so here i am, a week into my méxico adventure, and i´m getting pretty comfortable here overall. i´ve learned important words (the most important being ¨incómodo,¨which means ¨awkward,¨ and pretty much can describe everything that happens here!), registered for classes (a process that unnecessarily took more than 3 hours), started classes (going VERY well so far!), turned in almost all of the paperwork necessary to acquire a student visa, and i´ve learned the ups and downs of taxis, busses, and crossing streets in cholula.

this place is pretty much great.

last saturday, an enormous group of international students went into the nearby city of puebla (and by ¨nearby¨ i mean 5 minutes away - cholula and puebla seem to be the twin cities of méxico) and took a bus tour of the city. supposedly, puebla has a church for every day of the year. i doubt we saw 365, but there were TONS. the colors used on the buildings there are magnificent! everything is bright, and i´ve especially become obsessed with the yellow houses, which contrast excellently against the bright blue sky. the cathedral basilica in puebla is possibly the most ornately-decorated church i have ever seen in my life. and there are images of the lady of guadalupe basically every time you turn around.

sunday, the VU group went on a tour of aztec pyramids, churches, and markets around cholula, puebla, and tlaxcala (a neighbor state to puebla). since saturday had been el día de los reyes (when mexican children receive gifts, instead of on christmas), we celebrated at that base of one of the pyramids, sharing the traditional cake with each other... and a dog friend we´d made. she´d just had 11 puppies and looked mighty hungry. the pyramids were amazing, and we climbed tons of steps to reach the tops, which provided marvelous views of the surrounding cities, towns, and farmland (not to mention popocatepetl and the sleeping lady, the two closest volcanos). we also visited an archeological dig site, which was much more exciting than the pretend archeological digs i used to do at sharon woods when i was little. i managed to not buy anything in the markets, except a postcard (go figure).

i´m taking 3 spanish classes and 1 sociology class off campus with a VU professor who lives down here in the spring. hopefully the grammar and oral communications classes will help me stutter less when i´m attempting to communicate in spanish!! the business class will be ... interesting ... since i know nothing about business.

this weekend, the VU group (which, btw, is already notorious on campus because there are so many of us) is going to southern mexico city. it should be exciting!

kelly and i have decided that instead of running, we´re just going to climb pyramids for exercise. i could get used to this, right? and krista and i are currently in search of a soccer team to support. we´re leaning toward the pumas, in mexico cit, because her roommate is a HUGE fan.

we´ve all already started functioning on mexican time, where everything is more relaxed. showing up 10 or 15 or even 30 minutes late isn´t a problem. everything is so much more slow-paced than valpo and i am definitely loving it. for instance, i had class this morning from 8:30 to 9:45 and don´t have another class until 4. what to do with my extra time? probably eat and read and explore and soak up some sun (because, yes, my skin is still pasty). bliss.

i can´t figure out how to make AIM work on mexican computers, so i´m pretty much out of contact with everyone until i can figure it out. hopefully soon i´ll also figure out how to upload pictures onto school computers so i can share the loveliness of this place with you!

that´s all. hope everything´s fab in the states. :)