The Mexico Arrival - Part II

The school I'll be working in is new...brand new. They built the first wing two years ago and the wing I'm going to be working in is still under construction. Our classrooms have no walls, windows, or floors. It's basically some steel and concrete right now. But, being new, it is fantastic. There is a full-size football (soccer) field that is AstroTurf and is nicer than any field I've ever seen at a school. There are three basketball courts, one of which is covered. The school rooms are large red brick walls with windows to the outside and concrete floors, which sounds quite drab, but is actually fantastic. The hallways are outside and not enclosed by anything but a roof (meaning animals, the elements, etc. can come through at any time). The head of the school, Enrique, is a really nice, very young guy. I feel pretty good about the situation.

First full day out and about. The mall we were at is like any American mall, minus the Telcel model handing out pamphlets in white pants so tight and sheer that I would receive a credit in Anatomy 101 for standing there. The main store is called Liverpool, where I bought the local team's football jersey, sponsored by Bimbo Bread...so awesome. All the women wear either very thin sandals with cuffs around the ankle, or 4-inch platform wedge shoes that make them look like the fifth missing member of KISS. It's crazy. How the hell they walk around in those things, I'll never know.

Today, we went downtown to the steel museum, which was a major industry in Monterrey for many years. The museum is inside of the actual mill...very cool. While it sounds boring, it was like a Children's Museum for steel - lots of things to play with and experiment. Of course, I was bouncing around like a six year old on Mountain Dew, doing every little stupid experiment. We went to the top of the mill, an observation platform that was at least 50 meters off the ground and provided a panoramic view of Monterrey. The city is surrounded by mountains, the Sierra Madre Oriental (which goes north to help form the southern part of the Rocky Mountains). And these aren't you mommas mountains. They literally rise right up out of the ground. There are shanty houses that line the mountains halfway up that look like Lego houses from far away with black square holes cut in the side. The main mountain, which is outside of our house and visible from all over the city, is the Cerra de la Silla (Saddle Mountain). The peak is cut in a U-shape that looks like a saddle. Very interesting to see...

We took a boatride down the Santa Lucia Riverwalk, which is very similar to the canal in San Antonio (or Indianapolis for you local yokels). The ride was narrated in Spanish, and about every six seconds, some Mexican man with a huge lensed camera next to me would say aloud, "Oh...Ah...Oh...Ah...Oh". I laughed. It was funny. Maybe he was "Oh-ing" and "Ah-ing" at the 473 wedding couples we saw. Seriously. Married in 100+ degree heat. Buena suerte...gente loca.

At the end of the riverwalk was the plaza where the Governor of Nuevo Leon (the state Monterrey is in) resides. There were tents set up everywhere selling school supplies, including Spanish copies of 1984, Hamlet, and Macbeth, which I nearly bought (apologies to Mr. Perin). There were also street vendors every 10 meters selling bottled water and assorted drinks. We walked through a park where teenage couples were rolling around (literally) and making out, while gay couples stood in the shadows of trees and held hands. Hot.

One little kid, whose mother was selling bottled water, was running around wearing a large black shopping bag and carrying an umbrella. That would shocking if half the children of Indiana didn't do the exact same thing, except with feed bags and half as many teeth.

We ate a nice cafe on the riverwalk. I had fettuccine with a spinachy pesto sauce, topped with grilled chicken and Bacon Bits (advertised as "artificial bacon substitute"). I had a mineral water lemonade, which tasted a lot like Minute Maid lemonade, but much more sour and bubbly. The Football Club de Monterrey, nicknamed the Rayados ("stripes") after their striped jerseys, were on TV playing Atlas from Guadalupe. They were up at half 2-0...should probably see how that turned out.

There are so many things here that are different, obviously, and many mannerisms and actions and happenings that I could write about for days (such as our guide learned English by watching episodes of "Friends" on an illegal DirectTV signal from the US), but those, I'm sure, will spew forth as I continue to discuss the random events that happen here. From here on out, I promise to try to make the writing less narrative and more badass. Although, I will fall miserably short of the high standard set by Seth Elder, Fulbright Scholar and all-around genius extrodinaire. Can't win them all...