Strep Throat

Ok. So the last blog entry was very angry. That was a really rough night for me. I was sick of being sick. And when you are sick, it is really hard to not be homesick as well. I just wanted to be back in my bed in Oregon.

But I'm feeling a lot better. Sort of. Still really sick, but I guess I just have a better outlook right now. So here is a better summary of the last few days.

Wednesday my friend Lisa and I went to the Bicentennial Expo. It is this giant expo on the outskirts of Silao showcasing the history of Mexico. And it is enormous. We only saw about half of it. We only went to three showrooms and it took all day.

The first was the Pavilion of Identity. It was my favorite. It just traced back the history of Mexican identity in documents and art, starting from the conquest and ending in the present. The last part was a huge display which showed all of the different indigenous groups in Mexico and their artwork, which was incredible. There was also a cool visual about migration patterns to the US.

Next was the Pavilion of Memory, which recounted the history of Mexico. You go from room to room watching little shows about key moments in Mexican history in spaces decorated to mimic the event. It was really cool at first, but there were at least 15 rooms. It took a good two hours. Around this time is when I started feeling really sick, so I wasn't even paying attention. It would be cool to go back healthy and listen.

After that we had lunch. Tacos smothered in salsa verde. Coffee ice cream. Yummm.

Then we went to the Pavilion of Tomorrow. It was all about the history of humans on earth and our impact. By this point though I felt like I was going to pass out, so I don't really remember a lot.There was really amazing artwork here, and lots of cool stats about global warming. My favorite was this room that was completely covered in trash, and in the middle there was a sculpture made from plastic bags of a woman hanging. It was intense.

After the expo, I went to a little party that Lisa's mom had planned to celebrate Independence. It was super cute. There was a Mexican costume contest and some really yummy food. Her host dad (also my Cinema professor) reenacted the Grito de Dolores for everyone.

Then we decided to head to the Alhondiga to catch the official reenactment of the Grito, but our taxi never showed up to pick us up (the two of us have a history of bad luck with taxis. Sad). We got there just in time for fireworks, then met up with Charlie, Erika, and Lindsey for some more tacos. I felt like I was going to die but went anyway. I hardly remember that at all.

After getting home that night I passed out and didn't wake up until midday Thursday. I hardly remember that day at all. I was feverish, covered in sweat, had no voice or appetite, and could hardly get out of bed. My mom wanted to take me to the doctor, but being stubborn me I said I wanted to rough it out another day to see if I got better. The minute I woke up on Friday I knew that was a mistake. My tonsils were completely covered in giant white spots. So I gave in and went to the doctor.

The minute he looked at my tonsils he took a giant step back and said OH MY GOD. Then he made my mom look and she did the same thing. It wasn't pretty. He said he needed to inject me with high doses of a medicine, but I am allergic to it. So I got pills instead, and a follow up appointment on Sunday. He said that if it hadn't started to clear up by then I would have to go to the hospital, so I was pretty worried. I had a liquid only diet and was banished to my bed for the weekend.

My follow up appointment Sunday was somewhat exciting. My mom was going to take me again but she got hung up somewhere, so I went by myself. At first I was super nervous, but I had more confidence in my Spanish than when I went with Lalo or my mom. Maybe it is better that I do these things by myself. Anyways, he looked at my throat and was not very happy. It wasn't hospital worthy, but I have to keep taking medicine. In October I have to get some labwork done and I have another appointment with the doctor. Great fun.

This week will be spent resting and tackling the massive amount of homework that I neglected all week. Lots of reading, two papers, and a presentation. Plus I have to get started on that research paper for history. Hopefully the gross feeling I always have when I'm taking meds fades away soon so that I can focus.

Also, my trip to Oaxaca and Chiapas is pretty muched planned. I think I am going the last week of November with Lisa. Hopefully my insurance reimburses me soon for some of these medical expenses, because otherwise I am basically going to have money for the bus and nothing else. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Highs and Lows

It has been awhile since I have written anything (as usual). Went to the expo with Lisa and learned a ton about Mexican history and ate yummy tacos. Had another run in with my favorite doctor. This time for strep throat. Banished to my bedroom. Follow up appointment tomorrow.

Not going to lie, I'm feeling very...frustrated. I'm tired. I'm sick. Again. I'm homesick. This past week I have definitely wanted to call it quits and go back to comfortable Portland.

Hopefully the next entry will not be so angry.

Two Months

Today is the two month anniversary of my arrival in Mexico. I can hardly believe that. So far it has been amazing. There have definitely been a few rough patches, but I am still happy to be here. I have learned so much in the past two months, and I can't wait to see how the rest of the year plays out.

I haven't been up to much lately because of the stomach infection, but here are some random thoughts.

Tuesday I finished up the meds for my stomach infection and I can now eat whatever I want. Last night I went out with a few friends to our favorite taco place and got myself some delicious tacos and a beer. It is funny, when I first got here I couldn't even eat green salsa because it was so spicy, but now I put it on everything. It is so delicious.

My family just got connected to Internet a few days ago. It is amazing to be able to Skype with friends and family NOT in Starbucks, amazing that I can return to my usual morning routine of waking up and reading the news in bed for a little while. And so far, my homework productivity hasn't suffered. Hopefully that keeps up.

September is a very special month for Mexico. September 16th is their independence day, and this year is especially important because it is the 200th anniversary of their independence. The entire town is covered in flags and decorations, and there have been parades and celebrations almost every day. I can't even imagine what next week is going to be like.

Homesick

I miss the comforts of home. The daily phone calls to my family, my fluffy green blanket, the rush of the ocean, hours spent in Powell’s, peanut butter banana sandwiches. Being sick has made it especially worse. With no internet and no energy to move to the living room to watch TV, I have basically been sitting around thinking. And since I have been here a good amount of time, this past week I have definitely wondered about why I decided to come, whether or not I really belong here, if this is the right time to be here, if I have what it takes to make it the whole year.

The past year in Portland could not have been any better. I have an incredible group of friends and family there. I absolutely loved my job at the elementary school. Besides all of that, I am completely in love with the city itself. The riverfront, Laurelhurst Park, my many many coffee shops. Food carts and Pioneer Square. For the first time in a few years I really felt at home, and for some reason I decided to change all of that.

Right as I have convinced myself that all of this was a huge mistake, my mom calls me to the living room, where she has my favorite tea, some crackers, and a movie waiting for me. Or my brother spends hours teaching me Spanish tongue twisters and cracking up at how difficult they are for me (tres tristes tigres tragaban trigo en un trigal…can’t even do it once). I walk down the street, distracted by the smell of delicious bread from my favorite panederia wafting through the air, and bump into a classmate or a friend and stop and chat for a minute. That night, as I get into bed, I am greeted by our little dog and my fluffy blue blanket. I’m finding my place here, slowly but surely.

Stomach Infection!

The past few days sucked. I have felt horrible since Sunday, and haven't been able to get out of bed or leave the bathroom. I couldn't eat anything either. Finally yesterday I caved and went to the doctor. It was not pretty. At one point when he was feeling my stomach my eyes teared up because it hurt so badly. Turns out that I have a stomach infection. Awesome.

I never remember to write in this...

The past few weeks have been pretty good. Time is flying, I can’t believe that I have almost been here for two months. Before I know it, it is going to be June, and I will be heading back to Portland.

I’m finally starting to settle into a routine, which is nice. I like having a routine. Mondays I have class in the morning, then I spend the afternoon doing homework. Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, I am done with class by 9 am. I go running afterwards, shower, find somewhere to use the internet, eat lunch, then do more homework. Wednesdays I am basically in class all day.

I still haven’t quite found that routine for my weekends. Generally I don’t have any homework to do, since I spend so much time on it during the week. I try not to use the Internet too much. I feel like most weekends I just hang out at home and watch television/movies, which can be nice but sometimes it is mind numbingly boring. Especially because the same movies repeat during the weekend, and my family likes to watch them over and over again. I have seen Spanglish three times this week, and Amelie four times in the past two or three weeks.

My birthday weekend was really fun. Thursday night two of my friends took me out drinking. We went to a ton of different places, but finally ended up at the Grill. It was the most ridiculous night of my life, by far. I didn’t get home until 6 AM, so I slept almost all of Friday. At lunch my uncle made me take a shot of tequila with him, while he showed me lots of different Mexican musicians and talked about where I should travel to when I get the chance. That was fun. Friday night everyone wanted to celebrate again, but I needed a nice and calm night after Thursday. We ended up going out to this really cute little coffee shop and hanging out for a bit. They have the most amazing chocolate drink I have ever had in my life, it is my new addiction. I’m sure everyone has already heard me rave about it though, so I won’t spend any more time on that. Saturday and Sunday were really low key, I don’t even remember what I did. Probably just slept, I had a sore throat most of the rest of that weekend.

The next week went by really fast. Homework load was really light and I didn't have my literature class. That is all.

This weekend was good. I finally made it up to this nature reserve with a friend to go hiking. It sort of sucked though, there is a neighborhood with the same name wayyyyy on the outskirts of town, and the taxi driver took us there first. Then to the right place, which took him forever to find, and then he charged us for the entire ride. That was no fun. We made plans for him to come back and pick us up in two hours, then set of on the hike. The area is really pretty, but there isn't really a path or anything. It is sort of just a ton of sections of trail that randomly meet up. You end up going in circles, but it was still really fun. People go camping up there, that would be fun to do sometime. At three we went to go meet our taxi driver for a ride back into town, except for he wasn't there. An hour later, he still hadn't shown up. And we were sort of in the middle of nowhere. With no cell service. Luckily there was a road that led to one of the college campuses, and we were able to flag down a bus and get a ride there. It was an adventure.

Today I have a massive amount of reading to do for my literature class, but that is all. My family is making hamburgers for lunch, and my host brother is making sure that they will have bacon because I told him that was my favorite food. I am very excited!

Food

I never have any idea what is going on with my family. It can be a little confusing. Right now it looks like they are moving all of the living room furniture into the bottom floor, which makes no sense. I didn't know for like a month if my brother even lived at home or in D.F. Our grandma just randomly appears on our couch, but I'm pretty sure she is moved out for good now. I have no idea where my sister's bedroom is or how she gets in and out, because she never uses the front door. I feel like I am just constantly confused...especially when it comes to food. Half the time I have no idea what I am eating.

Thursday I randomly ran into my brother (turns out he is living at home and is taking classes at the university. At the same time as me.) and he walked with me for a bit. We were talking and he randomly decided to go buy me some juice. We end up at this super sketch looking juice stand, and I had the feeling that I was going to get ridiculously sick from whatever he got me. I told him to just get whatever was the best, so he got me the green juice. I have no idea what it was still, but it was very green. It was a lot like Naked or Odwalla, but mixed with grapefruit juice. And it was AMAZING. AND I didn't get sick. I need to find this place and try the other types.

On Sundays my family goes and buys mystery meat that comes in a plastic bag. It is really tender and juicy and has various organs floating around in it. I'm afraid to ask what it is because it doesn't taste horrible, but I can't eat lots of it because it just looks so nasty. Something vaguely resembling a tongue appeared on my plate, so far that has been the second thing my family served me that I couldn't even touch.

Usually dinner is some sort of bread or donuts with milk. I really don't like drinking milk, but I have been. Finally the other day I told my mom I would rather just drink water, which was really funny. She was very confused. She kept saying "Water? Really? What are you going to do with water?" Then she made me tea instead, which was yummy. But really, I like water.

For the most part, all of my food is really yummy. I love the quesadillas they make for breakfast, with the super spicy green salsa. Mangoes here are twenty million times better, they are a lot sweeter. So yummy. And I'm getting hungry thinking about them, so I am going to stop writing now.