words

here are words i never learned in a classroom and that i don’t want to forget:

escuincle-kid, maybe implies a brat from the contexts i’ve heard

bronca-problem, or fight

tiangui-traditional market, derives from nahuatl.

plis-please, usually on these images of the virgencita.

and then there is a bunch that all start with c- or ch- and sometimes it is hard to keep them all straight.

chavo/a-kid, but more like young adult

chamaco-the same as chavo.

chela-beer

colonia-neighborhood, but each neighborhood is an official location that is part of a place’s address, like i you were to send a letter, you would have to include colonia so-and-so when writing the address.

chanza-americanism of chance.

chueco-crooked

matasuegras

if you heard people talking about mother-in-law-killers, or matasuegras in spanish, what would you imagine that could possibly be? i couldn’t tell you what i would guess, but it is this. surprise!
on another note, i have a story about a coworker, gustavo. gustavo lived in los angeles for two years, in universal city.  we were talking, in english, about places we like in los angeles and he started to talk about los feliz, a neighborhood in the city. except for, he wasn’t calling it los feliz, which is what everyone calls it, he kept talking about the feliz. “i really liked The Feliz…”, etc. i never thought about it but all these cities in the united states that have names in spanish must be confusing if you are a native spanish speaker speaking english about places named in spanish.

nationalism (in dance and song)

the celebrations of the mexican revolution carried on throughout the day after the late morning parade. and apparently they will continue for a week with more performances and movie screenings.

at the plaza bicentenario (built to celebrate the country’s 200 years of independence in september), a stage was set up for traditional baile folklorico. though i was a bit confused, the announcer shared that this specific style of dance is a cultural fusion between the normal mestizaje of indigenous and spanish culture, but also has been influenced by polish polka dance. the group’s name is yoloxoxic and its members are from all across the north of mexico: zacatecas, chuhuahua, durango, and tamaulipas.

here are my videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3-VNGI0p5A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDwToz1NpK4

i also have recorded two songs performed by the internacional banda de musica del estado de zacatecas with guest opera singers performing revolutionary music. once i find a way to share those, i will link them here.

nationalism (is so much fun!)

today, the 20th of november, 2010, is the 100 year anniversary of francisco i. madero’s call to arms from texas to begin fighting the revolution against porfirio diaz, who had been president for over 30 years and would not allow open elections.

celebration was clearly in order, especially since zacatecas was home to a very important battle led by pancho villa that helped secure victory for the anti-re-election revolutionaries. a 2-hour-long parade marched through the main street of the colonial center of zacatecas with marching bands and floats on top of which children reenacted important scenes from the revolution. it was a warmer than usual day and my cheeks may end up pink from the sun but it was worth it for the surprisingly fun desfile.

here are the highlights:

I also have two videos of the parade on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Bpdg7UR5pA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZSKaKo41LI

http://hotfile.com/dl/24799228/051d24c/CorBrae-sea.zip.html

basqueland

i left my beautiful unesco world of zacatecas for a fairy tale land. the basque country is really old, it also rains a lot in the basque country. it’s also a really long journey to get there and back which i have not fully recovered from, so please forgive any stupids i write here.

hondarribia, a town next to the french border:

that's france on the other side

my new haircut and hair color, just so you know:

because my photo gallery is out of order, i’ll start with pictures from the sea:

if you look closely, one boat has te basque flag at the front and the other has che

next we will go to the town of markina, where troy currently lives. these pictures make it seem really rural, but i just don’t have picture of the center:

these are pintxos and they are all delicious

now, mutriku:

animals:

and then some miscellaneous photos, clearly my energy level is winding down:

actually from the same border coastal town, just i forgot about it

me and an empty museum

though it really shouldn’t be. i’m certainly not qualified to give you my opinion of the art in the museum of abstract art here in zacatecas, i can tell you that i had a great time wandering through what appeared to be a relatively small museum. every time i would finish a room and think that i had seen it all, another room or corridor would lead me someplace else.

i was greeted with this little guy and this nice building right next to the museum. and then i entered the museum.

this might have been my favorite, yet again empty room, so i had some fun with it.

moving forward, through an outdoor walkway, more art

and then into a very creatively designed room. the walls were four stories tall but instead of having four stories, they kept it room where you entered from the top and walked across a skinny bridge to the other side of the room, looking at the highest placed art. then you took stairs down and did the same on another bridge, looking at more art, though you could see the art above and below you on the walls.

then on to a more typical museum room.

this was my morning. the entrance is quite a deal, 30 pesos, but what gets you is the bookstore. i can’t stop myself from buying books. i bought two. one is an allen ginsberg poem in spanish and in english, along with the commentary. and one is a novela, a fiction book aimed at teenagers, i thought it would be a relatively easy level of spanish i could comprehend and get sucked into.

food

well, food sandwiching other good stuff.

space

where i live

the alameda, a strolling park within 2 minutes of my hostel home

old light posts and that color of brown-red are trademarks of zacatecas

setting: in an english 4 class, we are practicing the simple past by discussing what we did that weekend.

teacher: so what did isaia do over the weekend?

student: isaia lost his virgin over the weekend.

teacher: oh. that is a special event. did anyone else have any special events over the weekend?

spinning

imagine a mexican version of chris tucker in the fifth element. but instead of fighting aliens and being a disc jockey he is a spinning instructor, you know, yelling at everyone to count to 10 forwards then from 5 backwords while spring pedaling a stationary bike. if you know the movie, exactly the same voice. it was when the instructor was spinning his pedals incredibly fast and counting in that shrill voice and listening to electronic remixes of hi hop songs that i realized i was grinning at the utter silliness of my first spinning class at the gym two doors down from my new residence in the great city of zacatecas.

the instructor would do some combination movement on the bike, lifting up, sitting down, back straight, leaning sideways, whatever, then count from 1 to 10. the person to his left then copied him, counting down from then, the next person repeated but counted starting at 1, etc. i realized i would be a counting down person and was really nervous that in the exhaustion of constantly cycling i w0uld count backwards all wrong, but thankfully i didn’t.

the spinning class started with the instructor giving us very detailed instructions for how to adjust the seal and the pedal straps, then we stretched and then we were told to run laps around the gym, awkwardly, 20 times. music followed and then intensive spinning.

two men were taking the full class. one, when it was his turn to bob up and down to the music and count, would do so swaying his head sideways and bobbing as if he was dancing. very silly, again.

when all the cycling was over, the exercising continued. we had to stand, feet on the pedals, and lean forward arching our backs with the pelvis connecting to the handlebars. we did this to the titanic song and i tried very hard not to laugh because i thought this could not be a coincidence.

lastly, we formed in pairs and did crunches on mats, with our feet intertwined with our partner’s feet to keep ourselves steady. we were supposed to do sit-ups and hand off a 2 pound dumbbell back and forth. sadly i was paired with a 40-something year old man who was not in shape. he did about 10 situps and started telling the instructor he could not do anymore. the instructor told him to push himself, and while he meagerly finished his last sit-up, a huge fart erupted. ok, i laughed. but no one else did. oops!

independence

oh, the novelty of independence. this, i experienced when i first went to college, living in the dorms, making completely new friends, and making my own decisions. this independence was truly enjoyable, because this independence came with very few responsibilities and any dependence leftover from the living-at-home days was towards my beloved parents who really were reasonable and wanted me to be happy. and so i was.

then at some point in the second half of college i decided to assume more responsibility as a human. i worked to be as financially independent as possible without giving up the pleasures of college: classes, friendships, politics… with the privilege of developing my views of the world and my real interests for my future, i came across and applied for a job teaching english in mexico,  and i got it.

when i was preparing to come to mexico i can’t say that the prospect of independence really crossed my mind, neither excitement or dread for it. this was just the next logical step. i was most excited for not having homework, for having the free time to really truly develop my views of the world, now without the guidance of a professor’s curriculum and agenda.

i have now been living completely off my own paycheck for a month and a half, without guidance counselors knowing what’s best for me, without an old friendly face i can run too who can help me sort things out. this isn’t a complaint of the miseries of independence, i want this experience.

the problem i have found, not that this is original, is that i really am not independent and i certainly don’t feel like i am, either. whereas in college and earlier i was dependent on people i trusted and knew, now i am just as dependent on complete strangers and people who are not looking out for my best interest. i am dependent on the money given to me by someone who has never met me, thanks to the highly centralized program (in my head, for some strange reason, i often jumble the words pogrom and program in reference to the program that is paying me to teach english) i am a part of. i am dependent on my landlord liking me, taking care of the plumbing, teaching me how to use the mexican laundry washer, and her internet. i am completely dependent on the bus drivers for keeping me alive during my new two hour commute (one way). i am dependent on shops having what i need and being open when i need.

i no longer can borrow food or other household goods or cooking expertise from my family and friends. i no longer have any friendly connection to the person who is housing me. the government of the country i am living in owes nothing to me and honestly i would only go to it in any form if i absolutely had to. i do not have my own car or friends to drive me where i need to go. living in a foreign country may make my dependence on others greater but it’s just the first example of the rest of my life no longer being dependent on loved ones but being dependent on the big fat scary world.

i am only independent in that i have several hours a day to do what i please, based on the restrictions of money, location, and customs. now that i realize i am not dependent, i wonder if i will ever really be able to see myself as independent. and i wonder if the novelty of independence i experienced as a freshman will be the closest i ever get to the real thing.