The great joy created by finding a house on Tigres street was smashed the day after signing the contract by a phone call from our flatmate, Anastasya: “I have very bad news. I just came with the rest of my luggage to our place and it appears someone broke in.”
Excellent! The backdoor was broken, the front door wide open and the airconditioner in one of the rooms was taken out of the wall. The thieves probably wanted to take it away but did not manage to. Fortunately, that was the most valuable belonging in the house, as we hadn’t brought our things there yet. We felt lucky that we hadn’t been there and that nothing had actually been stolen but however, we were scared enough to decide to find a new place.
One of our lovely Mexican friends helped us and after a few hours we were visiting a beautiful apartment, located in a slightly farther-from-the-party-places area, but very well secured. That was what we were searching for. Two days later, we moved in, leaving the cozy place of our dear friend who had hosted us for five days. So here we are, living in three different homes in less than one week, trying to make ourselves comfortable and hoping that this third time is the lucky one. We already had a kind of warming-up event, cooking some Mexican fast-food, watching a movie starring Mexican actors, laughing to tears, receiving moving-in gifts and planning new trips and parties.
Except for the logistical preoccupations that covered our week, we made some small tours of the city – Passeo Santa Lucia by boat, Mirador del Obispado - a viewpoint of Monterrey under the most beautiful flag in the world and the biggest in Latin America, the gorgeous bandera mexicana -, tried lots of types of traditional food, among which the spicy tacos and delicious plates from Oaxaca, and had a great time.
Pictures are coming up soon and we hope to post updates about our adventures more often. It might take some time though, since we signed the contract for Internet at home today but it will take between 5 and 20 working days to have it done. In Mexican terms, this could actually mean much more, so we are trying to practice our patience.
luni, 14 septembrie 2009
marți, 8 septembrie 2009
Alone in the jungle?!
Tuesday morning we had to manage by ourselves…That shouldn’t be so difficult we thought. But, as soon as we got to the main street we were “lost”: the heat was melting us since we were used to the cold Denmark, we couldn’t find the ATM which was inside 7/11, the traffic was crazy, didn’t even know how to cross the street, didn’t know how to get a taxi and a bunch of Mexican guys were staring at us…Just perfect! Finally we decided to wave and a taxi took us to the university. This is the only way you can survive in this town when you don’t have a car. Taxi drivers honk their horns when they see you walking inviting you to take a ride. Besides, this means of transportation is very cheap and it can offer valuable information about people, culture and local habits since taxi drivers are extremely talkative.
These days were dedicated to searching for a place to live, to exploring the city, trying to practice other survival techniques, learning the way to tip absolutely everyone here, from the cleaning lady at the bathrooms in the airport to the lady that puts your things in bags at the supermarket.
One of the things we are the happiest about is our new house. It has three rooms, living room, bathroom, kitchen and…a back yard where we can have barbeques and parties :D It’s very close to the main campus and to the sports field where the football players train. This is the main advantage that our Mexican friend pointed when we were considering whether to rent the house :))
The first impression is that Mexicans are lovely people, warm and friendly but veeery lazy and like chatting with everyone about everything. Exactly like in “telenovelas”. They take things easy, don’t stress, party a lot and have 2-hour lunch breaks. We have so many things to learn from them if we want to live longer…
These days were dedicated to searching for a place to live, to exploring the city, trying to practice other survival techniques, learning the way to tip absolutely everyone here, from the cleaning lady at the bathrooms in the airport to the lady that puts your things in bags at the supermarket.
One of the things we are the happiest about is our new house. It has three rooms, living room, bathroom, kitchen and…a back yard where we can have barbeques and parties :D It’s very close to the main campus and to the sports field where the football players train. This is the main advantage that our Mexican friend pointed when we were considering whether to rent the house :))
The first impression is that Mexicans are lovely people, warm and friendly but veeery lazy and like chatting with everyone about everything. Exactly like in “telenovelas”. They take things easy, don’t stress, party a lot and have 2-hour lunch breaks. We have so many things to learn from them if we want to live longer…
luni, 7 septembrie 2009
The trip that became neverending
Mexico City airport – youhuuuu, we finally step on Mexican land!!
After the emotions of the passport checking – Mexican authourities can be very, very, veeeeryyyyyy tough, came the medical control for AG. I could barely speak or breathe, and after a set of questions and some tests, I was diagnosed with the boring “common influenza”, recommended the local version of Paracetamol, and applied a mask on my face, “to protect myself and the ones around me”.
The big surprise in Mexico City was not the astonishing look and attitude of the Mexican people – believe me, this place is like another planet to us, Europeans, and we’re not even Western Europeans! -, nor the charming chaos that joyfully rules the life in this part of the world. It was the rain. Thunderstorm. Huge drops. Lightning. Big clouds with loads of water that never stop pouring. I was admiring it when we got on the plane, I liked the strong character of the storm, but it only lasted until we were told that the flight was being delayed by 50 minutes because of the rain. After one hour, a new delay of 1.5 hours was announced. And after that, we were kindly evacuated from the plane and advised to stay in the airport until further notice. The further notice never came, nobody knew what was going to happen, and eventually a friendly but yet annoying voice announced that the airport was to be closed for a few hours because of the bad weather conditions and that we have to take our luggage, check out, then check in again for another flight the next day. Oh, that sure was an adventure! It culminated in the 4-hours waiting in the amusement park called “line to reschedule for the next flight”, and then in finding a place to sleep during the rest of the 9 hours that remained until we were supposed to leave again. Luckily, I was equipped with some mountaineering clothes and accessories, which saved our night once again. The places to sleep varied from a space on the floor next to the check-in offices, from where a “Federal” gently asked us to leave right when we started to dream of the warm Monterrey, to a small area under a desk, where people came in the morning to ask questions about local flights. We must have looked very cool, dressed up with 3 sweaters and 2 jackets, headbands, covered in the sleeping bag and using the luggage as a fence for our shelter. It surely was a good moment to learn and practice survival techniques in airportsJ
The next day at 14.00 we finally got on the plane, flew to and landed in Monterrey without any adventures. There, one of our new Mexican friend offered us a warm welcome which he had patiently but unsuccessfully practised for 2 hours the previous evening.
We then arrived to another friend who is still hosting us, unpacked and went out to have the first delicious Mexican meal. Even though we stayed on the safe side trying to avoid the strong spices, the tacos were still a delight to our taste buds.
Yummyyy, finally safe, sound and happy in Monterrey, surrounded by great mountains and lovely people!
After the emotions of the passport checking – Mexican authourities can be very, very, veeeeryyyyyy tough, came the medical control for AG. I could barely speak or breathe, and after a set of questions and some tests, I was diagnosed with the boring “common influenza”, recommended the local version of Paracetamol, and applied a mask on my face, “to protect myself and the ones around me”.
The big surprise in Mexico City was not the astonishing look and attitude of the Mexican people – believe me, this place is like another planet to us, Europeans, and we’re not even Western Europeans! -, nor the charming chaos that joyfully rules the life in this part of the world. It was the rain. Thunderstorm. Huge drops. Lightning. Big clouds with loads of water that never stop pouring. I was admiring it when we got on the plane, I liked the strong character of the storm, but it only lasted until we were told that the flight was being delayed by 50 minutes because of the rain. After one hour, a new delay of 1.5 hours was announced. And after that, we were kindly evacuated from the plane and advised to stay in the airport until further notice. The further notice never came, nobody knew what was going to happen, and eventually a friendly but yet annoying voice announced that the airport was to be closed for a few hours because of the bad weather conditions and that we have to take our luggage, check out, then check in again for another flight the next day. Oh, that sure was an adventure! It culminated in the 4-hours waiting in the amusement park called “line to reschedule for the next flight”, and then in finding a place to sleep during the rest of the 9 hours that remained until we were supposed to leave again. Luckily, I was equipped with some mountaineering clothes and accessories, which saved our night once again. The places to sleep varied from a space on the floor next to the check-in offices, from where a “Federal” gently asked us to leave right when we started to dream of the warm Monterrey, to a small area under a desk, where people came in the morning to ask questions about local flights. We must have looked very cool, dressed up with 3 sweaters and 2 jackets, headbands, covered in the sleeping bag and using the luggage as a fence for our shelter. It surely was a good moment to learn and practice survival techniques in airportsJ
The next day at 14.00 we finally got on the plane, flew to and landed in Monterrey without any adventures. There, one of our new Mexican friend offered us a warm welcome which he had patiently but unsuccessfully practised for 2 hours the previous evening.
We then arrived to another friend who is still hosting us, unpacked and went out to have the first delicious Mexican meal. Even though we stayed on the safe side trying to avoid the strong spices, the tacos were still a delight to our taste buds.
Yummyyy, finally safe, sound and happy in Monterrey, surrounded by great mountains and lovely people!
duminică, 6 septembrie 2009
Andreeas, sonrisas y sombreros
So here we are, finally heading towards the country of sun, tequila, tacos and…
We’re now still in the plane, somewhere in the middle of our journey and of the Atlantic Ocean, which we unfortunately cannot see, since we are flying above the clouds. In all the possible ways:)
The journey started in the most wonderful fashion, with a lot of our dear friends visiting us and joining us to the train station. It was…overwhelming. Thanks guys, we love you, and it was a great surprise!
And then, the train brought us another surprise, wearing a white shirt and navy blue trousers. As soon as he entered the compartment, he was in the center of everyone’s attention. Absolutely no one was able to ignore him.
No, no, it was no prince charming, just a guy who was so relaxed that he forgot to..zip up and, oh well, probably mistook his own clothes for…oh well…a toilet!
Yes, it is possible in Denmark, we felt it with our own poor noses. Reading terror on everyone’s faces, we escaped the compartment for a while. On our way to a more quiet and odourless area, we admired the courage of the controller who, armed with a piece of oh well, toilet paper sprinkled with glass spray, rushed into the place where the star of the evening was sitting carelessly, cleaned it and then kicked the man out of the train at the following stop.
We could only be happy about the whole event, since, according to an old, wise Romanian saying, the substance that richfully covered the man’s trousers brings good luck. So be it!
The Charles the Gaulle airport was quiet and peaceful, no adventures there, and then we stepped into the trans-atlantic plane, under the smiles and greetings of Latin American people. The good news is that English is not yet useless, the bad news is none! We’re sitting quietly on our seats, planning and dreaming.
We’ll keep you updated about how much reality fits our imagination.
Hugs and rays of sun,
AA and AG
We’re now still in the plane, somewhere in the middle of our journey and of the Atlantic Ocean, which we unfortunately cannot see, since we are flying above the clouds. In all the possible ways:)
The journey started in the most wonderful fashion, with a lot of our dear friends visiting us and joining us to the train station. It was…overwhelming. Thanks guys, we love you, and it was a great surprise!
And then, the train brought us another surprise, wearing a white shirt and navy blue trousers. As soon as he entered the compartment, he was in the center of everyone’s attention. Absolutely no one was able to ignore him.
No, no, it was no prince charming, just a guy who was so relaxed that he forgot to..zip up and, oh well, probably mistook his own clothes for…oh well…a toilet!
Yes, it is possible in Denmark, we felt it with our own poor noses. Reading terror on everyone’s faces, we escaped the compartment for a while. On our way to a more quiet and odourless area, we admired the courage of the controller who, armed with a piece of oh well, toilet paper sprinkled with glass spray, rushed into the place where the star of the evening was sitting carelessly, cleaned it and then kicked the man out of the train at the following stop.
We could only be happy about the whole event, since, according to an old, wise Romanian saying, the substance that richfully covered the man’s trousers brings good luck. So be it!
The Charles the Gaulle airport was quiet and peaceful, no adventures there, and then we stepped into the trans-atlantic plane, under the smiles and greetings of Latin American people. The good news is that English is not yet useless, the bad news is none! We’re sitting quietly on our seats, planning and dreaming.
We’ll keep you updated about how much reality fits our imagination.
Hugs and rays of sun,
AA and AG
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