Day 6 - Saturday

Woke up late this morning because my alarm didn't go off.  Awesome.  Fortunately Kylie came and woke me...13 minutes before morning coffee.  As if that isn't unfortunate enough, I woke with a cold.  I guarantee I got it from Karem and Julie.  They both have had the sniffles for a few days.  Another awesome.  However, not to be outdone by tardiness and a cold, I hopped out of bed, rushed to coffee and made it in plenty of time.   The morning coffee talk was pretty basic.  No groups arriving until next week and New Orleans just left.  That's about it.  Afterwards, I came back to mi casa to finish getting ready and check the web.  

At about 9:30 a.m., we set out for the parade.  Today is Mexican Independence Day or Grito de Dolores (the Cry of Dolores) and it marks the day of the Mexican War of Independence.  (No, Mexican independence day is not Cinco de Mayo...not down here; Americans celebrate Cinco de Mayo but not Mexicans.).  If you're interested, check out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grito_de_Dolores.

Anyway, a group of us volunteers and some of the kids piled into a mini van and headed to the beginning of the parade route in the center of town.  Each age group had a different thing to carry in the parade.  Felipe had a somewhat large banner that said, "Viva la Mexico!"  Jesus had some weird mask with a picture of Dolores presumably.  Angelina and the girl next to her had plaque-type posters on sticks with a picture of Dolores.  Lastly, Daniel had a Mexican flag to waive around.  The older kids (high school age) didn't have anything to carry, but marched in unison.  All the kids in the orphanage and all the other school kids, plus some other groups, participated in the parade.  They all had to get dressed up in their school uniforms. Ay, dios mio!  Today is not the day I would want to be dressing up in a school uniform.  I'm told it's the hottest day of the year this year...and let me tell ya, IT IS HOT!  Those poor niños!  The kids all seemed to love it though!!

After the parade, we came back to the orphanage and I did some more Spanish lessons.  I really hope I start catching on soon!  I feel like (and don't ask me why I feel this way) at some point, all of a sudden, it will just click.  Gawd I hope so!  I felt less frustrated today, so that's a good sign.  :)

I played a little tag with Jesus and Kylie.  Here are Jesus and Kylie.

After dinner, tried to give one of the dogs at the orphanage a bath because the poor thing seems to be covered in bugs (not fleas, but gnats or something like that).  While trying to coax the pup to the washing area (just a spare hose and nozzle I found laying around), I watched the thing eat a rat.  Ewwww.  Clearly the poor thing is hungry.  I don't have any dog food, so I gave it some people food...that's got to be better than a rat, right?  The dog (I don't think it has a name, but I call it Peaches...short for Peaches 'n Cream) let me rinse her off, but didn't want to have anything to do with the water after that.  Oh well, I fed and watered the poor thing...best I could do.  Sadly, I'm kind of getting attached to Peaches.  Hopefully it will be fine and not wind up like poor Lucky.

This is Peaches.

After a while, Carlos came by pushing little Edwin in a stroller and asked me to go with him.  So, Carlos, Edwin and I went on a walk around the orphanage.  It was nice.  Carlos doesn't speak English at all (or at least wouldn't let on that he does if he does), but we made do.  My online Spanish courses are starting to help.  At least I'm understanding a little more.  I can read it just fine, but hearing it spoken is a whole other ball game.  Carlos is 13 and he really loved the gelato he was eating.  Edwin is 8 months.  He is the son of one of the house parents, Joanna & Jorge.

Carlos & Edwin:

While watching a group of kids play soccer, Michael and I decided to hike up to the cross that overlooks the orphanage.  We grabbed Kylie for the trek and off we went!  Man is that a hike!  We were all winded by the time we reached the top, but boy oh boy was it worth it!  First, we had no fog (last night the fog was so think you could barely see 10 feet in front of you), so we could see for miles.  Second, the view is OUTSTANDING!  We could see to the ocean!  Finally, we went at sunset.  Ahhhhh, that's tranquility.  To be perched atop a giant hill, with the sun in your face as it sets over the ocean in a place marked with a plaque that reads: "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands."  Psalms19:1.  You could almost feel God's embrace up there.  I could've sat there for hours, but certainly didn't want to try to scale down the hillside in the dark.  In any event, I feel at peace up there and will probably hike up there again soon.

Panoramic view from the top.

The cross up close (well, at least not from the bottom of the hill):

The orphanage as seen from the top:

I talked to my brother and my mom tonight (one via FaceTime and the other via Skype).  It was soooo good to see and talk with them!  It made me feel less far away.  Sure, it made me miss home again, but it's almost as if I feel better knowing that they are home, miss me, love me, are safe and can communicate anytime we like.

So!  Are you ready for the really good news?!  I figured out the volunteer project I will stop at in two stops (so there will be one in between here and there).  I will volunteer with the Chico Mendes Project in Guatemala.  I emailed back and forth with them today and I just need to give them my dates.  I will be there for a week or two.  If you're curious what it's all about, check this out: http://www.entremundos.org/Projects/db/DisplayListing.php?p_listing_id=198 and http://www.iximulew.org/.  I will be able to help the environment and learn Spanish!  Very exciting!  I am looking for something about halfway between here and there to do for a week or so, just to break up the long trip and have a little more time in Mexico.  If you have any suggestions, please let me know.

Well, I suppose that's enough for one day.  G'night!