When I arrived in Portland I was so excited to be home because I had missed my first plane.  I had gone through customs in Texas and been so frustrated that we had missed our plane and when I arrived back in Portland I was so relieved.  I was kind of overwhelmed when I got there and like I felt when I got to Mexico City I was excited and the airport felt huge.  I was happy that I was home and all I could think about was seeing my family after almost six weeks of being away from home.  I couldn’t believe that I was back in a country where I was again in the majority it felt so surreal.  I also could not believe that all the languages spoken were English and I kept reverting to my non native language because I was so used to speaking Spanish.  Like Mexico City the airport was bustling but it was quieter because it was late at night.  In the end when I saw my parents I was so relieved and overwhelmed with emotions.  I almost kissed the carpet but all in all I was also sad that I was home too because I missed my host family and my host country.  I look forward to talking to them soon.

My experience in Mexico has turned out to be exactly what I expected to be.  I learned a lot about myself and the others that I met along the way.  I have experienced the language and have learned more about the culture.  I have learned more about the stereotypes that Mexico has about the United States and did everything to disapprove them while I was here.  I learned more about the country of Mexico and about the people who live here.  I never expected that I would ever feel extremely comfortable talking to people not from my culture and I have learned to be able to talk to my host family and the people here in Mexico.  I had a lot of fun getting to know the culture and learning about the customs that are not know about.

I learned that burritos are an Americanized food and that Mexico is a lot more safe than people think.  Also there are many different colors of tortillas including red, blue, orange, and green.  I also learned that it is common for Mexicans to use their knowledge of English by changing their words.  They will change the words goodbye for adios and goodnight for buenas noches.  All in all I learned a lot about the culture and I was very surprised about what I learned and I feel prepared to teach others about the truths of Mexico.

This week has been busy but I have actually had a great week.  I ended up getting great grades and in the end was very proud of my accomplishments.  The last night I went out with my host mom and host brother to a ice skating birthday party and I had a great time.  I got to say goodbye to my host aunt and my host family.  It was very enjoyable to spend time with my family the last night in Queretaro.  I have had fun here but I am excited to see my family in Portland.

This week has been pretty crazy because technically it has been dead week but I have survived the week.  Besides doing homework I went out with friends to the centro on Friday and went shopping.  The centro is pretty amazing because all the culture of Queretaro culminates in one place.  I had a great time walking around and had fun with friends.  On Saturday I went to a water park with my host family and got to ride a raft.  In the end this week has been stressful but also fun.  I look forward to my last week as being bittersweet.  I get to go home but I am going to miss my host family and the wonderful city of Queretaro.  Goodbye for now.

I know it is technically week 4 but I have been really busy doing homework so I will talk about week 3.  Last week was busy because of homework and  a lot of different events.  I had a lot of homework that took a lot of time to do but I also had a great week.  I went out with friends on Friday and on Saturday my friends and I went to San Miguel Allende all day.  I had a great time shopping in the tiny stores and going to the hot springs.  They were not what I expected because I thought they would be more open and under a waterfall.  I was a little sad at first but I had a blast swimming in the hot and cool water there.  All in all last week might have been stressful but I also had a great time spending time with friends.

Hi I know this late but last week was crazy.  I will talk about last week and how it went.  My group and I went to Mexico City last weekend and saw many things.  We went to the National Museum of Anthropology, the pyramids, the art museum, the biggest castle in Mexico City, the ruins of Aztecs which is called Templo Mayor and lastly we went to the house of my hero Frida Kahlo.  We went for three days and I had so much fun.  My favorite places were the pyramids and the house of Frida Kahlo.  The pyramids were fun for me because they are what is left of the Aztecs and I love learning about history especially ancient history.  The pyramids were huge and the largest pyramids were “The Sun” and “The Moon” but the “The Moon” is the largest.  We only had time to climb the smaller one but it was still fun.  I also had fun at Frida Kahlo’s house because I always have wanted to go there since I have studied all about her in the past.  She was an amazing woman who broke barriers and did things that no one ever believed that she could.  Ever since I was a little girl I have wanted to be like her minus the spinal injury.  Also after we left Frida Kahlo’s house we went out for lunch to watch the final game of the world cup.  I wanted Germany to win and everyone else including the people her in Mexico wanted Argentina to win so I had to keep quiet. In the end Germany won and I had to keep my excitement to myself so that I would not frustrate the other people around me.  In the end last week was okay but it was very long but I had a great time in Mexico City.

The Palace of Fine Arts

The Sun Pyramid

Even though I have been here in Queretaro since June 26 this week is my first week of classes.  I have had a crazy week so far.  On the first day of classes I had only one class for 25 minutes because the teacher was late.  I have learned over the past few days that most Mexican professors show up late to class.  Tuesday was a normal day of classes but Wednesday was crazy.  I took the wrong bus to get to the university.  I am okay but it was a scary experience for me to deal with.  I talked to the people around me and asked them where I was.  Luckily everyone was helpful and my host mom found me and took me home although I missed class I am glad that I am safe.  I learned fast that you have to stay calm and call your resident director and your host mom.  On a lighter note I have had the best food ever here though I would recommend taking it slow when it comes to eating the food here.  I ate too much one day and I got sick with a bad stomachache.  I have learned that it is important also to make sure that know which direction you are going before you go anywhere.  That is all for now.

When I arrived in Mexico City I was scared it first because it was so big.  Going through customs was crazy and almost everyone was nice but in a hurry.  I felt excited that I was in Mexico but to be honest I was a little afraid of being away from home for so long.  The fact that people walk so fast in the airport did scare me at first because they seemed to push you along instead of me walking normally.  In comparison to the Portland Airport the airport in Mexico City is huge.  I remember being afraid of getting lost and that if we didn’t have Carmen in that moment we all would have been lost.  That’s all for now I will post later this week.