First Impressions

  Xalapa and Mexico City, Mexico
Friday, December 29, 2006

I decided to head to Xalapa (prounced Halapa) a week early to 'get a feel' for the place before I started my voluntary work. It didn't take long for me to panic about committing myself to spending 4 weeks here let alone adding an extra week now over New Year.
Xalapa initially appeared to be a big, grey city with nothing much but traffic and busy mexicans rushing around and staring at the only female tourist in the place - yes me!
(there was one fat American woman in the hostel with her husband but she was so irritating that I think people just ignored her - I certainly tried very hard)
                                                                       


There was only one hostel in the city so I booked myself into there and and was very pleasant and clean but rather deserted. There were 3 other people, the extrememely annoying American couple and the most boring man in the world staying there so that didn't actually help matters.

I phoned Adriana who I had arranged the voluntary work with and we met for coffee, all very pleasant but I wasn't starting the work for another week and I couldn't start any earlier - great! Another girl turned up at the hostel and we actually had quite a good night out with several beers but that was short lived as she was only stopping one night!

After a quiet New Year (not actually that different from last years) I decided I needed some life so I headed to Mexico City and stayed in a hostel in the centre. It had a rooftop bar and I met quite a few cool people. I ended up having a couple of good nights out with another girl, I think her name was Rosie, where we checked out the few bars and pubs that were considered any good.
                                                               

I went to the markets where I bought a few sad teaching resources for my voluntary work - sad I know but it made me feel at home again! I also visited the torture museum which was incredibly gruesome and sick so obviously I spent quite some time in there and thoroughly enjoyed it. I did decide though that I was rather glad I didn't live in the not so distant past (or in the countries which still torture) when people were tortured for practically everything.There were cages in which people were hung until they starved to death and those chastity belts gave me nightmares for a week - unfortuantely (or maybe fortuantely ) you weren't allowed to take pictures.

I headed back to Xalapa after a couple of days feeling much more positive about the city and ready to start the voluntary work and learn some Spanish once again.