When in Chiapas: A pictorial journey through my first three months in Mexico

I left off my pictoral journey in Cuernavaca when my camera´s memory card broke. I resume it here. First, I present my host chihuahua during language study. She could often be found lounging on her bed pictured here. The juxtaposition killed me!

Sara Vences, my host mom, wonderful cook and pre-school teacher in Cuernavaca. On a more self-centered note, this picture makes me realize how much my hair has grown in the past threeish months.

Host brother, Carlos (third from left)

Week 2 Spanish teacher at Universal, Rosalba

Crazy friend Lidio on our adventure to Tepotzlán. He loaned me the very offical vest I´m sporting

Slug slime lotion! Regenerate skin! Eliminate wrinkles, scars and discoloration!

Elote!

And then I left Cuernavaca and returned to the big city.
Palacio de Bellas Artes

Diego Rivera mural in the Palacio Nacional

Because I kind of have an obsession with cacti. In fact, I´ve started eating a cactus paddle every morning for breakfast. Ok, I actually just started this tradition today...but I´m planning on keeping it up

And my entire journey was leading me up to this point: my arrival in San Cristóbal de las Casas.

A glimpse of San Cristóbal's colonial architecture
Iglesia de Santo Domingo

The main cathedral

With the fam

My bro-face, Eduardo (aka Lalo, Lalito, Eduardito, hermano, hermanito...). Being the typical six year old that he is, he challenge me to a round of Skip Bo two days ago at breakfast. He said this game would determine who farts more. Luckily I had to go to work, a good way to avoid this competition.

The view upon entering my house: 1 Indigenistas, Barrio 14 de septiembre.
Past the dining room table and to the left is our kitchen. The first door on the right (before the wood paneling) is Gabriel and Liliana's room. The next door on the right is Eduardo and Abuelita Betty's room. Straight back is my bedroom and the bathroom is in front of my room and to the left.

My b-room. My bath towel is hanging in the patio behind my room. It's the orange one (just in case you were wondering) :)

Kitchen. We've yet to use the oven as it serves as more of a storage space than anything else. The frying pan is used to heat our tortillas (you can see two sitting on the right left burner) and the giant green mug-looking-thing is what I use to heat my water for tea every morning and evening. I'm getting kind of sick of chamomile as Liliana bought a box of 100.

Sweet bread. A daily staple.

This is our pet bunny. Its name is Rabbis (I think) and has been confined to a cage made of spare pieces of wood. Rabbis still finds ingenious ways to escape and we often find our trashcan overturned in the morning.

INESIN (minus Elena and Lucy)

But here's Elena!
We made pizza together one night to welcome a Costa Rican theologan.

Dario is a volunteer from Switzerland who came to INESIN just a few days before me and will be here until just before I finish up my SALT term. He's quickly becoming a good friend. Sandra is my neighbor and I have her to thank for setting me up with my wonderful host family.

just because I thought it was funny.

And the transition from INESIN to MCC photos.
This is Rick, a three year MCCer from Canada working at INESIN. He's posing in INESIN's garden, for which he is primarily responsible.

And Jacquie! She works at a school called Pinguinos. We've gone out for coffee several times and I'm really appreciating forming a relationship with her.

Ezra (center) is Rick and Jacquie's oldest child. As I was working on this blog at the Block's house, Ezra kept scampering around, informing me that it was raining inside and then pretending to steal my imaginary umbrella.

Hilary is their second child. She is super athletic and can often been found scampering around on her tiptoes.

Ricardo is one of our country reps. He's from Colombia and is pictured here with his youngest daughter, Sofia.

Isabel is the oldest daughter of our country reps. She's fluent in both Spanish and English and speaks English in a South African accent.

Sofia is Isabel's little sister.

And the whole team.
Our other country rep, Marion from South Africa, is seated in the foreground (blonde hair). Also pictured are the two other members of our team (Adrienne from Canada and Arturo from Chile).

The famous fire

Escaping the cold at Lagos de Colon

A Mexican lunch at the lake: mojarra, tortillas, salsa, guacamole and veggies.

Quintessential Mennonite boys

Making pumpkin pie to celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving with my granddaddy's famous pie crust recipe.

Looking across the border to Guatemala. A mere two hour drive.

A paper-making cooperative in Sancris.

Dario and Lucy

bringing the potluck to Mexico...

Zinancatan, an indigenous flower-growing community near Sancris

The cathedral

my traveling companions

An artisan who treated us to hand-made tortillas, beans and pox in her home.

Life in the midst of death

and speaking of death...Day of the Dead

Day of the dead altar. Take special note of the chayotes which I wrote about in a previous post.

A resident of San Juan Chamula, the most-visited indigenous community in the world. Yes, tourism is alive and kicking in Chiapas and like it or not, I'm a part of it too.