The First 5 Days in Mexico

Alright, so this has been a whirlwind experience already, and I am not even 1/6 of the way through yet! We got here on Saturday evening and I met with my family for the first time. I am living with a lady named Alejandra, and two of her sons, between 35-40 years of age, Jorge and Gerardo, and Jorge's son (15 years old). But Jorge also has a girlfriend, Cecilia, who has 2 daughters, 13 and 15, and those three are over almost every night. Also, Alejandra has many friends that come over often. I only know two of their names, Letty and Betty (I know, awesome), but there are others. So my first night here on Saturday was a little overwhelming. I could only understand 50% of what was said directly to me, and when there was more than one conversation happening, I could only understand 20%, if that. Nobody speaks English in the house. Jorge knows some words, but never uses them.

I live in an apartment only 2 blocks from the school, the closest person to the school. My apartment is relatively small, especially for as many people that live here. I do have my own room though with a comfortable bed, so that is nice. There are 4 bedrooms, one bathroom, 1 kitchen, and a dining area. It is definitely small by our standards, but I think a better way to describe it is intimate. Family is so important here, and it is so evident in my house. We have spent hours sitting around the table just talking. I can understand so much more already too. Gerardo is a joker, and I am finally starting to understand some of his jokes. Definitely a different sense of humor here.

Something else that is very different for me are the breakfasts. I wake up every morning and shower, and my mom here makes breakfast while I am in the shower and it is ready shortly after I am done getting ready. I am logging everything I eat for breakfast, because it has definitely been an experience. Here is what it has been so far:

Sunday - Corn pops and an apple...nothing strange here
Monday - Sincronizados (basically quesadillas with ham and cheese and a sauce I am in love with here called Valentina), avaocado, bread, beans, and flan...yes, flan for breakfast...different but not too much...but wait, there's more!
Tuesday - Rice with shrimp and octopus (yes, the fish with 8 arms), chipotle chilis, bread, beans, avocado
Wednesday - Tostados with eggs and peppers and tomatoes (not like American peppers, they tasted pretty different), beans, avocado, and a flan-like cake made from the fruit called mamey
Thursday - I asked, but I am still not 100% sure what I ate this morning. Half of it was a kind of steak here cooked with peppers, but the other half was this weird red chili sauce and something that I can only describe as pork fat. Only the fat. I know it is a pork product, because that's what she told me, but I am pretty sure it was all fat. And you eat it with corn tortillas, like everything else here...

To say the least, it was been a very different experience here with food, and those are only the breakfasts...who knows what I am eating the rest of the time! I also drank my first coke in, I think, 8 years. They served it to me the first night, and I didn't want to say that I wouldn't drink it on the first night. But they have asked every time since then, so I think that that was a one time thing.

Anyways, I haven't said anything about what we have done yet, but that will have to come later. I got some work to do! Anyways, I would love to hear from any one of you! I will try to update with things I have done so far later! And post some photos! :)