| Guanajuato, Mexico, end of First Week at Falcon Institute |
[Jan. 31st, 2005|09:01 pm]
eddsamuelson
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| |  cheerful | ] |
hello dear friends:
thought you might enjoy hearing of my adventure in guanajuato, mexico,
staying with a private family, and learning spanish at falcon instituto.
i've just finished listening to-reading, the davinci code. talk about the
marginialization of women - yikes. yes, mexico is a nation where men
are incharge. the blessing is everyone knows their role. just how it is.
i would love to know the secrets and origins of christianity, not what
i was taught, or is written, but what no one wants us to know...lol, lol...
so for one cent, i purchase on amazon, 'seat of the soul' by gary zukov.
one of his statements has me mezmerized, ' Of one thing we can be certain: a ´
person that is engaging in violence is hurting deeply, because a healthy and
balanced soul is incapable of harming another. so, 'a' this seems to support
the possibility of an 'issue free life.' i'm up for it. lol, lol.
the following are comments, oh so randomly pasted together. they are organized with the most current first, and the first day
at the end.
love e
my journey continues to be very interesting, as i notice what is around me,
what i do and where i go.
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END OF THE FIRST WEEK:
a. technology - it hasn´t stolen the heart of the people here; however, in
my family, tv is a key element of life - always on. there are some cell
phones, but not a lot. on the other hand there are many internet cafes. i
pay about ten pesos for one hour, i.e., about a dollar. most of the ten
stations in the cafe i go to are used by young women. sometimes there are
men, but usually in the minority.
b. music - no matter where i go there is music, all mexican for the most
part. inside, like an internet cafe, there is american music playing.
what is great is that in the evening, the streets have many musicians.
c. the people - are very well dressed. in the morning it is so much fun
to watch children and parents head to the schools. the children, many are
in uniforms. all are very neat.
d. safety - though safety is talked about, the place seems safe. there
are police on the streets. all is well.
the falcon: www.academiafalcon.com
learning, is slow, as it is so based upon rote memorization. i need
practical application to really learn well. so i am waiting to get home to
be with jes-enrique and simply practice a lot. i´ll probably do a berlitz
intensive over a couple of weeks to anchor what i am learning. i finished
my first week, and am beginning to speak. i do need patient listeners.
this morning i was in a group of mostly very young students, as young as
19. they were talking of spending the evening getting drunk. one young
woman stayed up until 3am, and was drunk when she awoke this am. wow -
things are the same here, i guess.
the student base is very international with people from russia,
switzerland, and america, and not all speak english.
next week will be fun when the mexican students come back from break.
this week my courses included: and i had private tutors all week.
conversation
advanced conversation
and pronunciation
next week:
conversation - private 1x1
mexican dancing - yea!
private - 1x1, what ever i want
conversation - 1x1
Events:
a. tonite, friday evening i´ll go with a group of troubadores - who dress
elegantly and wander the streets singing. this is called callejoneada. it
is a trou through the picturesque streets. i will enjoy the traditional
songs of the ´´estudiantina.´´ this evening event is to end at the
callejon del beso´ where i´ll listen to a romantic tale of the young
lovers. it starts at 8:45 pm, so i will be out later. usually i´m in bed
by 10pm. (can you believe)
b. tomorrow, saturday, i will go on a day adventure to a hot springs,
other:
a. reading and studying: i´ve finished reading-listening to the davinci
code. it leads me to the conclusion that i don´t know very much about the
true origins of religion, the political implications, and the primary truth
about the divine feminine. i´m now listening to recent cd-roms from
www.abraham-hicks.com, and yes, i continue to love the positive influence.
when i get home, i´ll order a meditation cd from www.centerpointe.org that
is advanced technology that de-stresses quickly and effectively. my friend
susan says they are great, and she has tried many approaches to learning
and self development.
b. communication: i carry my pocket pc-phone, and check email 2-3 times a
day, as well as have my cell @503-267-4834.
----------------------------------------------->
the myster é´continues to unfold. i am woken by gallo (roster) in the
morning, in the middle of this amazing city. i also hear the ringing of a
catherdal bell - 12 significant bongs, followed by one more.
i haven´t risen at 7am, for decades, as far as i can remember. so i awaken
to my alarm, rise and shower. i stretch a bit, study spanish, listen to
the davinci code, and then descend the stairs to an awaiting breakfast of
fresh fruit (frutas), bread (pan), and warm milk (leche). i could have
more food if i wanted. i leave and walk to the bus stop and take the
´presa´bus to the school (falcon institute). it costs me 1.5 pesos, or
maybe 15 cents.
i have four classes each day: communication, grammar, advanced garmmar,
and then pronunciation. i attend from 8:30 am until 1:00 am. i have a 30
minute break between my third and fourth class. i go to the cafeteria and
have a fresh torta and coffee. i attend my fourth class, then i am free
until i go back for a planned event. last nite it was a movie in spanish
with english subtitles. tonight, it will be a gathering of the english
speaking, and the mexican students. 1/2 of the time it is to support the
english students to learn spanish, and then the spanish-mexican students to
learn english. that will be fun.
for some moments i think: oh my with so many pages of notes, will i ever
learn. today i awoke knowing a few things, and being willing to open my
mouth and speak. it is fun. the institute is 17 years old, and is casual.
it seems like summer camp. there are quite a few people from oregon, and
have been for a number of years.
can you imagine what it would be like to have life centered around family.
i mean where it doesn´t take two - three people to make enough to keep the
family alive. i live with the del real family. this includes the senora
(the mom), two older men, (one the father, and one the uncle), two of the
seven sons, and two children of one of the sons. (poco). the senora always
prepares the meals. they are prepared from all fresh ingredients. each
course is served and placed gently infront of me. most have a special
garnish.
the founder of the school is quite metaphysical, and has a great sense of
humor. he commented perhaps that i should work for him in marketing the
institute, for say 6 months...i think i am close to heaven.
can you imagine living in a world where greed, manipulation and power
become less obvious than our america. i´ve read that wealthy nations tend
to want to destroy the less wealthy and poorer nations, making them models
of themselves. i can´t believe we´ve given up so much in the name of
corporation, replication, chain, and franchise. yes, i´m still synical of
how my nation has become.
there is so much beauty, from the people to all of the environment. can
you imagine living where there are not huge numbers of rules that cause
construction to be so uniform that it is boring. here, the whole town is
amazing. the old remains, as the new is built into and around.
construction can be tile, brick or rock. the town was not contructed as a
freeway, so there are many streets that are for walking. of those streets
where the autobus and car can drive, they are wide enough for one lane.
the autobuses seem to fill many streets from side to side.
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END OF THE FIRST DAY:
it has been many years since i´ve felt so happy and contented, and i don´t
few people that i know, and i am happy in this space.
almost time for my seven course main meal of the day. it is served about
3pm.
hi....i´m here. the city is amazing. it is such a contrast to what has
happened to america. everything is fresh, unique and interesting. the
perfection is in the imperfection.
i set my alarm for 9am on saturday, so i was to go to falcon institute with
victor - one of 7 brothers -, but i guess that will happen another day.
tomorrow...up bright and early<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<...oh my.....today i finally
got up at nine, and then after breakfast, took a good nap. now, i´m on the
street again.
the food is great, on saturday it was a 7 course meal, breakfast was fried
eggs, beans, juice, tea, and mexican pan.
i love to wonder the streets and watch the very happy people. last
evening, the streets were filled like when i visited italy. in front of a
beautiful theatre street commedians performed and everyone laughed. i
really love what i´ve seen so far, and know as i learn the language...one
of the people staying with the family i´m with, has been here three months,
and will stay three more. wow, i could do the same thing. |
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