The beginning of an adventure

Hola mis amigos!

Well, I have survived my first 2 days in Mexico! It's a good thing that life here in general is pretty laid back because it is quite a transition thus far. The trip here went great, I had no problem navigating the airports, making my planes or getting through customs. I caught a taxi to my host family's house and was greeted by the granddaughter of my host mom, Aspasia, who ended up being a lot of fun. I taught her a few card games last night, and we had a lot of fun. my host mom, Lupita, is very gracious and thinks that I don't eat enough. :) It's true that I'm not eating my normal amount, but that is because of the heat. Oh the heat. The day I flew in, it was so hot that I began to question whether I wanted to stay and risk death or turn around and go home. I'm not even being dramatic- it was as hot as hades. Fortunately, however, I soon found out that it was only that hot because there was a massive thunderstorm brewing which turned out to be nothing like the thunderstorms that I am used to. I normally really like thunderstorms, but this was a whole different level of rain, thunder and lightening. About 2 in the morning, I awoke to booming thunder, torrential rain and flashing lightening that was centered right above the house. There was absolutely no time in-between the thunder and lightening- it was centered directly above us. Needless to say, it was quite the event, and actually quite frightening. Due to the storm, however, this morning was much cooler- still hot but definitely bearable.

Ok, moving on. I have to make this quick because I am using my host brother's computer, and I don't want to monopolize it. I didn't expect to have internet access in the house, but Ernesto (my host brother) showed me that if you put the computer in the window of the living room, you can pick up wireless internet for free. It is pretty high tech here in Mazatlan. So anyway, I went to orientation this morning at my language school, and I was really impressed with the people there. I didn't meet any of my teachers, but the women working there were really nice, and it was great to speak English for awhile. It is unbelievable, by the way, how much practice I have had just living with my host family. No one speaks English, so it is a pretty Spanish-intensive environment. :) I can't space out for a minute or I've missed an entire sentence that is crucial to understanding the person speaking. It is really good for me though. I will be a lot better at Spanish after a whole month!

That's it for now friends, I'll write again as soon as I can!