Catching history while in Mexico...

Thanks to the wonders of technology, I have been able to catch the excitement of The Presidential Inauguration via CNN.com/live. I actually brought my new laptop to school and had live video streaming throughout class through the school's wireless connection (muted of course); I couldn't possibly miss out on such a historic day!!!! I was surprisingly overcome with emotion watching Obama be sworn in and truly feel excited and hopeful that our country has overcome yet another barrier!!! I am looking forward to watching the parade this afternoon!!! It is also very interesting to get a feel from the other students and even my host family about Obama coming into office, and past attitudes about President Bush. It's easy to forget that our country's polical actions are much more far-reaching than we probably will ever realize.

I have gotten lots of nice emails from friends and family saying they enjoy the blog which for me is VERY COOL. It has become kind of a fun project for me to keep up. I also have gotten a few questions about what my address is down here:

La Familia Alvarez (Heidi Stangl)
Mexiamora #12, Col. Centro
C.P. 36000, Guanajuato, Gto.
Mexico

Also, MANY THANKS to friends and family this wk for all the continued support and well-wishes. I've been a little homesick and have had quite a bit of stress in my personal life recently, and it's been wonderful to hear such kind words, so again THANK YOU:)