An Adventure

So last weekend went really well, for the most part. We got on the bus to go to a little town or pueblo called Becal and we were just cruising along thinking that the final stop would be where we needed to get off. But in fact, Becal is smack dab in the center between Merida (where I live) and another capital city of Campeche, the state next to Yucatan. Soo, the bus made a lot of stops in little pueblos and people got on and off, and in one particular stop, some guy was jumping and waving his arms. I thought it was just because we were gringas and I tried not to look at him, but then he jumped up and tapped the glass, and he mouthed, BECAL, and all of the sudden, I was really confused :) We had made it and didn´t even know it. We were about to continue on to Campeche, but thank goodness Abraham saw us and we got off in Becal :)

The first thing he told us to do was to take a taxi to his house. And when he says taxi, what he really means is rickity old cart pushed by a bike. It was interesting, and I felt like it was going to break during the whole ride. But we got to Abrahams house, and spent a relaxing weekend there. The family was really big and we met lots of new people and spent a lot of time in the church there and hanging out with the youth group (because there`s really not much to do in Becal).

Also a funny story is we met an old man named Alfredo, the cousin of Abraham. He walked into the house and talked with Krista (the girl I went with), and sounded really confused. It went something like, `where`s my aunt?? Where`s my aunt? Do you know where my aunt is? Oh, hello, good morning, good afternoon, good . . . what`s your name??` It was really funny because then he left and when he came back, he said `hello, My name Alfredo, Alfred in english. I have five children, guy, girl, guy, girl, guy, and they`re all christians. I have a wife, and I still can`t believe she married me, and I have a house accross the street with lots of stuff. Mandarines, tangerines, saramullo, espinaca. . .

Then I asked what was espinaca, and we of course had to go see it, thanks to Alfredo. And when we went over there, it was spinich :) Too funny because he explained with a lot of noises like `it grows really really fast, voop, voop, big, big, grande` All in all he was a character, and he loved learning english. So when he showed us his uvas or grapes, he could not get that work, and he`s hard of hearing to boot, so it was funny what he came up with. Something like oiqwejfawkjefñ-nothing really at all that sounded like grape.

So a good story, but then on the way home from Becal, we were studying in the bus for our two exams on Monday and we both fell asleep for something like 20 minutes. Unfortunately, during this time, someone stole my bag that was above my head on one of the shelves because when we got up to get off, my bag wasn`t there!!! The good part about this story is that I didn`t have anything valuable in the bag, just my hammock, a sheet, and a towell. The bad part is that it did have my journal in it, and that`s what made me the most sad. I don`t really enjoy writing a journal, but I figured it was a good idea and during the weekend, I had just arrived at the halfway point, and I was really proud of how much work I put into that thing, but now, some person has a journal in Engish for their very own :) So now I get to start a new one :) But other than that, I now have a new hammock, which is actually better than the first, and my family went and bought me a new sheet, which was super nice, and now, I`m all set :)

It´s been a really crazy week, and today Jair gets back!!! Her team wond second place in Mexico in her division of volleyball!!!! (That`s reallly good!!) And I`m excited to have her back :)

Plus, it`s the weekend, and no class Monday because it`s El dia de los muertos!!! So long weekend too :)

Surprise :)

So I'm actually heading out this weekend right after class to a pueblo, so I figured I'd write today. I'm kind of excited to go live with another family, but nervous too. I'm going with another member of the group to who knows where, but just for the weekend-two nights. Should be an adventure!

This week has been crazy- two tests, a paper, and another two tests on Monday. On top of that, I've had fun with the family and Jair actually left me today to go on a trip with volleyball. She's going to be off in a tournament for 8 days!!! It's a long time to not see her!! But I guess I'll manage :) Now I'm off to class- happy Thursday!

Random :)

Funny story from last weekend :) I went to the races to watch Joel again with all my cousins and siblings (Edward, Genesis, Cesar, Jabes, Rommel, and Jair). It was a blast to just hang out and take in everything. Unfortunately Joel didn`t win because the second gear on his car wouldn´t work. So, on his way home, he was going too fast, and the police turned on their signal to pull him over. But, the system in Mexico is very corupt. All the police want is for the owner of the car to pay them a little extra than what the ticket would cost and it wont go on file. But Joel didn´t have any money with him, soooo, he decided to run from the police instead. (Apparently he has done this many times before) But Edward dropped Jair and I off at the house, and Joel was behind us, and we saw him pull up to the door where they put the car for the nights, and they opened it. Then a police car wizzed by and they didn´t have time to put the car in the lot. So, they closed the door and ran from the police (they being Joel and his friend José) Then they jumped the walls of the houses to the road where Jabes was waiting in the truck to take them to Aunt Martha´s house. Craziness! It was an adventure, that´s all I can say!

Then on Saturday we did some painting at the Pastor´s house, which was really fun to get out and do some work :) I think we´re heading back tomorrow to finish up.

As for the week, lots of talking with my family. I received a card from my family in Midland with a CD of pictures which were really fun to show to my family here. They laughed a lot of me as a baby :)

And the other day I learned that Grandpa Decker, a person very influencial in my life passed away. It was really hard for me to hear because he had heart surgury about a month ago and I thought he was passed the worst, but I´m thankful for the support I´ve received from my group and my family through a sad time. But it´s happy at the same time because I know he is at peace with his Father in heaven. So if you think about it, pray for his family, because it´s always difficult to lose someone you love.

And have a wonderful weekend!

Lots of homework

So this week was filled to the brim with stuff to do. I had a mountain of homework, but in the end, I managed to finish all of it, and get a little sleep :) Nothing too new this week, but I´m continuing to get to know my family and the language better. I have learned so much vocabulary; it`s crazy to think how much I`ve learned. Last night I had the chance to talk with Jair about life before going to bed which was really cool because it was a really good conversation. And things have just been going really smoothly.



Last weekend I got to go to 4 of Jair`s beach volleyball games, and 2 of Jabes. They were really cool to watch, and I took lots of pictures, but it was the whole day watching! And this weekend, I`m off to help paint a church in a pueblo, which should be really fun, and also we have a birthday party to attend :) Parties are different here. It`s not just the friends of the people that come to celebrate, it`s whole families of the friends. It makes for a large gathering, and people of all ages. So it´s an adventure every time with all the colors and food and people.

Oh, and something interesting. My Linguistics teacher told us today that she´s not going to be our teacher anymore because she was offered another job elsewhere. Soooo, we have a new teacher Monday! Should be interesting to see how this all works out. But all in all, everyone´s been healthy and safe, so thank goodness for that! Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Busy Week :)

It´s been really crazy this week. It started last weekend when I went to the races with my family. Joel races street cars, and it was really fun to go watch, even though it was super late. Then on Saturday I got to watch Marbella play volleyball, and more volleyball games- Jabes is a coach, so we go to a lot of games. Also, it was maestra Olga´s birthday, so we celebrated at her house, with a piñata and all! Afterward, I went to my cellula, or Bible Study where we watched a movie. Unfortunately with about 15 minutes left in the movie, there was a strange sound from the street. A couple of the husbands went to investigate, and a drunk driver had hit two of the cars parked in the street from our group, and it was almost comical how fast all the guys hopped into cars and persued the driver. We called the police, and they came to help out. Amazingly, one of the guys in the group spotted the car and followed it to a house. It took a really long time for it all to be resolved, and I didn´t sleep until about 2 in the morning :) And still, one of the cars it hit, it hit the tire, and now one tire is pointing to the right while the other is straight. Aparantly that´s really expensive to fix, but what a experince. Then on Sunday I went to chuch, and also to a birthday party for a friend of don Venus. It was fun because it was in a pueblo and very different from the city. Again not much sleep, but very fun!

For the week, I´ve had lots of homework. I´ve stayed busy and had fun too :) I´m excited it´s the weekend for a chance to recouperate a little bit though. Hasta luego!