Stones for Ibarra

My Uncle recommended reading Harriet Doerr as she writes about Mexico and lived in the country for some time.  When I saw Stones for Ibarra by Doerr I thought it would be worth reading.  This book is about a couple, Richard and Sara, who moves to a small Mexican town from the San Francisco area.  They are there to spend time working the mine Richard´s grandfather once ran. Though that is the overall story, each chapter is a short story about a person in the village there.  The story was okay, the strength of this novel was not in the story but in Doerr´s ability to use words.  She is clear and concise with her words and does a great job of allowing readers to visualize the people and their lives.

three things

La Basilica

Three things I discovered this last week or so about Guanajuato have made me glad about the choice to spend my time here.

1.  There are many things to see...I think over 30 different sites for tourists, which includes a variety of museums, churches, and plazas.

La Presa de la Olla

Events and music are everywhere.  Many Friday nights there are symphony orchestra concerts at a theatre downtown.  I went to one the first Friday I was here.  The museums have free events, too. There is a classic book club on Tuesdays at one museum.  I took part in a free art class on Wednesday,  Friday I went to a talk about textiles.  My plan is to visit one or two museums each week.  Last week I visited the Museo Casa Diego Rivera.

2.  As an extension of the university, there is a place called CAADI.  It is a type of language school affiliated with the university.  For a small cost ($60), I can attend conversation groups for the rest of my time here.  There are Spanish groups, mostly focused on conversation, but at times are about reading or culture.  There are also groups for other languages, including English, French, German, Chinese and Italian.  I have met a lot of new people in the last week from different parts of the world and have a place to practice speaking Spanish.  It is open twelve hours a day, five days a week.  There are also resources there to use for study.

3.  I will have enough books to read.  There is a central library that is part of the university with both Spanish and English books which I can read there.  There are also Spanish and English books available for checkout from CAADI.  Today I went to the English Language Library which has over two thousand English books available for checkout.  I brought six books with me, but they will only last through the beginning or middle of April.

here

I arrived in Mexico safely, and am beginning to explore my new place.  The above picture was taken from my bedroom window.  Although both Guatemala and Mexico are Spanish speaking countries, there is a different feel here.  The people here talk faster...I am going to have to get used to it.  This city, Guanajauto, also has more tourists, many more old buildings, and the university is quite large. 

The streets are not straight, there are lots of hills, but there is  green space-trees and plazas with plants.  I will get to eat lots of Mexican food and learn more about the culture here.  For at least the first month, I will be staying with a family that has two daughters (17 and 20), so I should also get lots of practice speaking Spanish, as well. 

baby quilt

This is the baby quilt that I made this week for a friend's baby boy.  It was inspired by a quilt that my sister made.  I would use the idea to make another quilt...not too complicated with pleasing results.  

home

I have been home close to a week and it has been good, cold weather and all.

I am enjoying the time I have to hang out with my family.  I have also been able to do some other things I missed while in Guatemala.
Today I started sewing a baby quilt.

I have been to the library to check out books.

Other things on my agenda are seeing some friends, doing my taxes, and figuring out exactly what I need for my time in Mexico.  The remaining time will fly by.

another view of Guatemala

The last couple of days I have been relaxing near Lago Atitlan.  After living in Quetzaltenango for five months, it feels good to be somewhere that I can enjoy being outside.  Sunday afternoon I spent a lot of time down by the lakeshore.  Yesterday I went to the Atitlan Nature Reserve and saw butterflies, a few spider monkeys and some coati.  Choco bananas are a treat I have been eating, they are almost as good as ice cream but healthier.  Today I went to three of the different villages around the lake.  Each village is a little different, but one thing that they all had in common was a lot of vendors trying to sell things to the tourists.  The picture of the church was taken in Santiago Atitlan.

It is good to see another part of Guatemala before heading home.  Next stop, Antigua.  More tourist activities and spending time with Aunt Betty and Uncle Harold.