Practice makes perfect

I've been in Mexico for a month and the culture shock has yet to set in... if ever. Traveling is just like anything else in life, in the sense that if you do it enough you become an expert and you become accustomed to things. For instance, the change in culture is not a shock any more, I'm used to it. Changing currencies and language are easy to adjust to. So, practice makes perfect. I just hope I never lose the wonder that makes traveling so fascinating.

We're watching the Mexico/Argentina game and it looks like Mexico is going to lose 1-2 :-(. It's so nice to have a real weekend where we don't have any sessions or work. Maybe for a few hours tomorrow, but we need the break badly. The next step is planning our strategies for the year as the national team. I'm anxious to start contacting alumni and getting them involved. We've got a Stakeholder's Gala on Aug. 4 and it'd be a good start to the year to have alumni there. Escribo mas luego....

Voy mejorando

It's been a really long week but luckily I gave in and went to the doctor and the medicine worked almost instantly :-)

We went to Coyoacan last week, a pretty part of the city that's alive with stands, fairs, plazas. It's a "must see". To the right: Pipo, me, Sebastian, Dani, and Cindy -->

It's amazing how much I already miss a good washer and dryer. The one we have here is on the roof and requires a lot of work. It also surprises me the poor water system we have here in the apartment building. It might be a result of the scarcity of clean water in the city, but we have to turn on a pump for water to flow to the sinks and bathrooms and, yes, the washing machine :-(. Boooo. But I'm sure we'll all live without much bruhaha. It's just getting accustomed to what we have and do not have. Life in the US is quite luxurious.

Lots to announce

First, I'm super sick. I got a terrible cold yesterday and I'm struggling to recover. I was bed-ridden this afternoon :-( but I hope to wake up feeling much better tomorrow.

Second, our Turkish team member was approved today by the Mexican migration office for his visa. Yay! He should be here within in the week and then we'll finally be a complete team of 9 people:
Argentina (President)
Alejandra (Finances)
Dani (Human Resources and from Germany)
Carlos (AKA Pipo, Incoming Exchange)
Erikita (Outgoing Exchange)
Ahmet (from turkey, Information Systems)
Cindy, Sebastian, and myself (External Relations Team, with areas of emphasis)

The third announcement, and probably the biggest, is it looks like I'm going to Poland in August for the International Congress for AIESEC. Around 500 members attend and it's held in a different country every year. I have to pay for my plane ticket which puts a new twist on the budget I had planned for this year, but I think it's a good priority.

Bueno, ya me retiro amiguitos. La enfermedad esta cansandome y necesito descansar para poder funcionar mejor manana. Mi equipo esta dependiendo de mi :-P Buenas noches...

First day of team transition!

Sebastian arrived last night from Colombia and as of today there were 13 of us in the office for transition. 5 people from the previous national team and 8 from the incoming. It was so cool! It's a great team with really wonderful spirit and knowledge. I'm really excited to work with these guys. I can easily see how this month will be very emotional and a wonderful kick-off to my year in Mexico. It's really going to be a whole new start in my life and it's very exciting.

Tonight is Sebas' birthday so we're heading out to the bars and then I've got transition all tomorrow and then the birthday party of a local member. Hopefully I'll meet up with my AIESEC US friend, Noorie from San Diego, since she is in Mexico studying spanish, but we'll see :-) Hasta luego, amigos!

One week down, 55 more to go

So yesterday marked my first week in Mexico City and things are still going smoothly. I still haven't started transition or real work, so I have had plenty of time to relax and just get settled in. For some really strange reason I feel extremely relaxed and confident here. I don't struggle with the language and even though it's a huge city with the second largest population in the world, I just don't feel scared about getting lost. I'm confident that I can get around and take care of myself. It's eerie. A totally different feeling from when I first adventured around Costa Rica.

I've uploaded a few photos from the past couple of weeks. Some are from my going away parties in Boulder and the rest are of Mexico and my new home. Check out the link on the right hand side of the page in the toolbar that says KodakGallery My Photos.

First Saturday in Mexico

It surprises me how you can be bored in a totally new place but tired at the same time from learning and seeing so much new stuff. I feel exhausted but rather bored. Not quite sure what to do with myself now that it is the weekend. My highly confident adventurous self hasn't kicked in yet.

We have a dog in the apartment who is still needs a lot of training before he can be considered well-behaved, but he's sweet. Carlos and I are staying in the newly remodeled apartment with just beds and our luggage. There isn't any furniture yet, and get this, no curtains! Our rooms just face right out into the side stree that we live on. I didn't mind at first but people can just walk by and look in while you're sleeping. So I get antsy in the morning and get out of the room asap. Hopefully Cindy will come by today and take me out on the town. I'm excited togo dancing and see some bars.

It's strange how all of my traveling has prepared me so much for these new experiences and maybe that's why I'm slightly bored. But anyway, that's my little update for now.

Educate yourselves

Again, using my little platform here, I would like to promote a good insider book that will change your perception about the FDA and FTC forever no matter how critical you are.
Natrual Cures by Kevin Trudeau
Don't be afraid to learn something new.

La Ciudad de Mexico

Day 1: I arrived last night and went out for some delicious tacos al pastor. I love how there is super cheap and great food at an arm's length away where ever you are in this city, which is completely unlike Boulder.

I'm sitting in the AIESEC Mexico office, which is a comfortable 8 minute walk from the apartments. The apartments are cute and one of them was just remodeled and looks awesome. I'll post photos soon. There will be 8 of us living there and one other girl lives with a family. One girl has yet to move from her house to the city, the Turkish guy should arrive in no more than a week or two, and the Colombian guy arrives next week. Then our team will be complete :-)

Well, I'll leave it at that. Life is filling up again with new emotions and activities. It's a wonderful feeling. Cuidense muchos amigos -- GP