So many events this week ... it is hard to include all the details .... I'm going to try to summarize the week with comments and of course my favorite photos!
My students are working on oral presentations, and I was so impressed with their concentration that I had to take some shots. They will present in English, which is very stressful, but they have worked diligently and I am looking forward to hearing them on Monday.
Friday night we were invited to attend a "chareada" or mexican rodeo. It was a private event, and very beautiful with female riders showing their riding skills in full white dress, and men who rode the "Paso de Muerte". This is where they jump from a tame horse to a wild horse, while riding very fast! Two out of three made it...felt sorry for the one rider....he got up and gracefully walked out of the arena, but ouch! Not too many photos of this because of night, distance, etc.
Last week-end my friends Brenda and Bill from Winterport, Maine and I bought bikes! We were advised against it because of all the traffic, but after spending our week-end riding around a couple of different areas, this proved to be the wrong advice for us. In fact, on Sunday, the city actually closes two of the main streets in the center of town for all the folks to walk, run, bike, or whatever you choose! The streets take you to the Zocolo and all the way to Chapultepec Park. It was so great to be able to build up some speed and not be bothered with too many obstacles. Brenda says "this is their way of giving the city back to the people". ..for a few hours anyway(9am-2pm, Sunday). In my opinion, if they did it more often, it could be an answer to their pollution problem. We rode both Saturday and Sunday. Saturday, we rode in the park for many hours....touring this way gives one access to so much more. One of my favorite areas in the park is "the poet's row". They have bronze sculptures of the best Latin poets and some quotes from their work.....Sor Juana de la Cruz, Najera and José Othon to name a few...his poem is called "La Casita". We also came across a group of Indian performers that had the most beautiful instruments, a mandolin and a concha shell horn. At this place a couple of students approached us because they needed to interview someone in English for their class! We were of course delighted to tell them on film how we loved their country and hopefully our tape will be shown in their classroom!
Chapultepec Park is celebrating 100 years and with this comes lots of celebration. We happened on a stage with a mariachi band dressed in white, ballet folkórico dancers dressed in lots of colors, and a female cantante (singer). They were wonderful!
Right next to them of all things was an antique car show! Model T Fords and lots of others! They have auto clubs here too. On the way back on the Paseo de Reforma(a main street) I took photos of several unique park benches, what creativity in this city! In a city of 20 million people there certainly seems to be something for everyone...never a dull moment.
2 comments:
Dear Cece, Thank you so much for such a great post. It seems like you are not only working hard, but having fun as well. The entire area seems so beautiful and the people always smiling.
Continue the great work and take care, will write again when I return form India.
Joyce
Cece, yes, thanks for these wonderful photos. I so enjoyed seeing the unique sculptures--er, benches. Amazing!
I'm working on the issue of whether it's possible to download one's blog as a file. I don't know yet. If worse comes to worst, we can do what my sister did for my mother, who doesn't have a computer or internet access: Kate copied and pasted my blog into a Word document and printed it to show my mom.
But that's a lot of work. I think there's a better way.
I just bought my ticket to Mexico City--for Oct 28-31. So I'll see you soon. I envy you the bike. The traffic here is too heavy and too fast to consider it, and the streets don't shut down on the weekend. I like what Brenda said--that closing the streets to traffic gives them back to the people.
Blog on!
Nancy
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