Playing Catch-Up...

Hola amigos!

Sorry its been a while since I've posted- I've had a crazy week!

This past weekend ended up being a lot of fun. Saturday I went with the group to this club called Amaratus and it was a blast. Though I didn't add to my tequila shot count, which is embarrassingly low, we may need to start a group count of the number of bottles of vodka we consume while we're here.

On the weekends most of the clubs just charge a cover and then its all you can drink once you get inside. And if you get there before 11:00 the cover is even cheaper. So we headed to the club around 10:30 and when we got there it was pretty empty but a ton of people were waiting in line outside. Jeff, the other blonde of the group, and I got in first and were waiting around the entrance for everyone else when the club manager walked up to us and asked if we wanted a table. Table service is usually better here because you don’t have to fight with the bartenders over how much tip you're going to pay them (they won't give you your drink sometimes if you don't tip them enough). We were just expecting some generic table, when she walked us up to the VIP area elevated above the bar with a view of the entire club.

Not gonna lie, we felt pretty special. Being a blonde here does have its perks I guess.

We worked out a deal with our waiter for a 400 peso tip for the night (but he ended up getting a lot more after we downed three bottles of vodka at the end of the night) and he brought us all of our drinks and bottle service until the end of the night. Needless to say we all had a pretty good night, and the club manager gave me her number to call ahead for a table next time we wanted to come back (that and I think she had the hots for Jeff).

Sunday we all took it pretty easy and went and grabbed some pizza- some of us are really starting to crave some good'ol Chicago deep dish.

But remember how I said I felt like I was finally getting into a routine? Ya... that was a lie. Now that I'm actually and officially into my routine I'm exhausted. Mondays and Fridays aren't so bad, since I only have class from 7:15-9:30, but Tuesdays - Thursdays are insane. I have class on and off during the morning, and usually don’t have time to go home for lunch because we have to head to our service site in Emiliano Zapata Sur which takes about an hour to get to, including the trip to el centro to grab a bus.

Between all my classes, an early start time, the heat (its finally getting hot here! Yay!) and all the travel and work at the service site I don't know how I'm going to make it through the week. Everyone has to do the service and travels to the center at least three times a week (twice for service and once for our anthropology class), but I feel like those of us in the advance class have a little bit more to do. We start classes almost two hours earlier than the other groups and go everyday during the week. Plus, today we started taking normal class at the University with "real live Mexicans" as my friends like to say, so not only do we have work for that class to do, the three of us also meet with the teacher for forty-five minutes after to work on our own things.

I didn't expect this trip to be a total vacation, but I am honestly surprised by the workload we have. Aside from the ton of reading we have to do for History, a three to five page paper and several readings in Spanish due every week for Anthropology, and all the studying for our Spanish classes we have our service activities to prepare for. Even the service assignment (I'm teaching a computer class) is a lot more work than I expected.

I guess overall this week was just a little frustrating. Even though it feels like I should have a lot of free time we all spend so much time traveling around and have so much homework that by the end of the day I'm too tired to do anything. Obviously its an academic program so I was expecting a lot of class work, but it seems like a lot for a trip where we're supposed to be "immersing" ourselves in the culture. It also doesn't help that all three of the classes we take are taught by three different institutions, so none of the professors really have any idea what our course work is like in the other classes. Its looking like the only time I'll have to "immerse" or explore the area is on the class trips. Who knows though, hopefully I'll get used to the routine quickly and be a little more productive during the day.

But tomorrow we're off to Uxmal, a Mayan ruins site! I should have some cool pictures by the end of the weekend, but until then here is a link to the Bed & Breakfast Kevin and I are staying in for spring break:

http://www.casaesperanza.com/

It looks beautiful in the pictures, but trust me, its even prettier in person! It’s a little B&B owned by a Canadian couple who have lived in Merida for eight years. I met one of them, Claudette, the other day when I stopped by to check it out and she was so friendly. One of the other girls on the trip came with me and she and her boyfriend may rent the other room while we're there, so the four of us would have the run of the place. The picture of the courtyard on the main page definitely doesn't do it justice- the place is huge. My favorite part though was the two great big, friendly labs that were running around- it seems like its going to be a lot of fun!

Time to head to el centro for some homework and michiladas- yuum. Hope you all had a fabulous week!

PS to my Chi O's: I'm loving the spirit day pics. Keep em coming!