Guadalajara

Hey everyone,

Just a quick update. We have been studying spanish in Guadalajara for the last week and a bit. Our class is two hours a day which leaves us with a lot of time to explore Guadalajara and the surrounding area. We have been lucky as there is a lot going on here right now. We have been taking in a lot of shows related to the fiestas de octubre, including Mariachi bands in the plaza and brazilian dancers in bikinis. As well this past Friday was a local holiday for the Virgin of Zapopan. We got up at 5:30 am to witness the virgin leave the Cathedral in Guadalajara for her journey back to the Cathedral in Zapopan. The parade following the Virgin was three hours of Indigenous dancers making their way to Zapopan. We were told that 2 million people came out to make the journey with the Virgin. Pretty impressive.

Last weekend we attended a traditional Mexican rodeo called a charreada. Although neither of us really liked the treatment of the animals, the costumes, band, vendors and general atmosphere were pretty entertaining. Everyone, including the charros (cowboys) performing, was drinking tequila!! Our favorite part of the day was the little guy sitting in front of us all dressed up in his sombreo and mariachi outfit, practicing his trick roping. We could not stop taking pictures of him!

Today we visited Tonala, famous for a handmade craft market. However, being on a budget,we can only look : ( Last night we were luckily enough to be invited to our classmates house for dinner. He is from France and his girlfriend is Mexican. It was a nice mix of French cuisine and wine, with a little tequila thrown in!

One more week in Guadalajara and then we will be moving on. We are not quite sure where we will be next. We might just put Ruby on the road and see what happens : )

Hope everyone is well.

M