Hola mis amigos,

Woo, this past weekend was  incredible! The exchange program organized a two day trip to las Grutas de Cacajuamilpa, Taxco and Tepotzlan for the exchange students. We started in las Grutas (huge caves) about 4 hours south of Mexico city. The whole tour took about an hour and a half because its over 2 km of caves, but it was super interesting. We then got back on the bus to go to Taxco, a half hour away.

Taxco is the coolest little town known for silver…so I kinda, maybe bought some jewelery 🙂 Mexico has over 40 ‘pueblos magicos’ (Magic Towns), Taxco being one of them. These towns have rules that keep them very traditional and many of them have cobbled streets or the houses and shops all have to be a certain color (in Taxco, all building have to be white). I’ve been to other pueblos magicos before from my trip in high school, and they are just gorgeous. Living in the city and then visiting these towns gives you a totally different perspective on Mexico. Anyways, we toured the city, ended up in the centro and watched folkloric dancers, went in the cathedral, bought some (or a lot) of silver and then had dinner/drinks later. I’m pretty sure I’m going to retire here…

The next day we were up early to go to Tepotzlan, about a 2.5 hour trip back towards DF. Tepotzlan is another pueblo magico and is also known for this huge mountain that you can climb with a pyramid on top. Naturally, I chose to climb it, not knowing how tough it was going to be until we were a third of the way up and I was about to die. We toughed it out, got to the top, got attacked by these raccoon/possum things that found cheetos in my friend’s bag, and then were able to breathe and soak in the beautiful view. It was honestly one of the best moments of the trip. Then it started to rain so we booked it down the mountain to find food 🙂

FUTURE STUDY ABROAD STUDENTS: Take advantage of these trips. La Ibero is pretty good about organizing trips like this and they’re very economical for students (it was a little over $100 for the entire weekend, lodging and food included). Being able to travel to these small towns and see what they have to offer gives you an entirely new view on what Mexico is like. Yeah, DF is awesome, but that’s the city. Mexico is such a beautiful country, but you need to see what else is out there besides the city and La Ibero. I have such a huge Mexico bucket list from everyone telling me “you need to go here!” that I probably won’t have time to finish it.

Ok ok more posts to come muy prontos. Cuidense y nos vemos!

Liz

So the whole Middle East thing got a little tiring, but rather than simply returning to Chicago, I will be spending this Fall at The Beijing Center for Chinese Studies, located, as the name suggests, in the Chaoyang district of Beijing, China.

Now China’s gonna be a tough nut to crack. Oman is a country of only 3 million, and I still had difficulty learning its intricacies in just one semester. China is, as I think we all know, a nation of over 1.3 billion people. Learning how this country lives and functions will be a round-the-clock endeavor. And just to make sure I don’t get lazy, I’m taking 18 credit hours, which includes 6 credit hours of intensive Chinese (equal to four semesters of Chinese in Chicago).

I’ve been in China now for about two weeks, and it still feels like a haven’t gotten a chance to rest. The timing of this program is a little strange. After a brief five day orientation period, barely enough to time to get over jet-lag, we set off on this semester’s two-week long excursion. We’ve camped in the Gobi, watched Tibetan monks pray, and visited the tomb of Emperor Qin Shihuang, home of the awesome Terra Cotta Army. After an intensive day of travel from Xia’he to Lanzhou via bus and Lanzhou to Xi’an via overnight train, I’ve finally had a chance to sit and write this lame opening entry. Stay tuned as I embarrass myself, teach myself, and hopefully learn what the Middle Kingdom is all about.

Hola amigos,

My first post wasn’t much of anything, so I guess I should talk a little about where I’m actually living for the next 4 months.

Fact: Mexico City is the third largest city in the world with a population of about 20 million.
Fact: Mexico City’s elevation is about 7,400 feet.
Fact: Mexico City is not Chicago

Coming to Mexico City, I prepared myself for the changes, but living in Chicago is not like living here. Its hotter, drier, more crowded, less air, sometimes smellier, and you get hollered at daily. BUT, it costs 2 pesos to take the bus from school (like 20 cents), you can get a nice tan/burn in less than an hour on the roof, you can see visit almost any museum for free with a student ID, you can buy delicious pastries for 50 cents or an Enrique’s complete greatest hits.

I have my ‘I miss Chicago and my family and boyfriend, waaahhh!’ moments, but I keep reminding myself its all part of the process. New country, new language, new friends; its a lot to take in all at once. Plus you go to bed exhausted from hearing and speaking Spanish all day. My roomie keeps reminding me were like toddlers and need our 8-10 hours a night to absorb all the knowledge haha.

La Ibero is basically Loyola in Mexico, except the Mexicans here don’t look like the Mexicans in Chicago. It threw me at first. There are a lot of tall  blondes with blue or green eyes…weird. But like any city, there are the good and bad areas. Where I live, Chapultepec, is one of the nicest areas in the city. Santa Fe, where La Ibero is, is definitely a nice area. Consequently, a lot of Europeans live in these areas or I guess what you could call ‘criollos’ (European parents but the kids were born here). Just a lot of European/Spanish blood going on. Being a Jesuit, private university, there’s a lot of fabulous-ness and almost everyone drives to school since public transit isn’t always reliable. It’s a very very nice school, though. A lot of extra curriculars, a nice gym and free fitness classes (I’m taking some kickboxing, so watch out), and since its warm here like all the time, the whole school is open so only the classrooms have doors (yeah, that’s weird since I’m cold half of the year). The teachers are hilarious and sassy older Mexican ladies that love to call us gringos and invite us over to their house for breakfast. I’m feeling good about it.

The nightlife in Mexico is pretty decent. Condesa is the ‘cool’ spot to go where its a lot of cool bars and clubs and not crazy expensive like where I live. It’s a younger scene too, since Chapultepec/Polanco is more ‘old money’ so its fancy and expensive. But you can definitely have a good night for 200 pesos (about $20) because there usually isn’t a cover, or its free for ladies. Or you can just play up the ‘I’m foreign so buy me drinks’ thing 🙂

Downtown Mexico City is definitely worth checking out. A lot of museums, the Palacio Nacional, Cathedral which was built on top of Aztec ruins (like most of the city). Can’t really describe it, you just have to see it.

I’ll write down specifically some cool places to visit in another post, and as I get to see more.

Nos vemos!

Liz

Situation:I’m flying from Chicago to Prague tomorrow at 5:10 pm with 2 layovers in Brussels and Budapest.

Problem: I currently  have no packed luggage.

I have always been a bit of a packing procrastinator. Even as I little kid, I would always be the last in my family to pack. I’m not sure if you would categorize cramming my stuffed animals in my pink barbie backpack as packing, but work with me here. Some things never change. While I may have upgraded to a monogramed luggage set, my tendencies for procrastination are still intact.

I have spent the last few days saying my goodbyes and buying last minute purchases.  While they have been unsurprisingly difficult, I cannot feel anything but pure elation. I half excitedly, half anxiously await my arrival in Prague.  I am starting my yearlong adventure in Europe and I cannot imagine a more perfect place for me to study than Prague.  I hear it’s one of my the most magical cities in Europe,  mostly untouched by WWII, so I will take a plethora of pictures and share them with you as often as I can. I’m in a perpetual state of disbelief at my good fortune so I’m sure someone will have to pinch me when I get there.

Hopefully, I will have some luggage to take with me tomorrow. As for now, onward and upward. Let my adventures begin.

Happy Reading!

Hola a todos!

Today has officially marked my third week of being in Mexico City, Mexico at La Ibero! It’s crazy how fast the time flies; I feel like I just got settled in. Instead, I’ve been having a lot of aventuras and making new friends and memories each week. I am getting to know and love my host family and roomie, Erica, more each week because they are truly great people 🙂

So far, I have visited the following places:

-Cool old convent (gahh i forgot the name)
-Teotihuacan
-Museo del Arte Moderno
-Museo del Arte Popular
-Museo del Arte Nacional
-Xochimilco
-Plaza, Catedral Nacional, Templo Mayor

What I have learned so far/some tips for future SA students 🙂

-DONT DRINK THE WATER
-Take it easy with exercise because the altitude is insane
-drink lots of water because the climate is dry and sun is strong
-SUNSCREEN. Again, the altitude is a big change from Chicago so you are way closer to the sun/equator
-Don’t eat food sold on the street…shadddyyy
-Kinda spicy means spicy (Poco picoso=PICOSO)
– Mexico traffic is horrible so leave a half hour earlier than you expected to leave
-Take advantage of trips the school puts on for exchange students! It’s a great way to meet people that are going through this change
-It’s ok to miss your family and friends, Chicago hot dogs and pizza and football
-This is YOUR time. Make the most of the time you are here.

Nos vemos!

Liz