Forward - Adelante

It took five weeks, but finally a bug caught me. However, I can proudly say that this bug is something entirely native to me, and is not caused by external factors.

That makes me sound pregnant. I'm not pregnant. Not even close. Sorry to disappoint you.

The truth is I've got some funny things with my blood and stuff, and my own body often makes itself sick. That's what I'm dealing with today. My body is having a war with itself. All I can do is lay in bed while it throws a fit.

But, tomorrow will be better. Because I'm being a good girl.

Tomó 5 semanas, pero una enfermedad finalmente me alcanzó. Sin embargo, puedo decir con orgullo que esa enfermedad es algo nativo a mi, y la causa no es algo externo.

Y no, no, no - no estoy embarazada, ni siquiera cerca. Lo siento. 

La verdad es que tengo problemas extrañas con mi sangre y en la salud en general, y frecuentemente mi cuerpo me hace enferme - por lo tanto, estoy enferma hoy. Mi cuerpo está teniendo una guerra con sí mismo. Todo puedo hacer es descansar mientras mi cuerpo hace un berrinche. 

Pero mañana estará mejor, porque todo el día estoy descansando.  

I bought my return ticket back to the US. I'm sad to know my time in the happiest place on Earth is coming to an end (for now), but there are things back in Minneapolis that I need to do. There are little human-students who need butt-kicking. There are doctors appointments that need to be made. There is a cute little baby who has been waiting his whole life for his Auntie Nikki to hold him (that's right, Moses, I'm talking about you - you little poncho wearing bandit!).

I don't like thinking about leaving. There are things and people here, too. You know?

Yo compré mi boleto de avion para regresar a los EEUU. Estoy triste saber que mi tiempo aquí en la lugar más alegre en todo el mundo va a terminar (por ahora), pero hay cosas en Minneapolis que necesito hacer. Hay niños que me necesitan. Hay citas medicás que necesito hacer. Hay un lindo bebé que ha esperado toda su vida de su Auntie Nikki para sostenerlo (es cierto, Moses, estoy hablando de ti, tu pequeño bandido que lleva un poncho)!

No me gusta pensar en volver a los EEUU. Hay cosas y gente aquí, también. Sabes?

I should tell you about what I've been doing recently. I stopped writing every day, because I've been here so long that most things are routine. I have a life, and writing about the same cobbled stones can get boring for some people.

Not for me. I love those cobbled stones. But for you, maybe.

Over the weekend, I took Matt to Monte Alban and Hierve el Agua (and Tlocolula). Matt had fun with the collective-taxi experience, and riding in the back of a truck up the side of a mountain. That's always fun for everyone. Seriously. The view from the back of that truck is priceless.

We were riding in it with some people who bought some baby chicks to raise. They kept trying to sleep, but then we'd hit a bump and they'd all start chirping. They were very cute.

Debo decirte sobre las cosas yo he hecho en los días pasadas. Yo paré escribir todos los días porque yo he habido aquí un largo tiempo, y la mayoría de las cosas hago aquí son rutinas. Tengo me vida aquí, y para escribir sobre las mismas piedras en las calles es algo aburrido para algunas personas.

Para mi, no. Me encanta estas piedras de las calles. Pero, para ti? Quizá no.

Durante el fin de semana, yo tomé a Matt a Monte Alban y HiervelAgua (y Tlocolula). Matt tenía un buen tiempo en los colectivos, y durante el paseo en la camioneta. La camioneta cada vez es divertida. En serio. Y la vista desde la camioneta es sin precio. 

Estabamos en la camioneta con gente que compraron...pollitos para crecer. Los pollitos querían dormir pero los hoyos en la carretera lo hacían difícil. Monos pollitos!

Oh, but before all that, I was stopped in Llano Park by some middle school students who were interviewing people for a school project about the pros and cons of internet on cell phones. This interview was in Spanish.

Ok, returning to Hierve...Hierve is easily one of my favorite places I've ever been on the Earth. It's indescribably beautiful. Like many things, it's a feeling. Not a word.

In other news, Matt had his first taste of Mezcal up there on that mountain.
And, on our way down the mountain, I made friends with the driver of the truck, and he gave me some recommendations for bands. Success is defined by expanding your database of music.

Oh - pero antes de todas estas cosas - algunos estudiantes me pararon en el parque llano. Estaban haciendo entrevistas con gente para un proyecto de clase sobre los pros y cons de internet en cell phones. Y, la entrevista fue en español.

Okay, Hierve! Hierve es simplemente uno de mis favoritos lugares en todo la tierra. Este lugar es hermoso más allá de descripción. Como muchas cosas, es un sentimiento - no una palabra. 

En otras noticias, Matt tuvo su primer mezcal en Hierve. Y, cuando regresar a Mitla, conocí el conductor de la camioneta - y el me die algunas recomendaciones para música. Alegría es descubrir música nueva.

After too much sun and fun, we went to the big sunday mercado. It's an experience everyone should have if they plan to visit Oaxaca. You can buy all sorts of great (and not so great) things.

But, in spite of all the fun things we did this weekend, the best thing that happened is this: the city has come back to life. I almost cried when I saw the vendors in the street. I have never been so happy to balloons and children playing in a church square in all my life.

It seemed like the whole city was in the Zocalo last night, celebrating the removal of the harlequin mask. I can't help but wonder if I've embedded too much of my identity within this city. Something about being here has allowed me a freedom I've never given myself. In a figurative way, I've done some unmasking of myself.

Like the city, I just want to be loved for what's raw and real about me. Even the controversial, unsightly aspects of me.

Después de demasiado diversión y sol, fuimos al mercado. Pienso que cada persona que visita a Oaxaca necesita visitar a Tlacolula. Puedes comprar un gran variedad de cosas buenas (y cosas no tan buenas).

Pero, a pesar de todas las cosas interesantes Matt y yo hicimos durante el fin de semana, lo mejor que ocurrió fue esto: la ciudad ha regresado a la vida. Casi lloré cuando vi los vendedores en las calles. Nunca antes había sentido tan alegre para ver niños y globos y niños con globos en cualquier lugar en toda mi vida.

Parecía que toda la gente de Oaxaca fueran en el zocalo anoche para celebrar. Es imposible impedirme preguntar si yo he puesto demasiada de mí misma y identidad dentro de la ciudad. Algo sobre estar aquí ha permitido una liberación que nunca he dado mí misma. En una manera figurativa, supongo que quité una máscara también. 

Como la ciudad, estoy listo para recibir amor para las cosas real y cruda sobre mi - incluyendo las cosas controvertidas o feas.  

Please Sir, I'd Like Some More.

You know at the end of the day, when you are laying in bed and you think, "Dang. Today was the best day of my life."....?

No. It wasn't. Today was the best day of my life. Or at least the most incredible day.

I woke up in a fever. My stomach hurt, my body hurt. But as I was laying in bed I thought, "Nikki. It'd be better to die trying to see Oaxaca than to waste your time here laying in bed." So I got up, took some meds, and went on my merry way.

Cordelia, Francis and I met up at the school. From there, we walked to the beisbol stadium where all the cabs pick you up for different places. We hopped in a cab to Tlacoloula and thus the adventure began!

Tlacoloula is home to a huge market full of all sorts of livestock, people, fruit, things, clothes, games, drinks, whatever you can imagine. We saw everything from bananas and lychee, to live chickens, to baskets of crickets, and more. We even got to watch a man making chocolate. I took a video.

We encountered a man who was very proud of his mezcal. He had painted the inside of his own store with the history of "the indigenous people." I put that in " " marks because there are different indigenous groups. Not just one. He was very excited to interact with us, and called Cordelia and I beautiful. He wanted pictures with us as well.

So, of course, we took pictures with the mezcal man.

After we tired ourselves out of this amazing, large, phenomenal, one-of-a-kind market full of colors and sounds, we decided to make way for a cab to Mitla (en route to Hierve el Agua). But first, I had to use the bathroom. I left my bag with my friends so I wouldn't have to carry it through the large crowd, only to discover that it costs 3 pesos to use the bathroom at a bus station...so I looked around helplessly until a man made eye contact with me.

He paid the 3 pesos. I'll be forever grateful. Otherwise, I'd have just wet my pants.

Our cab to Mitla was packed with 3 other people. So, 6 + the drive makes 7. How do all these people fit in cabs? I don't know. But it works. The further we got out of the city, the more obvious it became that we were in Mexico. Or, that we weren't in our home countries. That we were somewhere alive and green and different.

After we got out of the cab in Mitla, we climbed into the bed of a truck to Hierve el Agua. Winding up the side of a mountain in the back of a truck was tossy, turny, bumpy, hilarious, an experience of a lifetime, and oh-my-goodness the views were extraordinary. Never mind that occasionally we looked as though we might fall off the cliff....and never mind that I full on slid from one end of the truck to the other...

It was absolutely mind blowing.

But nowhere near as mind blowing as Hierve el Agua itself. What a phenomenal, living, breathing place. We enjoyed ourselves by swimming in the water, doing yoga on the mountain, and laying in the sun. I am not lying when I say that this is one of the most - in fact, is the most - beautiful place I've ever been in my life thus far.

I appreciate it when life throws gifts like that my way.

We only had two hours there before it was time to trek back down the mountain (this time, we sat in the cab of the truck)....but not before I bought some tortillas to snack on. We enjoyed conversation with a super friendly Argentinian couple (in Spanish, of course) and appreciated the novelty of sharing our road with several herds of cattle, dogs, goats...

We also shared a cab (totaling 6 people) with the Argentinian couple back to Oaxaca (city). They are musicians, and have a performance Wednesday night! Maybe we'll go to it.

We passed the rest of the night at Cordelia's (host family) home. Her host mother's home is a huge mansion with a giant yard. It's old and beautiful and amazing. It has an avocado tree in the back. It has a princess bedroom with a completely round bed. It has marble everything. It was a lovely evening to pass the evening - and, of course, the company was just as wonderful.

And now I lay here, with a strange stitch in my side...and I am considering how fortunate I am to have experienced everything I did today. It's amazing to think that these opportunities and experiences are mine.

That I definitely did yoga on top of a mountain in Mexico, and then laid in the sun.
That I definitely had a full conversation in another language with people I just met.
That I definitely experienced one of the biggest, varying marketplaces ever. That I rode up the side of a mountain in the bed of a truck. That I hung out in an old, amazing home for the evening.

I really wish everyone could have had my day today. I really do.

Benjamin Button

I'm going to go backwards. I'll start with what I did last, and work my way to morning. It's good to change things up I think.

I've just taken a shower.

Francis, Cordelia and I just walked home in the rain. It was a bit chilly, yes, but oddly refreshing. The rain here isn't harsh or aggressive. It's just rain. It's not slanty, like Japan. It's not a downpour, it's not misty and annoying. Just soft, regular rain.

Prior to that, we were in a cafe, but I was feeling quite ill (you know, achy bones and such). Instead of trying to push it and stay out for the night (especially with plans for a long day out tomorrow), getting to our casas seemed like a good plan.

We spent the evening sitting in the Zocalo, people watching. There was a traditional dance competition happening which was fascinating to watch. There are always people selling millions of balloons, scarves, bubbles, flowers, candy and more. Cordelia and I bought memelitas from this cute little family (street vending) and they were so amazingly tasty. And when I say "Cordelia and I bought" them, I mean I had mine paid for by a Mexican man who thought I was beautiful. He wanted to be my tour guide around Mexico.

It was only 10 pesos, but it was 10 pesos I didn't have to pay.

Francis ended up eating elote. So, the three of us with our food just hung out and took some time to recognize how fortunate we are in our own lives. It was a lovely moment. Which we totally deserved because we spent the earlier part of the afternoon at Cafe Brujula, studying our Spanish.

The street artist we met before in the Zocalo (the one from earlier posts) showed up there as well, and we had a little chat. But the majority of the rest of the time was spent practicing, teaching, and speaking Spanish. Francis came up with a clever way to remember when to use "estos, esos, aquellos" and we learned from his audio book that "go go" verbs (tengo) go "ga ga" (tenga) when put into the imperative.

But before all the fun we had practicing our Spanish at the cafe, Francis and I were at the organic market! It's quite small, but definitely awesome. I was able to get just over an 8 oz cup's worth of pomegranate seeds for 10 pesos. To put that into perspective, 20 pesos isn't even 2 dollars - it's closer to $1.50. So I paid about 78 cents.

I also bought an amazing scarf for 80 pesos and 2 little bracelets for 30 pesos. There were a million other things I wanted to buy, too, but decided to wait until next week. I did, however, inquire as to how one might get their hands on a poncho for a certain-about-to-be-born-baby-moses-maurer.

And it's a good thing I ate a hearty breakfast this morning, because I was in full-on Spanish mode at the market. I definitely wouldn't have been able to operate without Martita's miracle enchiladas. This morning, two other women joined me and my host mother for breakfast. They all talked about how the boys their daughters want to marry are usually not very motivated, unemployed, dropouts, etc. In Mexico, you don't get married without the permission of your parents. Paula (host mom) talked about how she'd rejected at least two guys for her daughter.

That's serious business.

Almost as serious as the fact that last night, I dreamt in Spanish. When I woke up this morning, I was definitely super excited about it.

And tonight, I'm super excited for tomorrow. We'll take a cab to Mitla, play there, and then - in the bed of a truck - be carted up to some water falls (Hierve El Agua). Hooray for adventures!!