Fall Fun

The International Balloon Festival came to town again.  It's one of my favorite times of the year.  The sky if full of balloons and just looking at all of them brings a smile to your face.  My favorite this year was the ice-cream cone.  There were also Darth Vader and Elvis balloons!

Sadly, the Leon soccer team's season came to a close today in the semi-finals.  They played well, but just not well enough to beat the other team.  Fans can't be too disappointed though, because the team got a lot farther than anyone expected.  I'll miss going to the stadium... until next year!  (Fun fact: I was featured on the post-game tv report eating peanuts! hahaha)

In less than 1 month I'll be back in the USA for the Holiday Season!  xoxo and hohoho!

Halloween

It's finally getting a little chilly here in Mexico (which means you need to wear a jacket in the morning and at night). I dont mind however, since I am sick of wearing my summer clothes for 7 months straight now.

 

The school where I work had their annual Halloween Party last week.  We had a great turnout by the students and I got to be a judge in the costume contest.  Halloween isnt traditionally celebrated in Mexico, but like most things American, it has invaded the culture. 

It was exciting for me to follow the Tigers' World Series run.  That is, until they got swept by the Giants in the end.  Since I work in the evening, it's hard to watch the games.  But even if I was able to watch them, it's hard to find baseball on tv since every channal puts soccer first.

In other sporting news, the Leon soccer team is in 3rd place in the first division and has qualified for the playoffs in a few weeks.  That's a pretty big deal since their are 18 teams and Leon wasn't even in the first division last season! 

My birthday is right around the corner and then comes the winter Holiday season...I'm excited to come home over Christmas Break and spend time with the family :-)

Summer's over

About 2 months ago I got back from my one month vacation in the USA - it was fantastic.  I got to spend a lot of time with my family, was a bridesmaid in my friend's wedding, and went on vacation to South Dakota with college friends. 

Well I'm back in Mexico now and decided I'm still not quite sure when I want to go back to the USA permanently.  I like my job and make enough money to live decently so I'm happy here for the time being. 

My last blog I had written about how the Leon soccer team had ascended to the first division.  Well, we're halfway through the new season now and the team is in 4th place (out of 17  teams) - pretty good!  And get this: I give private English classes to the coach!  He is a funny guy, from Uruguay, and very enthusiastic about everything he does.  And the best part is, he gives me free tickets to the games!  So I have enjoyed going to the stadium to watch the team. 

September 16the was Independence Day in Mexico.  I celebrated in the traditional way - going to a party, drinking tequila, and eating a traditional Mexican soup called pozole.  Check out my sombrero!  Do you think I'd pass for a Mexican?

Soccer Glory

A few weeks ago the most exciting thing to happen in a LONG time in Leon finally happened: the soccer team won the second division championship and went up to the first division. I know, not all that thrilling for non-soccer fans, but remember, people LOVE soccer down here and go crazy for it.  So, it was pure euphoria for a couple days in the city following the ascension.  And I was lucky enough to go to the game (which was crazy: non-stop chanting, screaming, cups of beer flying, and fireworks going off in the crowd (Not above the stadium - INSIDE the stadium where people were sitting).

You've gotta check out these links to see how crazy the atmosphere was:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2ac_-TJg-Q&feature=relmfu

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clh-_Y62pAA

Other than that, not much is new.  I'm excited to be going back to the US in a couple weeks.  I come back June 24 and will be staying for about a month (with a week in between dedicated to a friend's wedding and post-wedding vacation with college friends).  Lately, I've been feeling like it might be time for me to come back for good to the US in order to go back to school and get on with my "real" life. haha.  Things are still going well here and I like my job but I've been here for almost 2 and a half years (which was way longer than the 5 months I had originally planned).  I'm hoping that this trip home will help me reassess my short term goals. 

That's all for now!  Hasta pronto!
Anna

Mexico City

For Spring Break this year I went to Mexico City with a friend. I loved it! The capital has so much to offer compared to the rest of Mexico - it's modern and has tons of things to see and do. On the first day we took the 5 hour busride and arrived in the late afternoon. Later we rode a tourbus around the city. It was cool to see all the buildings lit up at night.

The second day we visited the Basilica. It's located on a hill on the edge of the city and apart from being beautiful itself, it has a beautiful view of the city. That day there was also a little earthquake in the city! Kelly and I were in the hotel room and for about 10 seconds we felt the ground move and the light fixture and doors sway. It was no big deal (no buildings fell and no one was hurt) and happens a lot in the capital since the city sits on top of 2 plates. But still - what an experience!

Another great thing about Mexico city is the subway system. Kelly and I rode it everywhere - we never took a taxi! It's very efficient and can take you anywhere you need to go. Plus, it wasn't dangerous (there are actually different sections for women and men).

On the third day Kelly and I went to 4 museums. The first one was Bellas Artes. There they had a special exhibit on an artist I really like called Botero. Look up his work - I think you'll find it humorous! Next we went to a musuem that features a mural by the famous Mexican artist Diego Rivera. Later we went to the National History Museum which is located in an old castle! It's called Chapultepec Castle and the USA fought there during the Mexican-American War of 1846-48. Finally we went to the Anthropology Museum. It's very nice, but I think Kelly and I would've appreciated it more if we were Mexican, hehe.

On the last day we explored Templo Mayor: the ruins of an Aztec pyramid that is located in the middle of downtown. It was cool to see the remains of something 500 years old, and archeologists are still excavating the site and discovering new things! After that we went to Coyoacan, a southern part of the city that is quiet and has a lot of trees. There, we visited the blue house where Frida Kahlo grew up and later lived with Diego Rivera. Finally, we went back downtown to watch the Mexican army take down the huge flag in the main plaza (they take it down everyday at 6pm and raise it at 8am). It was quite a procession.

I really enjoyed my time in Mexico City, and hope to return in the future to see even more of what it has to offer.

The Pope

A couple weeks ago the Pope came to Mexico! He was doing a tour of Latin America and his stops included Cuba and Leon, Mexico (where I live). People were really worried that the city wasnt prepared to handle a visit from a person of such status, but the city actually did a great job! After he arrived from the airport, he rode about 25 miles in his PopeMobil and all along the way people were lined around the streets to greet him and catch a glimpse. I didn't have to leave my house until about an hour before he passed by the spot where I saw him -- which is about 10 minutes from where I live - right across from the Starbucks on the corner - haha. He flew by too! He was really booking it in that Popemobil. People were really excited but everything was under control - yay Mexico! (That's something I don't say often). In the next couple of days he is giving some private masses to special people who have tickets. I wont be able to attend any of the masses, but just seeing him was pretty cool. Check out the video:

End of 2011/ Start of 2012

After a wonderful 2 week vacation with family and friends in the USA, I'm back in Mexico. Before returning to the USA in December, I went with a friend to an all-inclusive hotel in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico. It was very nice - the weather was warm and the hotel wasn't too full since we went right before the big holiday rush.

This past weekend was a long one in Mexico because Monday was a Holiday (Constitution Day). I took advantage of this and went with some friends to a city farther north called San Luis Potosi. One of the friends I went with used to live in SLP, so she acted as our tour guide. We explored the downtown of the city (which is really big), toured an old jail which is now an Arts center, and then went to Chili's to watch the SuperBowl. Check out the statue that was in front of the Chili's:

Recently, I did something that had been on my "Things to do list" here in Mexico: I went to a cockfight. I went in not really knowing what to expect, but it turns out that I liked it! It's cruel (the roosters have spurs on their legs and fight each other to the death) but it's entertaining, and part of the draw is that you can bet on the roosters.

Here's to a great 2012!