A good wkend...

My first full wkend in Guanajuato was fairly low-key, which I enjoyed. Friday evening, some of the other students and I went to a Salsa dance class. It lasted for about an 90 mins, and believe me, Saturday morning I was sore in places I didn’t even know I could be sore. All of the participants in the class were non-Hispanic…so you can imagine how goofy we all looked!!!

Saturday I enjoyed the beautiful weather (lots of sun and around 70 degrees) and went for an hour long run with another student from school and took in more of the scenery of the city while out on the run. Even during the weekend there doesn’t seem to be many tourists around which is nice. My host family was gone for the day on a trip to a nearby city, so the house was incredibly peaceful without six kids running around. I spent the evening at my new favorite hangout, Café Tal, studying for my nursing boards. Café Tal is a fun little café owned by a hippie-type guy from Washington DC. The coffee is awesome and super cheap and there is free wireless there too.

Sunday, I walked to a nearby “mall” with my Brazilian roommate Carolina and Fernanda (the family’s oldest daughter who is 16). The mall was a good 25 minute walk, which involved going through a long tunnel. Being that I am SUPER claustrophobic, I was scared!!! The mall had a big store called “Mega,” which is like Walmart, and about a dozen other random stores. There also is a food court with the city’s only McDonalds and Subway (I might just have to make a trip there someday for lunch). I bought some candy and diet coke, both necessities for meJ Luckily we ran into Fernanda’s aunt at the mall and she gave us a ride home so we didn’t have to go through that tunnel again!!!

In the afternoon, my host family, Carolina and I, and a few other random relatives had an outdoor picnic on the patio behind the family’s house. Pedro (the dad) grilled up the skirt steak with an awesome marinade on this pit/grill-type deal they have and sliced it up thinly. We used these big rolls (which we kind of hollowed out) and freshly toasted tortillas and filled them with the steak, fresh guacamole and salsa, and chili peppers (fresh off the grill too). The weather was perfect, and we all sat around and talked and ate for about 2 hours, while Egore, the family‘s dog tried to steal any leftovers he could find. My host family loves to ask me about what it’s like to live somewhere with such cold weather and snow (the kids have never seen snow)…and I couldn’t help but show them some pictures on my computer of the aftermath of the HUGE blizzard we had in Milwaukee last year….THEY COULDN’T BELIEVE IT!!! It really was a wonderful afternoon and ONE OF THE BEST MEALS I’VE EVER HAD!!!