Volunteering in Michoacan, Mexico

View of Patzcuaro. Taken from One of the Below High Places.

Back to Patzcuaro (3 days)

We ended our trip in the same school we started in. Just after the last meeting the first evening when we were about to return to our rooms, bonk, the lights went out. It was quite dark. I finished up my paperwork by flashlight. By this time, it was thundering and pouring rain so I grabbed my poncho and Xochitl and ran to the staff room to turn it all in. The next morning, we talked about "what we did and what it means." Turns out we exceeded the goal for dental, ORT, and Com San charlas. (If only I could remember what ORT and Com San meant, this might mean more. I'm pretty sure "San"="Sanitation". Next time, I should write this up less than 15 years after the fact.) We didn't meet our latrine and latrine platica goal, however (probably because of the small details of not getting our materials on time and the townspeople not precisely following directions.) Then we had the day free to wander around Patzcuaro and shop!

On the Ferry. Closer... Closer...

The Statue and the View from the Top

The Island of Janitzio in Lake Patzcuaro

This island, on which indigenous people live, is a main tourist attraction of Patzcuaro. It has a popular Day of the Dead celebration. The above is a statue of José María Morelos, a great hero of Mexico's independence. All of that information just now came directly from the internet. What I actually wrote was:

I hadn't realized you were supposed to buy a ticket for the statue (and here I was wondering what that sign that said "Taquilla" everywhere meant. No, not tequila. Ticket booth!) but with the help of my better-Spanish-speaking fellow Amigo, I sorted it out. That evening, I found some yummy pizza and was a little too excited when they played "The Time Warp" at the debriefing dance party.

More Silly Route Skits

The Dream Route vs. The Reality Route

"As usual, I was nervous and, as usual everyone thought of something great," says my journal. Our route skit (pictured above) was awesome, I thought. We had one girl play our route leader, imagining what her route would be like as she walked along and visited each town (each pair, above.) In her Dream Route, we said, energetically, as she passed:

• "We haven't got our materials yet, but we've done 307 charlas!"
• "We got our materials the first day. We've done 80 latrines already!"
• "We've discovered the cure for cholera, just a little vinegar on the tip of the tongue!"
• "We built a septic system for our whole town"

• "Well, we're ready for debriefing, but I just have one question. What's this charla stuff?"
• "This hole has water in it."
• "We're shitting, and we can't get up."
• And, finally, she approaches the last town, but doesn't see anyone but locals. "Hey, where are the volunteers?" she asked. They said "Que voluntarios? No hay voluntarios aqui!"

400 Stairs

Mirador El Estribo

We went here on our final day. This place is called "Mirador El Estribo" which, according to my handy internet site translator, means "Viewpoint at The Stirrup." I think the picture at the top of the page was taken from here. Lots of stairs, even more than Janitzio, which was only about 200, which probably prompted the one and only sentence in my journal about this place "Estribo was tiresome, but a nice view."

The End

This is the map I drew of La Presa. The bottom center was the approximate location of our host house. The blue scribble through the middle is the river.

And to finish it off, here is a pic I took of La Presa while my camera was accidentally in panorama mode.