The Cathedral of Morelia
Halfway through our volunteering experience, Xochitl and I boarded an EXTREMELY PACKED BUS to Patzcuaro to meet the crew and gather again for activities and some touring in Morelia, Michoacan. Morelia is an old city (founded in the 1500s) about an hour away from Patzcuaro, in the opposite direction of our town. "The Hotel Colonial" was nice enough, though 6 of us squeezed in a room with two beds (plus an additional rolling bed and a cot - I got the cot, though was later glad because I think I heard tales of bed bugs.) Morelia seemed loud, polluted, and crowded after three weeks in the middle of nowhere, but it was a nice break to not have beans for breakfast. We didn't have a lot of time, but we did some shopping, some failed long distance calls, and sightseeing during the day and more silly games and movies on TV (Scanners! Wargames!) at night. The one activity that sticks out in my memory is where everyone sits in a circle with one person in the middle. That person has to choose someone and say, "If you loved me baby, you'd smile." That person then replies, "I love you, baby, but I just can't smile." If they crack a smile at ALL, then they are next in the middle. It went on a little long. I just can't NOT smile, so I was stuck in the middle for a long time. One girl said she was absolutely terrified she would have to go up, so managed not to smile at all.
So things are rolling a little better now. The bird in the showerhead nest laid eggs. I broke the sink when I was trying to wash my foot. The porcelain stayed intact, but the whole unit starting ripping off the wall. I caught it and called "Señora" several loud, panicked times until she came over with a laugh. I swear, that's the most patient woman in the world. She took over and next time I saw it, it was all fixed up. I never put any weight on it ever again.
So, although I was a bit down on the health talks (which were especially awkward when talking to the more wealthy inhabitants), one thing I did end up loving was teaching little kids how to brush their teeth!
Handing out toothbrushes, brushing teeth, and playing games with the town children was by far the highlight of my volunteering experience. The kids were great and played just about any silly game we threw at them, including one called "Cepillo, Cepillo, Dientes", which is basically "Duck, Duck, Goose" but substituting the words "Brush, Brush, Teeth!" Note: that white building in the background is the town's schoolhouse.
It was Xochitl's birthday while we were there and it's tradition, apparently, to splash someone with water (from the river) on their birthday. Xochitl was game - she often played in the river with the others anyway. Then they had the idea that they better splash me too (my birthday is not over the summer) and splashed some water on me, too, but I didn't like that idea so much, so walked my wet butt back up the hill. The kids were cool about it. I spent the next three HOURS sitting by the bridge drying and drawing pictures for the kids (of every animal they could think of.) That was very neat. One older girl, who knew a little English, asked, "Do you have a boyfriend?" It was very good English. My response was too complicated, I should have simplified.
We generally spent our free time hanging out with the kids, chatting with the teenagers (in giggly Spanish), playing basketball, playing soccer, and hiking in the hills beyond La Presa. I did get to ride a burro which was fun (and bony). Xochitl received a nickname: "Fantasma" (or Phantom.) I think that was because she was everywhere at once.
One of the last things we did before we left was visit La Puerta, a town over, with our two girlfriends from town. In this town was a church and within the church was a rock with an image of the Lady of Guadalupe.
I arrived in late June and it is now the first week of August. I learned a lot, but in my own words, not what I was expecting to.
Bye bye La Presa!