We pass food stalls on every corner serving breakfast, and emaculately dressed primary school children, on our walk to uni every morning.
This week I have learnt Spanish, the entire Mexican history from Aztec through to drug dealing times, the weird and wonderful superstitions engrained in the heavily catholic Mexican culture, and how to salsa!
I have settled in to my apartment with roomies from America, South Korea and Mexico. Over tortillas and tacos we have discussed our different cultures, countries and customs.
I have come to realise that the constant responses I received from family and friends-"WHAT? You're going to Mexico??!"- were simply just misinformed. The people here are beautiful, always smiling and willing to help. The food is healthy and super cheap, the drinks are strong and the histroy is rich.
Our site visit this week, as part of the AimOverseas Public Health course, was a trip to an aged care home. My nightmare of an impoverished, unethical institution was completely turned around. The home was clean and happy. The residents living some of the best years of their lives with 24hour care and 3 meals a day. One lady even got married in the home, pretending to faint to gain the attention of her future husband.
We concluded the week with a trip to bustling downtown Mexico City, which had such a European architectural influence, that I felt like I was in Swtizerland. On Sunday we climbed the great Aztec Pyramids of the sun and the moon. Randomly jutting from the barren, cactus clad landscape, the pyramids were an unexpected spectacle, thousands of years old.
Overall week 1 has been jam-packed with culturally rich lectures and sites. Looking forward to entering week 2 of this whirlwind experience!
