More about Mexico .....

First and foremost I need to say that being in Mexico is truly amazing. We have been so blessed and enriched while we have been in this village of Jaucamolco ( which has not even been one week!).

Where to begin .....

The Hospitality in Mexico

So first I must let you all know that we are still doing the whitewater program, however it is beginning to wrap up. There are 3 weeks left and some of that time is testing our skills, so yesterday and today we have been doing review. Some of it is water skills, while other is first aid and safety. It is crazy to see how much we have learned in such a short time.

Part of the program is a 3 week home stay with a family in this community. Each person is paired up ( Jason and I are together - imagine) and then matched with a family who provides them with a place to stay and also with breakfast and supper. Jason and I have been given an apartment that belongs to an elderly woman. Her adult daughter is out host "mom." We share the apartment with one other couple from the WILD group. We then go to the family´s home for our meals. In our family it´s the mom, dad and two early 20s kids. The son and daughter are home today and for the weekend to celebrate Day of the Dead. Both usually reside in Xalapa ( a huge city about an hour away) where they go to school.

We were a little disappointed that we weren´t actually living with a family because we thought that we might be missing something. But on the flip side we quite enjoy having our own space and a fully equipped bathroom ( soem of the other students come over to use it.) The house is large and it has a terrace on the top of it. It is an open concept which means that there isn´t really alot of doors but alot of windows and that the walls don´t go all the way up to the ceiling and so when Jason was sick a few nights ago everyone heard it.

We head over to the family for 7:30 in the morning and 7pm for dinner. We sit on the couch and watch TV if the mom doesn´t quite have supper ready. A huge plate of fruit with yogurt and granola awaits us each morning. Each meal is served with warmed corn tortillas ( wartmed in the microwave). Jason just couldn´t bring himself to eat any today because his tummy is a little upset. Breakfast usually consists of some sort of eggs with beans. She has also prepared sugared buns for us and ceral is an option. I´m still getting used to the idea of drinking warm milk out of a tetra pack. Our mom has a little shake and sandwhich business that she runs out of the house so she makes us chocolate milkshakes whenever we want( yes we are spoiled). For supper we are served raw veggies that make up a salad and chicken with other soups, pasta or rice. The idea is that the family prepare meals as they normally would but I get a sense that she isn´t.

Instead of celebrating Halloween the Mexicans celebrate Day of the Dead. This celebration actually lasts several days. I´m not entirely sure what it all entails but I´ll let you know what I´ve seen so far. The family has built an altar in their how. It is an arbor made of flowers ( marigolds specifically) with a table beneath it. On the table is photographs of people who have passed away and also of dieties. They also place food and drink on the table (I´m guessing as an offering for those they rememeber.) There is water, fresh squeezed orange juice and beer, as well as 3 cups of coffee (maybe). For food there is homemade bread, a vartiety of fruit, and tamales ( like a pizza pocket but made the Mexican way with corn paste on the outside and hot spicy filling on the inside that are wrapped in banana leaves and boiled.) There is also lots of flowers around. Also the cemetary is unlike anything in Canada. It has headstones but they are adorned with photos and flowers that are most extravagant and colourful. My first impression of it was that it was celebratory rather than solemn ( I think that is spelled wrong but I can´t figure out what´s the right way)