First weekend

I am learning more spanish by the hour as my first weekend zooms by! I got to meet my hostuncle, Carlos, Silvia´s son. We hung out at the dining room table for a while and chatted, sometimes understanding, sometimes not. Silvia is a good teacher for me because she will keep talking about something until I get the drift. Carlos helps too because he speaks some English, but gets a little more frustrated when the message between us isn´t clear. But, they are both incredibly patient teachers and I am feeling right at home. Friday night I was again exhausted from thinking so much, so I just went to bed pretty early.

Saturday, I had my first outings beyond the corner store. After a leisurely breakfast, we drove past some of the famous monuments and visited my school (I hope I can find it again tomorrow). We parked, went into a mall and found a map for the poor gringa. I was excited that my credit card worked, thank you 5/3, and we walked across the street to buy a metro pass. I am all set for school!

Next stop was sushi. We went to a really nice sushi restaurant and stuffed ourselves. It is a little funny that my first restaurant was sushi, not something local. Oh well, there is still plenty of time. We drove around a bit more and then went home for naps. I explained ¨food coma¨ to carlos and he thought it was funny.

Last night, Carlos, his friend and her daughter went outside the city to a small town that was celebrating the birthday of the abuelo´s patron saint. On the way, we were stuck in lots of traffic. In the street, there are tons of people selling sweet breads. They put a few breads in plastic bags and tie two together so both of their arms are completely covered with bags. I didn´t see anyone buying any. The party was a carnival, complete with lots of small rides, lots of food I didn´t recognize and beer. It was fun, I tried beer with chili powder and lime, different, but good. I rode some rides with the eight year old daughter and tried not to throw up :) There were fireworks to celebrate the saint and everyone seemed to be having a great time. The funny thing, was that even though it was no less than 60 degrees, everyone is bundled up as though they´re in alaska. The kids are wearing hats and scarves and puffy coats, the adults are wearing heavy jackets and vests. Very funny. I ate some cheese quesadillas and did a bunch of people watching. I wish I had brought my camera!

Today I watched more of the olympics and I am off to see some local art (I think). I am greatful for the internet in the house so I can chat with friends, email and post blogs and feel connected to the world. Hello OHIO!

Over and out!