Not Settling For . . . but Settling In - to a New Direction.

Well, I do not have cancer! YAY!!!

I have had half my thyroid removed with a very larg nodule (4+cm). My neck is healing amazingly well, they used glue instead of stitches! I got my results just 2 weeks before my first reservation in Mexico, so was able to buy an overpriced one way ticket to Puerto Vallarta. And I am now in Mexico for 2.5 months. Aaahhh.

A curious thing happened among all the medical appointments, surgery, unpacking, working, etc. I found myself finally feeling ‘home’, and I love it. I am back on the island, in a city of the right size for me (12,000), with a new friend already and a great newcomers club where I am meeting even more people, and with good access to culture, shopping and other amenities. I actually found myself feeling a little disappointed that I would not be here for the Christmas activities and that I would be away for more than 2 months. I think I’m nesting.

I do still plan to travel because I love exploring new places, cultures and foods, but I am thrilled to have found a community that fits me as well as Parksville does. I have family and a long time friend nearby.  I have learned to play Mahjong and do so on Mondays evenings when I’m in town.  I have joined the Newcomers Club and am participating in a solos group, a book club and a wine appreciation group. And I am thinking of starting a Spanish language practice group.

These first 3 weeks in Nuevo Vallarta have been just what I needed to relax and recuperate after all the upheaval of the last 3 months. It must show, because a man asked me in the elevator the other day, if I am Canadian. I responded yes, and he said that I looked “pleasant and satisfied”. I will take that compliment. I am satisfied – with where my life is right now.

At the end of this week I move to Mazatlan for 6 weeks, my good friend Linda will be joining me the week after for 5 weeks and a couple that she has been friends with for a long time will also be joining us for our last week. I will then go to Mexico City & Toluca to visit my Mexican friend for about 10 days before returning home at hte end of January.

I am, of course, also planning my next trips.

1. May – June in Europe.  
• Possibly volunteering at Vaughan Town again for a week at the end of April (as an English language speaking partner for Spaniards).
• Amsterdam and then nearby for the 75^th anniversary of Liberation Day with Linda and her sister & brother-in-law.
• A Baltic cruise, then a week or so in Berlin,
• Followed by a month in Greece
2. September – October in Africa, likely Kenya & South Africa for a month each. This planning is still in the early stages.

But I plan on staying home for the holidays next year and spending some time with family.

Back to School - in Puebla, Mexico / De vuelta a la Escuela

Arriving in Puebla Saturday night, I set out to explore 'el centro' on Sunday afternoon before classes start on Monday. This central area of town is called Zocalo and there is a large square surrounded by shops, restaurants and the cathedral. It's filled with trees, sculptures, a fountain, entertainers, and lots of people on a sunny afternoon.






I had a warm welcome. A couple of police officers were walking by me around the outside of the square, so I asked them if they could recommend one of the restaurants for lunch ('almuerzo'), they not only gave me a recommendation but walked with me to show me which one and we chatted along the way. Then, no sooner than I had sat down at a patio table an adorable little girl at the table next to me came over and said 'Hola'. She was fascinated with talking to a lady from Canada.

I began exploring the rest of the square after a wonderful meal of three enchiladas each with a different one of the traditional mole sauces, Verde, Rojo & Poblano. All were delicious, but I still like Poblano the best, probably because there is chocolate in it!  During my exploration, the officers noticed me and asked if I would fill out a form for their work describing how they had assisted me. I did get a few strange looks as I sat on the bench completing the form with two officers standing over me, though. But taking photos after, likely dispelled any misinterpretations.

I am in a spanish immersion program this week at Livit Immersion Centre, which includes accommodation in a local household. I am staying with Lupita, a wonderful older woman who Lives in the house she grew up in and now rents the vacant rooms. She provides me with breakfast at 8 am, a light supper at 8 pm, and wonderful conversation whenever I am at home and not doing my homework (or my job work). She lives across the street from a lovely park and the neighbourhood has a number of murals including one on her house which is in honour of her years teaching children.




My days begin breakfast with Lupita and one of the 2 young men staying there, then I have a 20 min walk to the school. I have a private class from 9 am to 1 pm when we break for dinner provided by the school. Between 2 and 4, Monday through Wednesday we each go with the guide assigned to us and explore the city while conversing in Spanish. My guide this week was Emilio, a university student.With a few other students, we visited a traditional ceramics factory where they make Talavera, the famous blue & white ceramics that Puebla is famous for.






Tuesday we explored the artisan area and the original cathedral in Puebla. I got a good start on my Christmas shopping and had a new experience. I ate a ‘chapulin’! A fried and salted type of small grasshopper! It was actually good and the texture was crunchy and not at all unpleasant. I was definitely surprised!





I didn’t realize until this week that Puebla was the location of the famous ‘Cinco de Mayo’ battle with France. The hill where the battle took place used to have a church on top, El Templo de Guadalupe. There is now a museum build around and within these ruins in recognition of this important battle. This area of the city now is a huge park with other museums, a convention center and a ‘teleferico’ (aerial tram). We rode this one way to see the views of the city and then caught a bus back to Zocalo.

What a great start to the week!

Daily Life in Metepec

The language school is on the edge of a major commercial area, with malls, theatres, supermarkets, Sam's Club, Costco and Wallmart. Two other teachers and I live just a 5 minute walk from the school in a residential area that fronts on to a main road. The houses are all in 'privadas', private streets with a gate and a security guard 24/7. Most of the privadas have a nice little green space at the end of the street with some trees, flowers and some swings for kids.

The guards do more than just watch who comes and goes. When we need gas (for hot water and the stove) we leave money with the guard and when the gas truck comes along (a few times per weekday, once or twice on the weekends) he gets them to fill our tank to the amount we have given. We can get knives sharpened the same way, take the knives and the money to the guard's room and pick up the sharpened knives later in the day.

Each week I load my dirty laundry into a large plastic bag in my backpack and take it to a lavanderia where they wash, dry and fold it for 10 pesos per kilo. It is less than 5 kilos so about $4 /week. On the way back from the lavanderia (a 5 minute walk) I stop at some of the little locally owned shops for produce, cheese, meat, and fresh tortillas for much better prices than at the grocery stores, and fresher too. There are 2 fruit and vegetable shops, one also carries some cheese and chicken, a small butcher shop, and a lady who sells her fresh tortillas (thinner and softer than the store's) for about 10 pesos for a 1 inch stack, still hot.

Las Galerias, the big mall about a 15-20 minute walk from home (5 less from school) has many chain stores with Liverpool and Sears as anchors. It also has a 14 screen movie theatre, including an IMAX, a 4D and a 5 screen VIP area. This is a complete theatre within a theatre where, apparently, you sit on couches/love seats and your food and drink are brought to your seats. I have not yet tried either the 4D or the VIP section but do plan to.

I haven't done any exploring in the last few weeks because I was "felled by the flu". That, plus my mild asthma, and the high altitude here (9000 ft!) resulted in it going to my lungs and I ended up seeing a pulmonologist to get some strong meds to help me get better. I still have some difficulty breathing well and therefore get quite tired very easily. Hopefully it will continue to improve.

Before I got sick, I did go to a free concert in 'el centro de Metepec'. It was the university orchestra and they did a 'rock symphony' many pieces that are well known to the locals, they have a vocalist for some of the numbers and the audience sang along for others. It was a great opportunity to explore the old centre of the town a bit.

Monday is market day in Metepec and one Monday (after juggling our teaching schedules) a German teacher and I were taken to 'el mercado' by our Spanish teacher, Naxla. We explored the market using our Spanish, (The German teacher's much better than mine as she has been here for a few months.) seeing fruits and vegetables that were different from those we know (and do not have English or German names) and having a lovely lunch.

Una Maestra d'Ingles en Metepec

Well, I have completed my first week of teaching English full time at Pangea Idiomas here in Mexico. I am finally getting used to the altitude here (9000 ft.). The school is on the 3rd floor (bathrooms on the main floor) and the stairs are getting easier.

Toluca (& Metepec) is in a high valley with the mountain tops looking like large hills scattered around the city, the largest of which is a volcano. It's name is Xinantecatl, and it is the 4th largest peak in Mexico. It is easily seen from the school balcony and is especially beautiful in the early morning.

I had a few classes last week, and  observed Michael a lot. He is one of the teachers who left on the weekend. He and his girlfriend are moving on to Uruguay to teach there.  I started my full schedule on Saturday with 3 classes back to back for a total of 6 hours. It looks like I am scheduled for about 32 or 33 hours per week so I will be making about $1000. cdn per month. With the lower cost of living here, that is a decent salary.

I work 5 1/2 days a week with a split shift Monday - Friday and Saturday 8-2. Plus I get 2 Spanish lessons each week 1 1/2 hours each, this is free for teachers at the school. All the classes are individual or small group (usually siblings).

The weather was quite cold when I got here: to about 0 at night and only to 12 - 14 during the day. Doesn't sound bad but the houses are made of cement, are so close together that not all rooms have exterior windows and there is no central heating. They use space heaters where needed since this is for only about 2 months per year. Last week, however, the clouds cleared and the temperature during the day is now up to 20 - lovely. Everyone else is wearing their winter coats, but I think it is beautiful.

Here are some photos from this Week's shopping trip.

This is the way to buy cinnamon and brown sugar!

Whole Tamarind pods.

Dried hibiscus flowers, called Jamaica (pronounced 'ha-my-ka') are made into an iced tea which is available everywhere and has amazing health benefits.

10, 9, 8 . . .

Well, the countdown is on - 10 days! I am on my way to Mexico! Two bags are packed and weighed, one more to go plus my backpack. I'll have the maximum: 2 checked and 2 carry-on items, since I'm going to be there a while. I'll be heading down on the 27th/28th with a day or two to acclimate to the altitude (9000 ft), the locale, and the school, then begin doing some teaching on Feb 1st.

I know my address in Metepec and it is about 1/2 km from work, on a gated dead-end street just off a busy road, with a small green space at the other end of the block. There is a large city park less than 1 km away, and shops, malls, cinemas and a Scotiabank within a block or two of the language school where I'll be teaching. Also on Google Earth, the area appears to be pretty flat (perfect for walking to work, the park, on errands, shopping, etc.), but the city is in a valley so I am hoping that some of the surrounding hills will be visible.

I will be really glad to get busy again, I am growing quite bored (and broke) with my current life of leisure. It was not my intention to take this much time off, but it is what it is. I am fortunate that I did take some, otherwise I might be in Istanbul, and while it is a wonderful city and I do love it there, it is just a little too close right now to current unrest. Living and exploring in the Americas just seems like the wiser choice at this time.

Best Laid Plans . . .

Well, 2015 was certainly a year of plans, changes, re-directions, and hurry-up-and-wait.

I went on a grand adventure in January and February (5 weeks) to explore some places abroad that I was considering moving to. Picked Istanbul, applied and interviewed for a few jobs, received offers and almost accepted one but my mom got ill and we weren't sure if she would recover, so I turned it down but the door was left open for the future. I retired from my work in Grande Prairie and  and took the trip to Europe that was going to be my trip to my new job but instead I returned home to pack up my house and resettle back on Vancouver Island with my sister. This gave me a chance to rest a bit, visit my mom, who rallied nicely from her health crisis, and hopefully work part time and reapply for the Istanbul job next summer.

Well, there was no interest in my resume here, I applied for both SLP jobs that were advertised (but with my experience, I would be at the top of the pay grid) and some other positions including retail for pre-Christmas work. So I figured I had better start responding to English teaching job posts abroad again. I did call the recruiters for the Istanbul job and they were very interested, and I also applied for a few in Mexico, one of whom was really interested, interviewed me right away and offered me a position. They wanted me to start at the beginning of December but once I accepted and the owner got my temporary resident permit application in, she was told that it would not be completed until January sometime. So here I sit . . . waiting.

I did enjoy being home for Christmas though with my sister, and I have been able to spend some time with my nephew in Cobble Hill, and my niece, who just moved to Victoria.

So, the new job is at a private English school, Pangea Idiomas, in Metepec, Mexico. Metepec is a "small town" (200,000 people) next to the city of Toluca (500,000) and about an hour west of DF - Distrito Federal, or Mexico City to foreigners (9 million people). This is very different than the "cities" I have been living in for the last 20 years, the largest of which is 80,000 people.

I am getting excited, I have discovered that, because of its elevation of 9,000 ft, Metepec has a very moderate climate year round. In the winter the nights may drop to the low to mid single digits, but the days pop up to almost 20C, much like the late spring and early fall in Grande Prairie. In the April to June, the nights are much warmer but still cool at 9 or 10C and the days go up to about 25C. Then in the summer because of the elevation and the clouds of the rainy season, it doesn't get any hotter, in fact the highs might be a degree or 2 cooler. This sounds just perfect to me. No freezing winters or heat stroke summers.

Now all I have to do is wait until I hear from Liz and Pangea Idiomas, then make a trip to the Mexican Embassy in Vancouver to pick up my resident permit, and book a flight to Toluca.

. . . still waiting.