1 post from February 2008

1-16-2008

            As the days keep rolling the Spanish language is getting easier and easier. I am beginning to understand, with more ease, Gloria, Francisco (my grammar professor, whom I had a very difficult time understanding in the beginning), and the other people I encounter in day to day life. At restaurants I ask the waiters to speak to me in Spanish, my friends and I have also been trying to speak to one another in Spanish more often. It is getting easier to immerse myself into the culture and I am feeling less and less like an outsider. I know I still look strange, it is apparent from all the staring that occurs almost everywhere, but I hope that when I open my mouth I don’t sound like an American idiot but instead like a person who is trying very hard.

There are however still times when I try to say something and the person I am speaking to just blankly stares at me. These times are very hard for me because I think I am speaking clearly and trying my hardest, but they cannot comprehend what it is I am trying to say. For example, two days ago we went to an internet café and I was trying to ask when computers would be available and the girl just looked at me like I had two heads. Once I was finally able to get the point across she gave me an answer, and as I left she and another young girl started to laugh at me. It was a terrible feeling, because I was trying my hardest to communicate in a language that is very strange to me, and I felt put down and humiliated. This experience taught me that I have a very long way to go and that I can’t give up trying.

Monday for culture class we learned about the origin of the Spanish language. This was very interesting, because it almost made the language tangible. This language has a rich history and it was fascinating to learn about what influenced that language and how certain words have evolved and changed. We learned that Arabic was one of the leading influences of the Spanish or Castellano language. I never knew that, I was surprised!

Tuesday we had our bird taxonomy quiz. For culture class we went to the Museo Vivo de Plantas- CICY. It was the first time we got to see many of the plants that we have to learn for the biology courses. It was really cool to get to see the plants in person, not just from photos. I think that going there will definitely help me study for our plant quiz Thursday! 

            Today in culture class we learned to cook panuchos. I was given the opportunity to cook for the rest of the students, and I won’t lie it was really hard! First, we had to stuff corn tortillas, which we luckily didn’t have to make, with refried black beans. Then those were fried in oil, a job that I got to do! These were then topped with lettuce, tomato, onion, hard boil eggs, and some chicken. The cooking process took awhile, and I definitely appreciate the time Gloria and her mother spend on make us food everyday. Gloria begins cooking lunch for us the night before, and her mother finishes it during the day. Normally the food we get is even more complex than the panuchos, and there is only one person cooking it, not 12. It was fun to learn how to cook a meal, it will be something I will never forget, and something I can share with my friends and family back home. There is one meal that we have been served twice, pollo con queso, which is amazing. Today got me thinking that I should ask Gloria how to make it so that I can have another receipt to bring back with me.

1-20-2008

            I cannot believe that we are finished with our second week! That also means only one more week of Spanish classes; that makes me sad because I really enjoy learning Spanish. A few of the other students and me have decided that we are going to try and speak Spanish to one another while we are in the jungle, just so we can keep practicing. Well let’s start from where we left off.

            Wednesday night a bunch of people in the group went to the Mambo Café. I decided not to go because I was tired and wanted some alone time. Well I thought I did, but the minute Amanda left I got really lonely and homesick. It was the first time I had been completely alone this entire trip, and it was difficult. But it also made me realize how much fun I had been having, since I hadn’t even thought about being homesick until that point. So hopefully I got the homesick sadness out of the way and I can continue to have an amazing time and absorb all I can from the fascinating culture and amazing experience.

            Thursday we had our plant quiz. Culture class was really cool on Thursday. We learned about a piece of jewelry called a Maquech. A Maquech is a scarab beetle covered in rhinestones and attached to a small metal chain that is attached to a woman’s blouse. We read about them, and then we got to go down to the Centro and actually see one! They are something that can only be found in this area, so it was extra special that we actually got the opportunity to see them. They were selling them in a store for 180 pesos. The saleswoman was nice enough to let us hold them, and Megan put one on. The woman said that they are fairly popular in the spring, because the beetles are abundant so the price for one goes down. She also told up that they live 1-2 years. I was very tempted to buy one, but I don’t think I could get it through customs.

            Friday was a really fun day. In grammar class we put on a puppet show, which was a lot of fun. Then in culture class we went to the Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia. It was such a cool museum! We got to see a lot of artifacts of the Maya and of Mexico history. I found all of Maya stuff really interesting. The trip made me really excited to start taking the Maya course, and for going back to the museum to learn about all the artifacts in-depth. Everything I saw and learned was very fascinating, but two things that stuck out were the misshaped skulls, and the ball game. First, the Maya men who had high status had heads that had been pressed, so they were flatter and wider than a normal head. This was done from the time they were very young until they reached maturity. This was considered aesthetically appealing. They had some of these skulls on display, as well as a diagram of the mechanism they used to flatten the skulls. The second thing I found interesting was the Maya ball game. It was a game played by two teams, and it was considered an honor to be on a team. The game was played with a huge hard rubber ball, about 20 inches in diameter, which had to be shot into massive stone rings that were placed high on stone walls. The catch was, the players could not the touch the ball with their hands or let it fall to the ground. The game was very difficult and generally the first goal ended the game. The winning team got a feast in their honor; the loosing team’s leader was sacrificed. Very cool!

            Friday night was also really fun. A bunch of us went to a park where the locals play pick-up games of soccer. It was so much to watch because the people on the teams were really into it and you could tell they were having a good time and playing for the love of the game. The best part was that Megan, Phil, and Aakash got to play! Three teams were playing, and each game went to two points. Once one team scored two goals they got to stay in and the other switched out. Megan and Phil both scored goals, so they won the game for their team. It was funny watching the guys when Megan was playing. At first they would not give her the ball, but then she managed to get it and score; after that they showed more respect for her. The guys were being very rough with each other, but they would not touch Megan. It was interesting to watch how formal they were with her.

            Saturday was another early morning. We went to our second cenote and our first Mayan city. We went to the city of Dzibilchaltún. It was a smaller city, and sadly most of the buildings had been taken down and used to construct the buildings of Merida. The main building we saw was a temple of sorts that they used to determine when the equinoxes occurred each year. We were told that this was the only Mayan building that had actual windows. There were other structures that we saw, but this was the most spectacular. While we were there we saw a blacked headed vulture and a ctenosaur (a type of iguana); these are both on the taxonomies that we have to learn. After we looked at the ruins it was time to go for a swim in the cenote. As we walked over I spotted a small basilisk (another lizard on our taxonomy) as well as three more HUGE ctenosaurs. The cenote was like a big pond, with a big group of lily-pads in the center. The one end was deep, and that is where we swam. It was a lot of fun. The water was crystal clear, and the perfect temperature.

            Let me pause here because last week I forgot to explain what a cenote is. Cenotes are like big sink holes. They are filled with water from the underground river systems and rainwater. Some are like big underground wells, and others are exposed and more like ponds. The water in the three we have been to has been crystal clear and amazing. The two cave like cenotes were very deep, and the pond like one had a deep part but for the most part was pretty shallow. Cenotes are formed when the soft limestone collapses and exposes the underground cave system. Cenotes were used by the Maya as water supply since the Yucatan is very dry and there a few other sources of fresh water. Cenotes are so breathtaking and gorgeous that I really hope if ever given the opportunity to visit one everyone will take it.

            Sunday was a very mellow day. I finally got to sleep in. After waking up I just cleaned a bit and did some work. Amanda went out for the day so I was alone. The Dawleys invited the group over to their house so we could see it and hang out. Since Amanda wasn’t here I went alone. It was my first time on the bus alone. If it had been a week ago I know I would have been a little nervous, but I am getting more comfortable here and I am learning my way around. I knew what streets I needed to get to and I had no problems getting there. The only hiccup was when a man gave me a catcall. Now that is nothing new but the way it happened agitated me. The man was walking on the sidewalk I was standing on waiting for my bus. He was holding his young son’s hand, and as he walked by he whistled and said something that I didn’t understand. I was really disgusted that he would do that in front of his son. It surprised me because in the states men do stuff like that all the time, but never in the presence of their children. My first thought was “well no wonder all the men do that here, they learn it from their first role models, their own fathers.” Normally I have no trouble ignoring it, but it just really irked me that he did it while holding his child’s hand.

            Well, now it is time to start week 3, and our final week of intensive Spanish. Wish me luck J. 

1-21-2008

            Classes were a lot of fun today. In grammar class we went over the tenses and then we began a movie. The movie is El Crimen del Padre Amarco. The movie was very hard to understand, because the characters spoke very quickly and used words I was unfamiliar with. Luckily, Francisco paused the movie and explained what was going on and what the characters were saying. We didn’t get very far in the movie, but it is very interesting and I am excited to see the rest. Watching the movie got me thinking that reading and watching TV and movies might help me improve my Spanish. I think I am going to go get a book in Spanish, not a hard or long book, but maybe a child’s chapter book. It will not only help improve my vocabulary but it might help me with speaking, and formulating coherent sentences. Also, Amanda and I have a TV in our room and I could watch the news or another program in Spanish and that may improve my listening and understanding skills. It’s worth a try!

            Today for culture class we had a new teacher, Svetlana. She is a very nice person and funny too! In class today we learned a lot of vocabulary. Now that may sound boring, but it wasn’t vocabulary like “flower,” “I go” and so on. It was useful vocabulary, the words that you aren’t taught in an ordinary Spanish class. Some of the words we learn include

·         Estornudar- To Sneeze

·         Grasoso (comida)- Greasy food

·         Catarina- Lady bug

·         Rayitos- Highlights (hair)

·         Edad- Age

We learned many others as well. It was very interesting and I think I learned a lot. The best thing is that she is very easy to understand when she speaks. She has a clear voice and she emphasizes her words well. I am excited to be in her class because I think I am going to learn a lot this week. Also, she is very encouraging and I wasn’t as nervous to speak to her as I am with other people. For instance, I get very nervous to speak to Francisco because he never lets me finish a thought; instead he tries to finish it for me. It gets very frustrating because I want to improve my speaking and I get frazzled when he completes what I want to say for me, so I don’t get to share my own ideas.

1-22-2008

            Today for culture class we learned more useful vocabulary, as well as things not to say, because they have alternate meanings than the literal meaning. For instance, you should never say “tienes papaya (huevos, platano, leche, or any other type of fruit). Instead you should say “hay __________.” We also learned that some of the words we were taught back in school are not the actual words used, and if used they have different meaning. This was useful so that we can have a better grasp of how the language is actually spoken, and so we don’t look silly when we are speaking.

1-24-2008

            Oh boy what a night we had last night, hahaha. The day was just an average day, grammar class and culture class. For culture we went down to El Centro and went to the Governors Palace and La Casa de Montejo. We just looked around a bit and talked a little about the history of the buildings. The Governors Place I will blog about later because I am going to go back and explore it more. La Casa de Montejo was interesting though. Montejo was the Spaniard who settled the city of Merida. He built a large house right in El Centro. The outside is adorned with sculptures of the conquistadors overpowering the Mayan people. It is a very large, grand house, but once you take a closer look at the sculptures at the entrance you realize how ostentatious it truly is. In fact, I really don’t like this building because it depicts the period in which the Mayan people were taken captive and their culture was destroyed. I find that very sad, and to have a building that depicts these actions in stone kind of makes me sick. On the upside though the building is now being used as a bank, and I have used the ATMs there several times. I think it is amusing that the building that portrays the destruction of a people now gives those same people money. I always feel kind of satisfied taking money out of the ATMs there because I know that in the states a building like that would be preserved and probably some sort of museum. Here however it is not given that same respect, which is good because I don’t think it deserves it.