the ceremony itself was pretty boring. it was in spanish and i didn't understand most of it. it was my first catholic wedding and there was alot of standing up and sitting back down. i really had no idea when to stand, and it seemed like the rest of the congregation didn't really know either. half of the congregation would stand up and then sit back down again realizing their error. the one amusing part of the ceremony was that a bum had wandered into the church and was just quietly hanging out at the front. he was trying to talk to the flower girl who seemed to get upset. her father picked her up and took her all the way around to the back of the church and up the other side. apparently, she had forgotten her flowers, so the bum walked across the front of the church (behind the bride and groom, but in front of the congregation, so we all saw him) and handed her the flowers. it was pretty amusing.
the reception was something completely different. after a nice dinner, the dancing started and continued til 5:30 am. and it wasn't just normal dancing. apparently, at mexican wedding receptions, it is very common to have all kinds of props for the guests -- hats, oversized sunglasses, etc., etc. i wish i could say i took pictures, but i was just having too much fun.
the day after the wedding, i left with my grandmother and aunt teresa for a little trip around central and western mexico. i wasn't even sure if i was going to go until the day before -- nothing like a last minute vacation. i was afraid to leave because i thought i needed to be here in case berlitz was ready to start the process for my work visa. everyone encouraged me to go and it's a good thing i did because nothing happened in the 11 days i was gone. and i had a really great time. we went to san miguel de allende -- an upscale colonial artist town filled with americans and europeans. i had been there once before and now i can safely say i don't really need to go back. my grandmother had to go home after several days, so i continued on with my aunt. we went to the city of guadalajara and stayed in a 399 year old hotel. it's been open since 1610. we happened to be there on an evening when they have lots of traditional dancing and a mariachi band, which was alot of fun to watch. there are alot of very spanish looking plazas in guadalajara, which we spent time wandering around. we also went to the largest market in latin america -- mercado san juan de dios. they had just about everything there -- jewelry, toys, pottery, cds (which were sold for about a dollar, since they were all burned cds -- black market, anyone? i may or may not have bought one. . .) my aunt is a much bigger shopper than i am, so i spent alot of time tagging along with her. we also went the plaza de los mariachis, which is where mariachi music first got its start. it wasn't actually that exciting, mostly a bunch of mariachi singers hanging around waiting for someone to request a song. it looked more like a place where mariachi singers go to retire.
after guadalajara, we took a bus to puerto vallarta, on the pacific coast. it was my first time to see and swim in the pacific. really beautiful. puerto vallarta is pretty touristy, although we seemed to arrive just before the big tourist season. we stayed in a lovely little hotel a few blocks from the beach. things in puerto vallarta are much more expensive and the vendors are very aggressive. if you act interested in anything, they hound you "how much you want to pay, amiga?" "almost free for you". it's annoying. there are so many gringos in puerto vallarta who don't realize they are being taken by the expensive prices. my aunt and i like to think that we are not your typical tourists. her spanish is decent enough to be able to haggle with the vendors. she would sit at a table at a bar on the beach while i went swimming and she would shop. vendors with jewelry, toys, blankets, you name it wander up and down the beach offering their wares. i'm pretty sure my aunt discovered her new favorite way of shopping -- sitting on the beach and drinking margaritas while the merchandise came straight to her. she is the best haggler i've ever seen, and she practiced her spanish at the same time.
we also went up the coast a bit to sayulita -- really great place for surfing (i swam and didn't surf, but i was one of the few who wasn't surfing) and a little more secluded. we also saw a really beautiful sunset. sayulita was nice, but it was a little too upscale for me. i noticed that in puerto vallarta there were both american/canadian and mexican tourists, but in sayulita it seemed like it was strictly americans and canadians. the only mexicans i saw were working in the bars or selling stuff. it felt very "us and them".
we saw a really great free outdoor concert in puerto vallarta right by the water. it was a mexican opera singer named fernando de la mora. it was really beautiful and at the end, he gave a very impassioned speech about what a great country mexico is and how it is up to the people of mexico to change the corruption in the country. i was pretty impressed that even though i didn't understand everything, i did get the jist of what he said.
we returned to saltillo on thanksgiving day and my aunt stayed for another few days. we celebrated thanksgiving on saturday, since everyone here has to work on thanksgiving day. my family in mexico has been celebrating thanksgiving for years, as a result of the american side of the family, so we had turkey with all the trimmings. and after dinner, the guys sat around and watched futbol, as opposed to football. my aunt left the next day, and i was sad to see her go. it was so nice to have her here.
december in saltillo is interesting. we've had days of 36 degrees (fahrenheit; i'm still not accustomed to calculating in celsius yet), and then yesterday it was 80 degrees. i do like the warm weather, but it feels strange for it to be so warm around christmas.
the other big news is that all of my paperwork has finally been submitted to immigration after two months of waiting. i had to wait for the training from berlitz and then i had to wait for more paperwork from the company. i went down to immigration with my boss last week, but we didn't have all the right paperwork. we returned on monday of this week and were able to turn in all the proper paperwork. needless to say, this is a great relief for me. they lady at immigration said it might only take 10 days for my visa to come in. i seriously doubt that it will only be 10 days, but we'll see. in the meantime, i am more or less trapped in mexico. i can't leave the country until my visa comes in. they didn't take my passport, but they did take my tourist card, which i can't leave the country without. if my visa really does come in in the next 10 days, i may be able to go home for christmas, but if not, i'll be here for christmas. either way, i think i'm ok with it. i'd really like to see my family at christmas. i've never spent christmas away from them. but if i did have to stay here, i think i'd be ok. we put the christmas tree up yesterday and lots of other decorations around the house. my cousins love christmas.
i had another interview with a small catholic university this week, and i think they are interested in having me teach there as well. it looks like i could begin teaching in january. i am so anxious to begin work here.
well, i know this has been a long and long-overdue post. i'll try to do better about keeping up with this blog. and i hope everyone is having a great christmas season.
