Farewell

Well, I have returned to the U.S. but first I'd like to make an update on the rest of the week...

Last Tuesday Miguel had to work in the afternoon so I went to the beach with Alejandro and Carlos which was pretty fun. We didn't do much - we threw the frisbee for a little while and kicked the soccer ball around, but mostly we just sat around and had a few beers. We left around 8:30, drove around for a little bit then headed back to the apartment. I was really tired so I just took a shower then watched TV before Miguel got home around 11:30.

Wednesday was Miguel's day off and my last day in Tuxpan so we woke up early and went to watch one of the soccer games at 9AM. After that we went to the grocery store to pick up stuff for breakfast - I made us omelets at his aunt and uncle's house which were delicious; I'm pretty sure Miguel is going to miss eating those haha. After we had breakfast we went back downtown to watch the second world cup game of the day and once that was over we went back to his apartment to watch a movie because we were kind of tired. Around 7 we went back downtown because he wanted a haircut so we went and did that, bought him some new jeans, and then went to the plaza for a little while. Later in the evening we went to his aunt and uncle's house again so I could say goodbye to everyone which was really difficult. I miss them so much already. After we left there, we went to get tacos for dinner because I wanted that to be my last meal in Mexico. It was raining really bad that night - Miguel said Tuxpan was crying because I was leaving. The rest of the night I packed up my stuff and we went to sleep kind of early since we had to wake up early in the morning.

On Thursday we woke up around 9AM because my plane left Poza Rica at 11:30. Alejandro drove us which was really nice. It was so hard saying goodbye to Miguel & I couldn't stop crying. I just wanted to keep holding on to him. I really hope that I can see him next summer but we'll see how everything goes I guess. I miss him a lot and I think the next few weeks are going to be hard until I get used to being away from him for a while.

I still feel like it really hasn't hit me that I'm "back". It's kind of weird being back but I still don't really know how I feel. It was nice seeing everyone again and now I'm at my mom and dad's house for the summer. I miss Mexico a lot and I'm sure it will get tougher as the days progress - I guess I'm still kind of on a high from being back. I sure was glad to see Pecas too...she was so happy once I got home haha. Well, I think that's the end of this blog. I'm going to start a new one though about my continued life here in the U.S. .... not sure what it's going to be called yet but I'll post it on here within the next few days...or maybe tonight if I have time.

Vacation Weekend

So last week ended up being pretty good. We didn't end up going fishing but on Tuesday we went to the beach with some of Miguel's friends and played soccer and swam for most of the afternoon. Wednesday was his day off so we slept in until the beginning of the afternoon and then headed downtown to run some errands. We also went to play basketball and at nighttime we ordered a pizza and watched movies.

Thursday we left Tuxpan after Miguel finished work. Our bus left around 3:45 and I think we got to the hotel around 7 or 7:30 after making a quick stop to grab some dinner. We were kind of tired from traveling so we just stayed around the hotel that night. We walked around a little bit, checked out the pool area, and just watched movies in the room until we went to bed.

On Friday we woke up kind of late and watched the first games of the world cup. Mexico played South Africa and tied 1-1. While watching the game we ordered room service so we had our breakfast in bed which was super nice. Not to mention we were in an air conditioned room – I was finally able to sleep through the night instead of waking up every hour sweating my butt off. After the game was over we headed down to the pool for a little while. We didn’t stay too long, but it was nice to refresh and lay in the sun. After pool time, we decided to get ready and head into Tecolutla which was about a 10 minute bus ride from our hotel. We walked around for a while and it reminded me a lot like Zihuatanejo, just not so big. It was kind of a touristy town which a bunch of stands selling stuff along with plenty of restaurants. Once we got to know most of the downtown we went to a restaurant for dinner and each had shrimp cocktails which were pretty good. It was fun being in Tecolutla – everyone was really nice and either wanted us to buy stuff , eat at their restaurant, or go on a tour. I think we headed back to the hotel around 8:00 or so and then just hung out at the room and watched movies the rest of the night.

Saturday we headed back to Tecolutla and spent the whole day at the beach. First though we went and got breakfast and watched the beginning of the U.S. vs. England soccer game. After eating and drinking a pitcher of horchata we hopped in a taxi and went to the beach. When we got there, we grabbed a few chairs under a palm umbrella. Once we got everything situated, we threw the Frisbee around that we had just bought in town which was pretty fun. After that, I was pretty thirsty so I ordered a michelada and Miguel got a coconut which was delicious. We played cards too which was really fun. Miguel taught me a new game that is kind of hard to explain but I think I won more than him haha. Later we played Frisbee again and jumped swam a little bit in the water before walking down the beach towards downtown. We walked around a little bit more and looked at some of the stands for sunglasses but had no luck. We were pretty tired so we decided that we’d have dinner at the hotel so we headed back to shower and then go eat. There was a huge group of cheerleaders staying at the hotel and they were all eating when we came to the restaurant so we decided to eat outside. It was really nice because there were a ton of stars out. After we ate we walked around a little bit and then decided to call it a night.

Sunday was really fun because after checking out of the hotel around 12:30 we took a bus to Papantla because we went to Tajín which is a ancient ruins site with a bunch of pyramids. Papantla is a really cool town – it’s really hilly and seems to have a lot of indigenous people living there. It was so beautiful and I think the town is really proud of its culture. We walked around for a while when we got there – first we went to a museum which was really cool because it had a bunch of murals and sculptures of the indigenous people who had lived there. Vanilla and coffee are also important agricultural products. After the museum we decided to get some lunch before heading to Tajín. We went to this little restaurant and watched another world cup game before taking another bus. Tajín was really cool and I got a bunch of great pictures. We didn’t have too much time there though because we got there when they were almost closing; I didn’t mind too much though because on Sundays you don’t have to pay to enter. After seeing the pyramids and doing a little bit of shopping at the stands we headed back to Tuxpan. We got home around 8:30 and layed low the rest of the night because we were pretty tired.

Overall the vacation was great and it was so nice to finally doing something fun with Miguel since he has to work almost every day of the week. I think he had a really nice time and I know I sure did. We’ve always been talking about going to another place together that neither of us had been to and finally we did it. It was definitely a perfect weekend – I mean we went to the beach, we shopped, we had dinners together, watched soccer, walked around, visited some pyramids, and a couple new towns. I think it’s safe to say that it was a pretty successful vacation

Despedida

Friday night was my last in Guanajuato and my family threw me a going away party with all my friends. Norma and her friends made us enchiladas mineras which were delicious and after we ate we all started drinking. We set up a beer pong table out on the terraza and played for a few hours. At one point Abram was my partner and we played against Norma and my aunt which was hilarious up until the point when they beat us. The same thing happened last semeter too when Sarah was my partner and we lost against them. Talk about double shame. It was fun regardless and I think everyone had a great time.

After drinking at the house for a while we headed downtown to La Diabla (again) for a couple beers. We ate some botanas there and I ended up taking a plastic beer glass that said Victoria on it and also a tortilla warmer that said La Diabla on it haha. I just needed to grab some souvenirs before I left! After La Diabla we went to In Lak´ech and stayed there until we all went home; I think I got home around 5:30AM. Overall, the night was so much fun and I´m so glad that I could spend it with all my friends in Guanajuato. It was really hard saying goodbye to everyone, but I´m sure we´ll all see each other again - I think we´re already trying to plan something for next summer haha.

Yesterday I left Guanajuato to come to Tuxpan. I was really sad saying goodbye to my family since they have been so great this semester, but there´s no doubt that I will come back and visit them - if not for independence day, hopefully after I graduate. I got to Tuxpan at 4AM this morning and I´m really tired because I could sleep very well on the bus and then after I got here since it´s so damn hot. I can´t wait to go to the beach. I think we´re going fishing tomorrow morning, so I think that will be nice. I don´t ever have too much access to the internet here, but I will try to write when possible! Now I´m just waiting for Miguel to get done working at 11:00 then I suppose we´ll just hang out if we´re gonna wake up early tomorrow.

Well, I think that´s all for now. Only a week and a half before I come home!

Wednesday was quite the busy day. In the morning, Rebecca, Yuri, and I went to La Presa to get breakfast - we had gorditas again with fresh squeezed orange juice. I think this is the best place to get gorditas and the orange juice was definitely a plus - I'm pretty sure I'm going to buy a juicer when I get home. After breakfast we went shopping, mostly because Rebecca needed our "moral support" because she was going on a splurge. She got a bunch of cute dresses; I tried on a few but none of them looked that great on me so I bought an old school hat which now I'm not sure if I'll ever wear. Everything seems like such a good idea in the store, but once you get it home the practicality of it kind of comes into focus. Not really sure what I'm going to wear it with but I think I'll have Misch help me out.

We all went home for lunch after shopping but decided that we would meet up later. After I got home I ate and then took a great nap. When I woke up I watched La Misma Luna which is a great movie. I borrowed it from Yuri but I think I'll buy it before I come home. Once the movie was over I started getting ready to go out with the girls. We met up at Yuri's house because she lives right downtown. After everyone got there we walked out by Plaza Pozuelos to this place called Bar Q or Q Bar, we're not really sure which comes first. The beers were kind of expensive but that place was really nice and they gave us botanas. I had 2 micheladas which were delicious - its my favorite drink here by far, along with Victoria. After Bar Q we went to La Diabla for a couple tarros. Checko was working again so it was nice to see him. So it was a pretty low key night just hanging out with the girls and drinking beer haha.

As of now, I'm leaving Guanajuato in 2 days. I can't believe it! I'm doing all my laundry right now because I'm gonna have to pack tomorrow afternoon. I feel like I can't really write about how I feel about leaving because it really hasn't hit me yet. I'm just trying to keep myself busy and enjoy my remaining time here as much as possible. I'm going to be really sad to leave my friends but mostly my family. They have been so nice to me in the past two semesters and I'm going to miss them a lot. It will be okay though because I'm going to try to come back for Independence Day in September if I have enough money. Well, I'll try to write again tomorrow if I have time between all the packing and the party!

Out with the girls..

Yesterday was my last day of class in Mexico! I am officially done with all classes and homework! I'm a senior now woo! Now I have the rest of the week to hang out with my friends and go out before I leave on Saturday!

After class I went home and took a shower and started packing up some of the things that I'm not going to need in the next few days. Mostly winter clothes and pictures. My room looks so depressing now after taking all the pictures down. Around 5:30 I headed downtown to meet up with Yuri, Rebecca, and Ambre because we decided to get dinner at the Italian restaurant. Before dinner we went to Bar Luna in the jardín to get a couple drinks which was really nice because it's all shaded and a good place to people watch. In the middle of the jardín there was a band playing danzón music which is nice to listen to but really boring to watch people dance to. I seriously think they dance in a square and it's all old people too because it's slow.

Around 8:00 we left and our friend David met up with us too to go to Chao Bella. The food was amazing and the wine was cheap and delicious. We were all really happy with our meals; I got spaghetti with shrimp in a white wine cream sauce. We decided to head to La Diabla after dinner for a beer which was a bad idea because we were all so full and it was so hot in there. After one glass each we headed out and all went home. So overall is was a fun night and definitely nice to finally eat some italian food!