Late Night Tacos and Good Friends

I have made it through my first week in Cuernavaca! I took my first exam for Spanish School and got a 97/100! Esta muy bueno, no?! I passed the oral exam and also had to submit a one page paper describing "mi salon de clase" or my classroom. I am learning so much vocabulary -- today I will be making flash cards so I can quiz myself and my friends.

I am making some wonderful friends here! My closest friend is a girl named Carla who is from New York and goes to the University of Buffalo. We had class together all week and have met up at el Centro for dinner a drinks a few times. Her roommates and friends are wonderful, and we have enjoyed getting to know eachother. I don't have any roommates, which I feel is a good thing. My mama and papa are able to give me a lot of one-on-one practice and attention in helping me speak Spanish. We are also making friends with some of the Mexican students at the University. That also helps because they like to help us with our Spanish and we help correct their English.

An interesting part about studying abroad at UNINTER is that there are always people coming and going. It's sad, but a blatant reality check that this is not real life, and it is not going to last forever! Alas, for the time being I am really enjoying myself and trying to get the most out of this experience as possible.

Last night after spending some time with the girls who are leaving, my friends and I went to this taco stand called La Gringa. I think there are a few of them throughout Cuernavaca. I have posted a picture of me eating tacos al pastor. If you google image search "tacos al pastor" you can see a picture of this huge chunk of meat that rotates on a pole. It seems gross and my stomach is a little upset this morning, but it was totally worth it! They were the best tacos I have ever had!

This week I start having contact with the students at Mizzou who I am helping do some primary research for. Their project is to come up with a U.S. brand that could be brought into Cuernavaca. I am excited to see where the students take this project, and am ready to go out and do whatever I need to do to find the information that they need. And if that means going to the shopping malls a few times a week, I think I'll be able to handle that!

Today my girlfriends and I are heading to Plaza Cuernavaca to get haircuts and go shoe shopping. I hope all is well at home. As for now, here is to another wonderful week in sunny, beautiful Cuernavaca!