Just Getting Started

     So it is already my third day in Oaxaca and it feels like I have already been here for so long (in a good way of course). We have done so much already and there is so much more to come I can't help but be excited. I don't even know where to begin. Flights went smoothly and the whole group arrived in Oaxaca safely. We were able to see a gorgeous view of the city all lit up at night as we were flying in and tons of lightning in the heavy clouds which constantly roll through the area. We were greeted at the tiny airport by Lindsey from SURCO, the awesome organization helping us organize our adventure here. Oaxaca also greeted us with the traditional rain, it had held off the whole day and was awaiting our arrival. We then went to meet our homestay families where Niki, Nina, and I met our mom Mercedes.
     I then knew I was in another country. Mercedes speaks Spanish very quickly and it immediately had me scared. Apparently she also speaks very formal Spanish so even a little harder to understand. I was trying my hardest to understand but I would be lying if I didn't say that I started to worry. We then arrived at our beautiful home where we each got our own room. It felt great to finally get to sleep after a long day of traveling.
     Wednesday we all met with our housemoms and went to SURCO for the first time. It was the first chance to really see the city since we arrived when it was dark. It is somewhat similar to what I had imagined. I imagined a distinguished neighborhood but it was a lot more urban. The development is very diverse, all different styles of architecture on the same street. Houses are always in the process of being added onto or fixed so that is why it looks so diverse. There are businesses and stores mixed within houses which is something I found pretty cool and is probably very convenient for locals (a dentist is right next door to my house). Now that I think of it, that is similar to  US cities but I'm not much of a city girl back home so that's why it hit me at first.
     Some other things which stood out to me when first seeing the city were:

• the worlds smallest sidewalks- only 1 person wide on the majority of streets
• roads are in very poor conditions everywhere
• navigating these streets is nothing like what I am familiar with in the states. Even maps are not always helpful. Roads often change names halfway through and streets are not as clearly labeled as what we are use to

     At SURCO we had an orientation with Prof. Guarnaccia and Lindsey from SURCO. A beautiful place with very friendly people.

Gorgeous mural on SURCO's wall

Some of the posters hanging on SURCO's walls.

 

 

    













     Navigating back from SURCO to our homestays was a little tricky but we all eventually made it. We had our first comida with our families. That afternoon we had another navigation challenge of getting to the Zocalo to meet up with Prof. Guarnaccia. The Zocalo is the center of the historic center of Oaxaca city. It is a large park area surrounded by tons of cafes. It is a great place to go grab something delicious to eat, they have just about everything to eat (even a Subway was there, kind of a sad sight). We then walked around more and explored the pedestrian street areas, checked out some local vendors and their crafts, and went into a beautiful church.

One of the main stages at the Zocalo.

Tiemplo de Santo Domingo de Guzman.

Mi familia!

Everything is covered in gold.

So colorful!

      We also stopped at a bakery as we were walking around which smelt wonderful and with some hunger in me I couldn't resist. I got a delicious chocolatina and another pastry which had a dulce de leche cream inside. There are always performances and music in the Zocalo and we were able to see a dance performance while exploring. The markets were our next destination on our tour. Such a large variety of items are sold in the markets (everything from bags to bracelets, lots of food, and so much more we have yet to see). I definitely see that as a place which we will visit frequently. Its a really unique place to find local crafts and a great way to interact with locals and learn their stories. We made a few more stops afterwards but then all headed back to our homes. It had been a long day with lots of walking and we were all exhausted and had sore feet (we all learned our lesson to pick sneakers over sandals for the next day).  It was only day one and we had already done so much. I slept like a baby that night after all of our travels and was excited to see what the next day would bring.

- Lindsay