year's itinerary:

May: Oaxaca, Mexico
I will make a return to one of my favorite cities. The history, culture, and people of this city continue to amaze me. This must be one of the America's most amazing destinations.

This is one of the many colonial streets in Oaxaca, Mexico. I just looove this city!

July: South Korea
This will be my first trip to Asia! I'm really excited about exploring this part of the world. The food kindof scares me, however. Did I mention that I cannot speak Korean?

Hello Seoul!