• Getting up before the sun does
• Insomnia
• Grey, dark skies
• Cold, wet weather
• Drama
• Homelessness (I’d be out of a job here!)

The Language Immersion School is a rad place to learn Spanish. Veracruz is a great place for immersion because the folks are friendly and only speak Spanish. It is not a gringo tourist destination and the quality of life for the locals is pretty comparable to the U.S. It is safe and comfortable and you will want to live there. The school has a family atmosphere and the curriculum is always personalized to what YOU want to learn and HOW you need to learn it. Go there or send an amigo who will!

Kayla went through a phase where she liked to illustrate and write her own versions of famous fairy tales (1999 through 2000) and these are some prime examples of that period.

This is an epic legend of Kayla’s own creation, done in rich water colors and rhyming verse! (2000)

These are some random drawings Kayla did when she was bored, I think on her first trip up here (2001).

Kayla drew this portrait for me when I flew down to Reno for a visit (2002) and she was at school when I landed.

Kayla made Ian and me collages last Christmas (2005), mine makes sense (the round spotted object is a cookie) but I’m not entirely sure why his has a hair band taped onto it.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/taraka/

Stars indicate the top three most missed things and activities.

Public Buses:  In Oaxaca de Juarez (“Oaxaca City”) during rush hour each bus will have a guy who stands in the front doorway at the bottom of the stairs, hanging our over the street, and shouts the bus’s destination to try and wrangle passengers.

Internet Cafes: 20-30 minutes for 4 pesos = about 26 cents USD. Wow.

Del Jardin:  I ate in a “sit-down” restaurant by myself for the first time. It was as weird as I thought it would be.

Streets:  Every single street in downtown Oaxaca is one-way with parking on one side because the streets are all so skinny. The U.S. (*coughBallard*) could really take a hint. There are also no prohibited left turns so the one-ways aren’t a gigantic pain to navitage (*coughdowntownSeattle*).

Dogs:  Mexico is truly the Ireland of the western hemisphere as evidenced by their dogs. They are plentiful, well-behaved sweet creatures, and always leash-less.

Chapulines:  I ate grasshoppers. They’re toasted on a comal then flavored with lime and garlic, very crunchy and salty to my taste. Supposedly anyone who eats them is guaranteed to return to Oaxaca.

Sprain:  At the cooking class I raja-ed so many flipping poblanos my thumb started tingling again from swelling. It’s fine again now.

Cooking Class:  This was a fantastic experience and such a great deal. Transportation, an awesome lunch, tasting tour of the market, cooking class, an awesome 5 course meal, fresh juice and beer all day, recipes to take home, chocolate and a chocolate water whipper contraption as gifts. Quite the day!

School Uniforms:  It seems that all public schools in Mexico require standard-issue uniforms, only varying in school colors. The difference between uniforms in Veracruz and Oaxaca is only in the girl’s outfits, in the skirt. In Veracruz the skirt hits just above the knee. In Oaxaca it hits below the knee, eliminating any sexy school girl potential.

Guera:  I get called this a lot by people out on the street and for a long while I couldn’t determine how I felt about receiving this ambiguous nickname. Sometimes it’s used as a term of endearment, sometimes it’s derogatory or even vulgar, and usually it’s simply descriptive. I’ve finally decided. . .that I like it. I would rather be a guera than a gringa, for sure.

Doughnuts:  To buy a doughnut in Mexico you need a metal or plastic platter and a pair of tongs. You walk around the bakery heaping stuff you want onto your platter, then take it to the cashier to check out and get everything bagged. Yesterday I got a delicious round variety with chocolate frosting on top, that was then sliced in half, sandwich style, and spread with sweet cream.

Topes:  Oaxaqueno shocks must be in terrible disrepair because there are so many speed bumps everywhere. Downtown is more reasonable, but out in the sticks, especially the small villages, they have speed bumps every 3 blocks. This is especially ridiculous because the roads aren’t in good enough shape to drive quickly on them anyways.