What a gift this journey has been. It has been so much more than we had anticipated. What we have learned here goes far beyond language or food. We've learned how certain priorities that we had when we got here just don't seem to matter so much. We've learned to let go of "the plan" and go with the flow (as if we had a choice!). We've learned that there is always time to chat with whoever is passing by and that it just doesn't matter if you're late because of it. We've learned that some people who have so little in terms of things and money, are rich in spirit, connection, pride, and love. And we've learned that we can come to a new place and be welcomed as if we were long-lost family. Seriously. And that we can feel the same way about the people we've just recently met.
We have particularly learned this from our dear friends José and Aurora and their kids who live two doors away. They have no running water and live in two rooms, yet have opened their home to us and cooked a Mexican feast for us over a wood fire.
Our relationship with our friends has only deepened, and we've had wonderful time with them and as a family. Kimberly made some tamales recently for them. Brian helped José put up a barbed-wire fence. And Lea spends nearly every waking moment with their kids Josecito and Lisset. In fact, they joke that we're not allowed to take Lea home with us and that they plan to adopt her!
José daydreamed with Brian today, that maybe in a few years they will add a couple rooms onto their house, so that we might stay with them next time we visit. We have asked them about the possibility, in some years, of their coming to spend some time with us in Madison.
We don't know what the future holds, and in some ways it's not something to be concerned about (we learned that here too!) but we look forward to maintaining contact with our dear friends here in Tepoztlán and seeing what comes next.
Meantime, we are also looking forward to our return to Madison and to seeing many of you soon.
Sending our best wishes,
Brian, Kimberly & Lea
More pics from Tepoz
This is our street. The entrance to our house is outside the frame on the left and our good friends' home (José, Aurora, Josécito and Lisett) is on the right corner. Can you see the Jacaranda tree in the top right? (Hint, it's purple!)
These shrines are all over Tepoztlán and México in general. The Catholic religion seems to be part of the fabric of daily life here.
These are the women we buy tortillas from. They make homemade tortillas on a large, flat, circular grill in a thatched hut. They're particularly delicious when they're hot, and they've replaced bread during our stay here . These women are lovely. They're extremely friendly and warm. This photo of them doesn't do them justice; we've noticed that Mexicans typically don't smile for photos.
Josécito is hanging upside down in the center. The kids seem to have so much fun here!
Lea is with a couple of teens we meet with on Wednesday nights for what's called an "intercambio." All of us are trying to learn a foreign language. We speak Spanish to them and they speak English to us. It's been great!
The kids taking a quick break from playing on top of the church in our neighborhood. They have been like a gang--always together. They have brought Lea in and accepted her like a sister or a cousin. We know it's going to be particularly hard for her to say goodbye.
Kimberly helped make adobe bricks with Don Miguel, a man who helps out at the school. These are handmade bricks that are going to be used to build a room for students to stay in.
Here is Feliciano in front of his family's tienda (store) right up the street from us. Feliciano is Aurora's sister's husband. Many of the family's here seem to have stayed closeby to each other, which we realize is very different from home.
March pictures from Tepoztlán
Here is an assortment of the luscious fruits sold at the market. Every day we appreciate how fresh and ripe the food is. We especially love the mangoes, papayas, coconut, fresh figs, and pinapple, in addition to some other rarer fruits such as guanaba and mamé that are so rare at home.
Here we are eating dinner at Jose's family's home. Their extended family was there, in addition to Kimberly's mom and sister who were visiting. It's absolutely amazing how generous they've been with us. We're eating a traditional Mexican corn soup called posole. Absolutely delicious. They even made it vegetarian in honor of Kimberly being there. Often, the extended family gets together for grand meals. How wonderful to be considered a part of their family for a time!
Here's José junior and Lea in front of a painted gate in our neighborhood (barrio). Lea seem so happy with the kids here, especially her close friends who she's practically living with. She's learned Spanish very quickly. We're so proud of her.
Here's Brian working with a couple of the guys (Don Miguel y Don Juan) at our language school. They are making adobes (homemade bricks) that will be used to build a couple rooms for students to stay in overnight.
Here we are with Jose's family again at their house in the country. It's not a house in the country as we would typically think of one; it's one concrete room that the whole family lived in before they had to move in to the village to live with Jose's aging grandfather and care for him. They work out there on the weekends, in hope of moving back relatively soon.
Jose and Aurora! A picture of love... Here they are laughing because Brian was taking a series of photos as if they were movie starss. Which they should be. A warmer, more loving and welcoming couple we could never find.
Kate and Antonio at their tienda (small store) down the street from where we live. They have been incredibly generous with us since we've lived here. We love stopping in their store daily to have some time with them, and to buy food for the day. One of us cracked a joke here which made them laugh!
With Gracia, Kate, and Giovanni at our home in our living room. We had a lovely dinner with them. (Gracia and Giovana are Kate and Antonio's children. Unfortunately, Tono couldn't make it for dinner).
Brinca de Chinelos at Carnaval
Aaahhhhh... the fruit of Mexico is so absolutely incredible! It is so ripe and fresh when you eat it. Here is a photo of mangoes at the marketplace. They are so plentiful and luscious! Every time we bite into the fruit here it feels like a true gift from nature.
Here is Lea (front and center) with classmates wearing the traditional outfits for the Brinca de Chinelos held every year at Carnaval.
Here are people from Tepoztlán dancing and playing music in what usually is the marketplace for Carnaval wearing their chinnelos. Theirs weren't homemade though. What a party!
Butterfly trip
Here we are on a hike of a lifetime. We took a trip to a gorgeous mountainous region in the state of Michoacán to see the wintering grounds of the monarch butterflies. Every year they return to México to prepare for their return to northern climes in the US and Canada.
Lea is thrilled to have a monarch to look at up so close!
Believe or not, here they are resting in clumps on the branches of these trees. The branches get so heavy that some actually break from the weight of the butterflies! That gives you an idea of how many of them there are.
The glory of milllions of butterflies all in one place! We were told we were there on a perfect day because it was sunny and not too windy so many of them were visible and flying around for our eyes to be in awe over.Here's a short video to give you a sense of the butterflies in motion. They actually looked like crimson leaves falling from the trees, but they were alive and never fell. They just kept flying!
Letter from México #3
Greetings from Tepoztlán in the state of Morelos, México.
Brian here. We've been in Tepoztlán for six weeks now, so we're about halfway through our trip. Wow. When we told folks at home that we were going to be here for three months, many commented on how long a stay it was. When we tell folks here that we're staying for three months, they remark on what a short period of time it is! Often, they want to know when we'll be back. I wish we knew!
Looking back on our decision to take this trip (OK, it was originally my dream and Kimberly and Lea agreed to come along for the ride), I wasn't exactly sure WHY I wanted us to take this trip. Somehow, I thought it would be good to do so, but I just didn't know in what ways. I think we're gradually understanding why it has been good. Perhaps the highlight of the trip so far has been the relationship we have built with folks here.
Across the street and a few meters up the hill from us live José Vargas Gomez and his wife Aurora Cortés Pavón, and their two children José Jr (4) and Lisett (8). José's grandfather also lives with them. And José's brother Eduardo works here in José's metalworking workshop (which is in their home). They build metal gates, iron window frames, steel doors and sturdy furniture. José Jr (Josecito) attends the same private school as Lea, but does so on scholarship.
Every weekday, we walk with them to school. Along the way we greet a dozen other neighbors walking or selling freshly-slaughtered chicken or making tortillas by hand or selling milk and beans from a tiny shop. We also stop and pick up José Jrs cousin, Abi (5) who attends their school.
I have spent a fair amount of time hanging out at Jose's workshop. He has been good enough to share many of his thoughts, generously repeating himself more slowly or in different words so that I might understand him. I've learned a lot about what life is like down here. It was he who suggested I teach some English to his relatives and friends, many of who will spend time working in the US, perhaps gardening in the Phoenix area, or harvesting tobacco in Virginia. Work is hard to come by here and decent paying working still more difficult to find.
His brother Eduardo (who has two kids of his own and lives in a nearby village) told me that he earns roughly the same per week here that he makes per day in tobacco fields in the US, where he spends four months away from his family every year. He wants to learn a few more phrases in English because his bosses in the tobacco fields will treat him with more respect if he understands and speaks more English.
Aurora, José's wife, has a warm and open smile and a heart to match. Their daughter Lisett has taken to Lea like an older sister, holding her hand and being sure that Lea understands the games, resorting to complicated role playing and hand gestures when Lea doesn't understand the Spanish version.
The other night we were invited to dinner at their home. We sat outside, next to heaps of scrap metal and washing buckets. The family of five (counting the grandfather) live in three tiny rooms. Aurora brought a steady stream of food to the table: pasta with crema, nopali cactus with onion, tortillas, salsa, and bifstek. We sat for hours talking and joking (or trying to: it was all in Spanish!) and learning more about each other and our lives and this place. (I've brought postcards of Madison to give to people here and I enjoy the looks on their faces when I tell them the lakes pictured there are ice presently).
On Saturday, finding myself with a chunk of time on my hands while Kim and Lea were teaching English to some children at Kimberly's Spanish school, I considered going for a long walk. But then I decided to see if I could help José and Eduardo with a project. And so found myself scraping and sanding paint off a huge old water tank that they had mounted on a truck for Feliciano's new business of trucking water to homes here during the dry season. (Feliciano is Mari's husband. Mari is Aurora's sister. They live just down the street and have three children, Aidé, Feliciano Jr, and Abi. Many are pictured in our blog.) We worked hard and it was a good way to help them out and to spend more time in the company of "la gente" (the people) here.
On Sunday we accompanied José and his family to his fútbol game in Ocotitlán, a village outside of our little town. The playing field is surrounded by mountains. (See photos in the blog.) Then they brought us to their friends' house where we ate on a balcony overlooking the pueblo. One highlight from dinner: Kimberly managed to tell a couple of jokes in Spanish that had everyone laughing!
This town has some incredibly inspiring history; I will post some details about that in the blog. For now, I will mention that the town barricaded itself against outsiders, big business, and the federal government for years in the mid 1990s. It is a revolutionary tale.
Qué suerte (what luck) that we landed in this place, with these people. The government named Tepoztlán a Pueblo Mágico or "Magic Village," and we are inclined to agree.
We send our best wishes to you,
Brian, Kimberly & Lea
PS Our blog is at http://brianlavendel.blogspot.com/
Brian here. We've been in Tepoztlán for six weeks now, so we're about halfway through our trip. Wow. When we told folks at home that we were going to be here for three months, many commented on how long a stay it was. When we tell folks here that we're staying for three months, they remark on what a short period of time it is! Often, they want to know when we'll be back. I wish we knew!
Looking back on our decision to take this trip (OK, it was originally my dream and Kimberly and Lea agreed to come along for the ride), I wasn't exactly sure WHY I wanted us to take this trip. Somehow, I thought it would be good to do so, but I just didn't know in what ways. I think we're gradually understanding why it has been good. Perhaps the highlight of the trip so far has been the relationship we have built with folks here.
Across the street and a few meters up the hill from us live José Vargas Gomez and his wife Aurora Cortés Pavón, and their two children José Jr (4) and Lisett (8). José's grandfather also lives with them. And José's brother Eduardo works here in José's metalworking workshop (which is in their home). They build metal gates, iron window frames, steel doors and sturdy furniture. José Jr (Josecito) attends the same private school as Lea, but does so on scholarship.
Every weekday, we walk with them to school. Along the way we greet a dozen other neighbors walking or selling freshly-slaughtered chicken or making tortillas by hand or selling milk and beans from a tiny shop. We also stop and pick up José Jrs cousin, Abi (5) who attends their school.
I have spent a fair amount of time hanging out at Jose's workshop. He has been good enough to share many of his thoughts, generously repeating himself more slowly or in different words so that I might understand him. I've learned a lot about what life is like down here. It was he who suggested I teach some English to his relatives and friends, many of who will spend time working in the US, perhaps gardening in the Phoenix area, or harvesting tobacco in Virginia. Work is hard to come by here and decent paying working still more difficult to find.
His brother Eduardo (who has two kids of his own and lives in a nearby village) told me that he earns roughly the same per week here that he makes per day in tobacco fields in the US, where he spends four months away from his family every year. He wants to learn a few more phrases in English because his bosses in the tobacco fields will treat him with more respect if he understands and speaks more English.
Aurora, José's wife, has a warm and open smile and a heart to match. Their daughter Lisett has taken to Lea like an older sister, holding her hand and being sure that Lea understands the games, resorting to complicated role playing and hand gestures when Lea doesn't understand the Spanish version.
The other night we were invited to dinner at their home. We sat outside, next to heaps of scrap metal and washing buckets. The family of five (counting the grandfather) live in three tiny rooms. Aurora brought a steady stream of food to the table: pasta with crema, nopali cactus with onion, tortillas, salsa, and bifstek. We sat for hours talking and joking (or trying to: it was all in Spanish!) and learning more about each other and our lives and this place. (I've brought postcards of Madison to give to people here and I enjoy the looks on their faces when I tell them the lakes pictured there are ice presently).
On Saturday, finding myself with a chunk of time on my hands while Kim and Lea were teaching English to some children at Kimberly's Spanish school, I considered going for a long walk. But then I decided to see if I could help José and Eduardo with a project. And so found myself scraping and sanding paint off a huge old water tank that they had mounted on a truck for Feliciano's new business of trucking water to homes here during the dry season. (Feliciano is Mari's husband. Mari is Aurora's sister. They live just down the street and have three children, Aidé, Feliciano Jr, and Abi. Many are pictured in our blog.) We worked hard and it was a good way to help them out and to spend more time in the company of "la gente" (the people) here.
On Sunday we accompanied José and his family to his fútbol game in Ocotitlán, a village outside of our little town. The playing field is surrounded by mountains. (See photos in the blog.) Then they brought us to their friends' house where we ate on a balcony overlooking the pueblo. One highlight from dinner: Kimberly managed to tell a couple of jokes in Spanish that had everyone laughing!
This town has some incredibly inspiring history; I will post some details about that in the blog. For now, I will mention that the town barricaded itself against outsiders, big business, and the federal government for years in the mid 1990s. It is a revolutionary tale.
Qué suerte (what luck) that we landed in this place, with these people. The government named Tepoztlán a Pueblo Mágico or "Magic Village," and we are inclined to agree.
We send our best wishes to you,
Brian, Kimberly & Lea
PS Our blog is at http://brianlavendel.blogspot.com/
Video: Lea climbing Serro del Hombre
Brian struck up a conversation with Guillermo, whose car repair shop is next to Lea's school, and he invited us to go for a hike with his family. We were thinking a nice mountain walk for a couple of hours. We should have known differently when we met his family for our walk and he was carrying a machete and a rope! What we thought was going to be a mellow walk ended up being the hardest mountain climb of our lives, and Lea was right there with us the whole time brave as could be! We decided to trust this man and follow his lead. It ended up being an incedibly memorable experience, and incredibly empowering for us all. To get a better idea of what the climb entailed view this short video of Lea ascending up a very steep part of the climb. The rope was necessary after all!
A few updated photos
At the fútbol game in Ocotitlán with José's family. On the left is Aurora's brother and his two children. In the center are Aurora, José, and their two kids. We're the güeros (light-skinned) on the right. His team won 6-1; it was very exciting and also relaxing. We sat in the back of the truck and ate sandwiches and mandarine oranges.
Our home on Calle del Tesoro, No. 8, Barrio de Los Reyes in Tepoztlán. ¡Muy comoda!
Josécito, Kimberly, Lisett, and Lea in the central square. We've so enjoyed spending time with the kids.
Feliciano, Lisett, Abi, Lea, and José having a ball playing together in the central square!
Here we are at the top of our very intense hike with a local family (see video of part of the climb). This cross can be seen from anyplace in Tepoztlán; the village is hundreds of meters below us. Now we look up from down below and say, "WOW, we made it all the way up there!" Lea has continued to refer to the cross as an "X" which is a hint that we're not Catholic.
Lea and Papa in the marketplace.
The usual suspects (plus Abi and Feliciano's older sister Aidé) at our home for the semi-weekly English class. Brian works with the adults and Kimberly with the kids. The kids have mostly enjoyed playing games during that time, but Kimberly slips in English lessons along the way.
Pappa, Lea, and Kimberly on a beautiful day in paradise prior to Kimberly's contact improv dance workshop.
Letter from México #2
Hola Amigos.
We hope this note finds you doing well. It is hard to believe that in three weeks we have settled into a life here that feels comfortable and safe, yet still exciting and invigorating.
When we arrived in Tepoztlán we felt like we had landed in a very good place. We got settled in our house, and within a few days Lea started her new school and Kimberly began intensive Spanish lessons. Although the language barrier has made things somewhat of a challenge for Lea, the school is a sweet and nurturing environment. Poco a poco, she seems to be picking it up. Recently the kids took a field trip to a nearby ranch. Lea had a horseback ride and enjoyed wearing a cowboy hat!
Kimberly enjoys her Spanish lessons. She goes to her school, which is also her teacher's home, four days a week. It is mainly outdoors overlooking a mountainside. Her teacher is wonderful and is not only teaching the language, but also the culture. For example, the other day they made tamales and then wrote out the recipe in Spanish. Brian goes one day a week for Spanish class and spends time exploring the village & taking care of details like making sure we have enough filtered water and propane for the house. He enjoys hikes in nearby hills, making friends with our neighbors, and frequenting the incredible outdoor market.
Our house is well located for us. We are uphill from the center of town (about a 10 minute walk) and only a few blocks from Lea's school. So far we have made a great connection with two nearby families.
The first family lives a few doors away. José Sr. is a metal worker. Lea goes to school with José Junior and we've really enjoyed getting to know the whole family. We've gone out to Jose Sr's fútbol game and have had the family over for dinner. On José's request, we will start English classes from our home for him and his friends and family!
The other family that we've gotten to know pretty well runs a tienda on the way to Lea's school. We make daily stops there and the family has really taken to us, and us to them! The son (Giovanni) drove Brian to Cuernvaca (a closeby larger city) to line up our internet, and the parents are always so happy to see us, and us them! The mom (Kate) invited us to join her for a first communion celebration at another neighbor's home. That was sure a close look at the local life! We enjoyed a traditional dish of molé, which is eaten on special occasions. And mentioning special occasions, wow, does this town know how to celebrate!
We've already participated in two local fiestas. The first we mentioned in our last note. Lots of fireworks, food, music, and simply being out and about. The other fiesta was in another nearby neighborhood. Everyone painted their faces with charcoal (based on a historical story) and the kids threw confetti eggs on each other. You can imagine what that was like to clean up! We also watched one of the biggest firework shows of our lives from our roof. And there's one more celebration I have to share with you. We were out walking the other night and saw children outside a home celebrating a birthday. They were about to break a piñata. Next thing we knew, the birthday girl invited Lea in to join the party! That's just how people are here--very helpful, warm and inviting.
A couple other interesting things to mention--a truck goes by a couple times a day (at random times, as far as we can tell) sounding a siren to indicate that propane gas is being sold off the back of the truck. The garbage and recycling trucks play loud music from a speaker. The carefree attitude also means there is lots of garbage in the streets, the air is smoky from countless fires, and there are loose dogs (and lots of poop) everywhere.
Overall, it's WONDERFUL to be here. Not only has it been an incredible cultural and language sabbatical but it's also been really special time for our family to have together. A highlight of our days is sitting down together for an early dinner which usually consists of rice, beans, homemade tortillas, guacamole, tomato salad and ripe, luscious fruit for desert. After dinner we usually take a long, relaxed walk together, which sometimes involves playing tag with Lea in the town zocalo.
If the trip ended tomorrow we'd have felt like it was all we'd hoped for, and we still have another two months to dig into the relationships we've built and get to know this town and culture that we've already grown to appreciate. What we do hope to take home with us is this way in which the people seem to really enjoy being alive, and cherish simply being in the moment.
Some of you have asked for photos, so Brian took the plunge and started a blog with photos of our journey that we thought you'd enjoy. Visit http://brianlavendel.blogspot.com/
Know our thoughts are with you from afar. If you'd like, we'd love to hear back from you. Please reply via email, or comment on our blogpage.
Abrazos y besos,
Kimberly, Brian and Lea
We hope this note finds you doing well. It is hard to believe that in three weeks we have settled into a life here that feels comfortable and safe, yet still exciting and invigorating.
When we arrived in Tepoztlán we felt like we had landed in a very good place. We got settled in our house, and within a few days Lea started her new school and Kimberly began intensive Spanish lessons. Although the language barrier has made things somewhat of a challenge for Lea, the school is a sweet and nurturing environment. Poco a poco, she seems to be picking it up. Recently the kids took a field trip to a nearby ranch. Lea had a horseback ride and enjoyed wearing a cowboy hat!
Kimberly enjoys her Spanish lessons. She goes to her school, which is also her teacher's home, four days a week. It is mainly outdoors overlooking a mountainside. Her teacher is wonderful and is not only teaching the language, but also the culture. For example, the other day they made tamales and then wrote out the recipe in Spanish. Brian goes one day a week for Spanish class and spends time exploring the village & taking care of details like making sure we have enough filtered water and propane for the house. He enjoys hikes in nearby hills, making friends with our neighbors, and frequenting the incredible outdoor market.
Our house is well located for us. We are uphill from the center of town (about a 10 minute walk) and only a few blocks from Lea's school. So far we have made a great connection with two nearby families.
The first family lives a few doors away. José Sr. is a metal worker. Lea goes to school with José Junior and we've really enjoyed getting to know the whole family. We've gone out to Jose Sr's fútbol game and have had the family over for dinner. On José's request, we will start English classes from our home for him and his friends and family!
The other family that we've gotten to know pretty well runs a tienda on the way to Lea's school. We make daily stops there and the family has really taken to us, and us to them! The son (Giovanni) drove Brian to Cuernvaca (a closeby larger city) to line up our internet, and the parents are always so happy to see us, and us them! The mom (Kate) invited us to join her for a first communion celebration at another neighbor's home. That was sure a close look at the local life! We enjoyed a traditional dish of molé, which is eaten on special occasions. And mentioning special occasions, wow, does this town know how to celebrate!
We've already participated in two local fiestas. The first we mentioned in our last note. Lots of fireworks, food, music, and simply being out and about. The other fiesta was in another nearby neighborhood. Everyone painted their faces with charcoal (based on a historical story) and the kids threw confetti eggs on each other. You can imagine what that was like to clean up! We also watched one of the biggest firework shows of our lives from our roof. And there's one more celebration I have to share with you. We were out walking the other night and saw children outside a home celebrating a birthday. They were about to break a piñata. Next thing we knew, the birthday girl invited Lea in to join the party! That's just how people are here--very helpful, warm and inviting.
A couple other interesting things to mention--a truck goes by a couple times a day (at random times, as far as we can tell) sounding a siren to indicate that propane gas is being sold off the back of the truck. The garbage and recycling trucks play loud music from a speaker. The carefree attitude also means there is lots of garbage in the streets, the air is smoky from countless fires, and there are loose dogs (and lots of poop) everywhere.
Overall, it's WONDERFUL to be here. Not only has it been an incredible cultural and language sabbatical but it's also been really special time for our family to have together. A highlight of our days is sitting down together for an early dinner which usually consists of rice, beans, homemade tortillas, guacamole, tomato salad and ripe, luscious fruit for desert. After dinner we usually take a long, relaxed walk together, which sometimes involves playing tag with Lea in the town zocalo.
If the trip ended tomorrow we'd have felt like it was all we'd hoped for, and we still have another two months to dig into the relationships we've built and get to know this town and culture that we've already grown to appreciate. What we do hope to take home with us is this way in which the people seem to really enjoy being alive, and cherish simply being in the moment.
Some of you have asked for photos, so Brian took the plunge and started a blog with photos of our journey that we thought you'd enjoy. Visit http://brianlavendel.blogspot.com/
Know our thoughts are with you from afar. If you'd like, we'd love to hear back from you. Please reply via email, or comment on our blogpage.
Abrazos y besos,
Kimberly, Brian and Lea
We welcome your comments!
By the way, feel free to add your comments and responses here. Just click on "comments." Thanks!
VIDEO: Fiesta de San Sebastián
You'll see that some folks here have painted their faces with charcoal as part of the tradition of this fiesta de San Sebastián. Brian shot this brief video of music and dancing as the procession was about to enter the town square.
Check out our location via Google Maps!
Satellite view of our village of Tepoztlán, Morelos, México
This customized Google! Map gives you a sense of our lay of the land in this Pueblo Mágico.
This customized Google! Map gives you a sense of our lay of the land in this Pueblo Mágico.
Pan de Fiesta
People certainly know how to celebrate in this town! There seems to be a big fiesta every couple of weeks celebrating, well, something... Here is bread that seemed to be the signature food at this particular festival. It was served warm, and like many other foods in Mexico, very SWEET!
Kimberly & Lea in front of bean wall
Zoom in on this picture (by clicking on it). Yes it really is all made from beans. And it is HUGE. The photo just shows a tiny part of it.
Getting ready to head home after the fútbol game
We're at José (senior)'s fútbol game. The kids had a blast travelling in José's combi (van). There were no seats so on the way there all the kids were standing up and holding onto the front seats and on the way back they were hanging off the back end with the hatch open. Luckily the van was going slowly on back roads!
Lea with neighbors at the fútbol game
Here is Lea with Liset, Abi, Feliciano, and Jose. Lea goes to school with Abi and Jose and they are both neighbors of ours. They've become good friends in a brief time! Lea is often asking to have playdates with them and we've also enjoyed getting to know their parents.
Lea and Sylvia teaching the clase de inglés
Once or twice a week, we get to teach the kids (and some older folks) a bit of English at Kimberly's school. In the center of this photo is Sylvia, Kimberly's teacher.
Letter from México #1
Greetings from Tepoztlán, México, a small town in the state of Morelos.
We arrrived here on Monday, after spending two days in Mexico City. The city is big (VERY big) and busy but we managed to explore a niche of the central historic quarter of the city. We walked through a park and around the Palacio de Bellas Artes. We also met Mónica, a local leader in the Re-Evaluation Counseling community for a session. Later she took us around the city and to a restaurant where we enjoyed mariachi music, a Mexican quesadilla, and sopa de tortilla. We breakfasted on huevos rancheros con frijoles y fresh juices of orange, papaya and pineapple. Deliciosa! The staff at the cafe enjoyed Lea and showered her with smiles and gifts.
We were warmly welcomed in Tepoztlán as well. Adriana, the director of Lea's school, met us at the bus stop and took us into her home overnight until our landlord could come with keys to let us in to our rented home. Tepoztlán is only an hour away from Mexico City but it seems a different world. Narrow stone streets, churchbells, a mercado the size of a city block, roosters, lots of dogs. Oh yes, and chili flavored ice cream--haven't worked up the courage to try that one yet. The weather is lovely: warm sunny days and cool clear nights.
When we first arrived, the town was in the middle of a celebration of San José--singing, processions, parties, fireworks, and churchbells ringing all night long. We thought things would quiet down. We were wrong. Fireworks start at 4 in the morning and can be heard on-and-off all day long. Bells ring throughout the day. The saints down here really know how to throw a party.
Our home is a small two-bedroom cement house with some citrus and banana trees in the yard. Bouganvalia are everywhere. We can't identify several of the fruits in the market, but so far have enjoyed fresh papaya, mango, oranges, mandarins, avocado and many types of bananas. New to our world is guanabana, granada, and mame. We buy hot tortillas from the old women around the corner.
Lea started attending kindergarten Thursday and is already learning a lot of Spanish, though I don't think she realizes it! Her school is a private, Montessori-type of school--very creative and loving. Today she came home with warm bread that the kids baked in a clay oven. We have met several families through the school, as well as the family of a local shopkeeper named Kate, pronounced "KAH-tay". (There are dozens of tiny shops in every barrio, or neighborhood.)
The town is surrounded by majestic mountains. In a future dispatch, we hope to tell you of our efforts to explore them. Incidentally, there is almost no level ground or smooth pavement here so the only place Kimberly (who is training for the Madison Marathon) has to run is the fútbol fields at the bottom of town.
Kimberly will be starting intensive Spanish language classes on Monday where she will be spending most of her time enjoying (yes, we said enjoying!) learning Spanish. This weekend, Lea will get to be a guest star at a class for Mexican children who are learning English! I plan to volunteer in a local school. More details on that later.
Lea asked us to add that: "We have nice neighbors and we have nice friends and we have a nice house."
We live at Numero 8 on a street called Tesoro, or "treasure," which helps us remember what a treasure it is for us to be here, together, and experiencing this new place--its culture, language, and people. At the same time, we also treasure you and our lives back home and send our best regards.
Con cariño,
Brian, Kimberly and Lea
We arrrived here on Monday, after spending two days in Mexico City. The city is big (VERY big) and busy but we managed to explore a niche of the central historic quarter of the city. We walked through a park and around the Palacio de Bellas Artes. We also met Mónica, a local leader in the Re-Evaluation Counseling community for a session. Later she took us around the city and to a restaurant where we enjoyed mariachi music, a Mexican quesadilla, and sopa de tortilla. We breakfasted on huevos rancheros con frijoles y fresh juices of orange, papaya and pineapple. Deliciosa! The staff at the cafe enjoyed Lea and showered her with smiles and gifts.
We were warmly welcomed in Tepoztlán as well. Adriana, the director of Lea's school, met us at the bus stop and took us into her home overnight until our landlord could come with keys to let us in to our rented home. Tepoztlán is only an hour away from Mexico City but it seems a different world. Narrow stone streets, churchbells, a mercado the size of a city block, roosters, lots of dogs. Oh yes, and chili flavored ice cream--haven't worked up the courage to try that one yet. The weather is lovely: warm sunny days and cool clear nights.
When we first arrived, the town was in the middle of a celebration of San José--singing, processions, parties, fireworks, and churchbells ringing all night long. We thought things would quiet down. We were wrong. Fireworks start at 4 in the morning and can be heard on-and-off all day long. Bells ring throughout the day. The saints down here really know how to throw a party.
Our home is a small two-bedroom cement house with some citrus and banana trees in the yard. Bouganvalia are everywhere. We can't identify several of the fruits in the market, but so far have enjoyed fresh papaya, mango, oranges, mandarins, avocado and many types of bananas. New to our world is guanabana, granada, and mame. We buy hot tortillas from the old women around the corner.
Lea started attending kindergarten Thursday and is already learning a lot of Spanish, though I don't think she realizes it! Her school is a private, Montessori-type of school--very creative and loving. Today she came home with warm bread that the kids baked in a clay oven. We have met several families through the school, as well as the family of a local shopkeeper named Kate, pronounced "KAH-tay". (There are dozens of tiny shops in every barrio, or neighborhood.)
The town is surrounded by majestic mountains. In a future dispatch, we hope to tell you of our efforts to explore them. Incidentally, there is almost no level ground or smooth pavement here so the only place Kimberly (who is training for the Madison Marathon) has to run is the fútbol fields at the bottom of town.
Kimberly will be starting intensive Spanish language classes on Monday where she will be spending most of her time enjoying (yes, we said enjoying!) learning Spanish. This weekend, Lea will get to be a guest star at a class for Mexican children who are learning English! I plan to volunteer in a local school. More details on that later.
Lea asked us to add that: "We have nice neighbors and we have nice friends and we have a nice house."
We live at Numero 8 on a street called Tesoro, or "treasure," which helps us remember what a treasure it is for us to be here, together, and experiencing this new place--its culture, language, and people. At the same time, we also treasure you and our lives back home and send our best regards.
Con cariño,
Brian, Kimberly and Lea
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