One Week Down!

So it’s been a week and I haven’t been deported….yet. So apparently, the immigration process for getting a student visa is a lot easier said than done. Who would have ever though Mexico had a slow bureaucratic process? Well that’s the end of my rant for immigration. Stay tuned next week. Now, Monterrey is amazing. The entire week has consisted of crazy nights from the swanky lounges in San Pedro to the streets of the Barrio Antigua. Barrio Antigua is Spanish for “historic neighborhood.” The dynamic around the university is really warm because the first week consisted of exchange students and freshman. I found myself hanging out with them on various nights; however I still haven’t been able to bridge that gap between the native Mexicans and the international exchange students. Monday night Celestine and headed into the city and checking out el plaza del gobierno and the Marco contemporary art museum. While on our walk, we ran into an old woman and her neighbor in the street. Two hours later…we knew the history of the whole city and her recipies. 84 years young, she’s opened her kitchen to us and invited us to some cooking lessons. The next day consisted of meeting more people. This semester is a record year because there are over 500 exchange students (120 from the US) I’ve met up with some great people from France, Austria, Brazil, Chile, Hong Kong, and also made some American friends along the way. Tuesday, we headed out to go salsa dancing at a club we heard of only to find out that the place was closed for renovations. We walked around trying to avoid the typical dive so I asked one of the parking attendants what was going on that night and we found out about El Zocalo, a hub of live music amazing people and a history lesson all at once. We ended up seeing a Mexican ska band and fire twirlers in one showing. You can live on a pretty tight budget in Mexico, but you need to know how to bargain. To get to the barrio Antigua a cab driver will tell u 40 pesos. I always say I got charged 15 the last time. We usually settle around 20-25. The rest of the week consisted of keeping a low profile and dancing on the tables @ the clubs and getting settled in. Friday, at the Marco art museum, there was an expo for a new artist and it was turned into a swanky lounge where we acted like art snobs and headed to the Coco Loko. Saturday, Celestine and I spent probably 4 hours sitting at a taqueria and watching LUCHA LIBRE! (Mexican wrestling) http://www.cmll.com/02estrellas/estrellas.html with the owner. We later went grocery shopping and indulged in all the free samples we could. By them time we left we had too much groceries to walk and too little cash to take a cab. We then hijacked a shopping cart Later that night, our French friend Edouard had his birthday party at his house. Try singing happy birthday together when it’s being sung in Spanish, English, French and Swiss! Sunday, I headed to the Barrio Antigua for the tiangis (open market). Local artists, Indians and native Rejio-Montanos (from Monterrey) sell arts and crafts, foods, art, music, and every othe nick-knack you can think of. I was swindled 100 pesos to find out my name in Nauhatl (Tecpatzin). I am the Crocodile with the knife!

Hasta Luego,

Tecpatzin