Week two in Mexico

The second week in Mexico flew by. In fact, I am worried that this entire year will be like that. Most of the week wasn't too exciting. We attended language school, had orientation, embraced the sunshine, and studied our Spanish at night, we didn't have much time or energy left to explore. The end of the week came and I couldn't help but have a huge grin on my face and think "Gracias a Dios es Viernes"- Thank God it's Friday! Not only were we done with language school, but it meant that next week we would start working with the kids and in the office, in addition it was a long weekend- Friday Feb 5 is "National Constitution Day" so we get today off from work. 

The weekend was the by far the best part of the week. On Saturday three of us went to the Zocalo and wandered throughout the various markets that they have on the weekend. While wandering we found a Chocolatier. It was beautiful and delicious. As we sipped our chocolate drinks I couldn't help but feel like I was in the movie "Chocolat"- If you haven't seen it carve out some time in your week, turn on Netflix and fall in love with Johnny Depp and chocolate all over again. Saturday night was one of my favorite nights here. Two of my fellow volunteers (on their weekend off I have to add) organized a "pijamada fiesta" (pajama party) for the ninos, there were about 20 of them. The weekend before one of the volunteers had a pajama party for the girls and the boys asked if they could have one too. It consisted of a lot of popcorn with chili salsa, chips with chili salsa, coffee and 8 hours of movies. Some of the ninos brought their mattresses from their dorms and piled them in the middle so they could all comfortably lie down as they watched the movies. I wish I would have taken a picture because it's hard to imagine a bunch teenage boys sharing about eight mattresses, but it was adorable. 

On Sunday morning myself, Jessi (a fellow volunteer), Celso (a member of Jessi's former host family), and drove to Puebla, Pueba, which is about a two hour drive from Cuernavaca. It is a city filled with cobble stone streets, multicolored buildings, and an insane amount of churches. The city, even for Mexico, is incredibly Catholic- the full name of the city is Puebla de los Angeles, "People of the Angels." After walking around the city and eating Mole (which the city is known for) we adventured to Cholula, Puebla. Cholula is a city west of Puebla and it is known for the amount of churches- for roughly 200,000 residents there are 37 churches plus a bunch of small chapels within the city. One of the famous churches in Cholula is Santuario de la Vigen de lost Remedios. It is a beautiful church whose architecture is stunning. The church is known for the Virgin Mary blessing and being dedicated to the poor. Finally, it has a phenomenal view of Popacateptl (Popo)- one of the biggest active volcanos in Mexico. We could see smoke coming out of Popo, it was very cool. Pause reading this blog and Google "Santuario de la Virgen de los Remedies," it's breathtaking. As we watched the sunset behind Popo I couldn't help but reflect on my first two weeks in Mexico. I was overcome with all the blessings I have experienced so far. God is good. After the sunset we went back to Puebla and explored the city at night for a little while. We went on one of the biggest ferris wheels in the world and we were able to see the city and much more at night, 'twas lovely.  

And here I am, about to embark on week three. Today two of us moved into our permanent apartment for the year on the NPH property and the other two volunteers move to the other orphanage in Miacatlan tomorrow morning to start their work with the younger children. On Wednesday we start working with the kids and in the offices. I am very excited to begin this next part of my Mexican adventure. Stay tuned and please continue to pray for the ninos, NPH staff and the volunteers. 

Dios Bendiga (God Bless),
Katie 

Santuario de la Virgen de los Remedios

Sunset with Popo 

Santuario de la Vigen de los Remedios 

A nonactive volcano next to Popo,
Izaccihuat is Nahuatl for "White Woman,"
reflecting the four individual snow-capped peak which
depict the head, chest, knees and feet of a sleeping female. 

The Chocolatier

Just a gringa having some coffee
from the Gringo Cafe