Moms are really important here (and everywhere else!!)

                 On Friday morning we had chemistry class in the kitchen; all the tables were taken out of our classroom for the big Mother's Day event happening that day. The whole class was about decomposition and fermentation of foods and probably bored the people who were not there for the class (Miguel and Jonathan (Maya and Tilo's cousin)). After that, Maya, Tilo, Miguel, Lorena, Mafer, Paola, Jonathan and I went upstairs, hooked up the guitar and bass and we started singing the song that we had been rehearsing for over a week: Hey Jude. We sounded pretty good all singing together; the biggest part that gave us trouble was remembering all the lyrics. Remembering if it was "under your skin" or "into your heart" was confusing. We practiced a few times and then we took a break and laid or sat on the floor as the sun came through the windows while Miguel and Tilo played songs together.
              After our break, we went downstairs to toss a frisbee around. Lore tossed it onto the roof of the swimming pool and Miguel climbed up onto a blue thing that goes around the "cancha" and with the help of a broom got it off. We tossed it around some more before Lore and I were recruited to help in the kitchen. We made orange juice (fresh-squeezed, mind you) and separated forks, knives and spoons. We helped out some more and went back upstairs to goof around on the guitar. When my mom came, I went downstairs to eat with her. We ate some heavenly watermelon with honey on it (which is a lot more delicious than it sounds and some orange juice to start out. After I tried a bite of the tamales from Honduras, I went inside to get two more, one for me and one for my mom. I ate every single crumb and then went back for more watermelon with honey. After that very enjoyable breakfast, I went and practiced some more but this time with just Lore, Miguel and Tilo (we couldn't get the rest of the people to practice again).
              We watched the younger kids do their show for Mother's Day. Primary's was a song where the only people who really sang were some girls with fake glasses decorated in rhinestones from third and fourth grade. It was sort of over-the-top but cute and we all cracked up when Ulrich (one of the kids from Canada) break danced at different parts in the song. Then it was time for the boys from secundary to sing their song about moms. It was super cheesy and the girls just stood there for moral support (we weren't supposed to sing anyway though some felt bad for them and sang a bit). Then it was our turn. I think the song turned out really well with no major slip ups.

              After a raffle for the mothers, we started throwing the frisbee again. One time when Miguel threw it way too hard it went really long and was going for the moms. My mom was standing up and it went directly to her, she caught it and it was awesome because I had just been explaining to him why she didn't play anymore. We then divided up the people who were throwing it and we had a little game. It was really fun, even if my face turned beet red!

             As we left, Karla told me the importance of wearing sunscreen when going to the "Canyon del Sumidero" which is where we went after. We went down to Chiapa de Corzo to get a boat. It was so stickily hot and humid, I think I would have melted had we not been going on a boat. While we were waiting, we watched some cheesy Mexican talk show called Laura where it is pretty much a show where she invites some person on the show who is really sad and then she has the person (or people) who made them upset come on and then she "mediates" a discussion between the two sides but they always end up yelling at each other. It is a sad excuse of a television show.
            All sunscreened up and with our hats, we got on the boat. It had no shade so we were grateful for out hats. We pulled out of the crowd of boats and started going sort of slow. I was already sort of disapointed, not knowing that we were going to go a lot faster than that. We then took off and the wind felt wonderful. Occasionally the guide would stop and shortly explain something interesting about a part in the canyon and then we would move on. My favorite part for sure was just going and going super fast, it was sort of lulling almost, and I almost fell asleep on the ride back. I just sat and daydreamed about stuff pretty much the whole time. Once it was over, I was glad I went.

            In my last few soccer games, I have been trying to work on not being scared of the ball. It is hard for me because these guys kick hard and it is hard for me to throw my body into the line of the ball. The second to last game I played, Profe told me I needed to work on it, so, the last game I had (on Friday at 5:00) when I went in on the second half I tried to focus on that. I think it really made a difference. I stole the ball from some people (which is always a morale booster) and got in the ball's way. A kid from the other team was being followed by a kid from my team and the guy from the other team was winding up. As much as I didn't want to, I ran forward and got the ball in my stomach. It was uncomfortable but I am really glad I did it so I can get used to it. People said good job when I did it and when I did other things during the game, so I think they noticed that I had been playing differently. We ended up winning 3-0 so it was a nice victory!!

Blushing, secret rehearsals and good aim with balloons.
           I stumbled into class and walked around like a zombie after a long night with Doña Lesvia, Alejandro, Coki, Lorena, Daniela and Carlos watching the old footage and pictures from the fiesta de quince años. I think that was one of the times that I enjoyed most hanging out with them because we drank tea, laughed, had something to talk about (the movie and pictures) and everyone seemed more cheerful overall.
           After breakfast Mafer and I forced Lore to go upstairs to work on her magazine that she needed to do work on. Once Karla came upstairs we started our secret rehearsal for Mother's Day. I will explain more once it is over (my mom reads my blog posts so I don't want her to know what we are going to do).
          One thing that always surprises my classmates is the fact that I can't control that I blush. Whenever they tease me (pretty much all day today), my face gets super red which obviously does not help my situation. I really need to find out how to control that. That made me start throwing things at Toño and Evodio (the principal offenders). At one point I picked up a green un-inflated balloon and I let it fly at Evodio. I have surprisingly good aim and so I accidentally hit him in the side of the face with it. Karla saw me do it as we were rehearsing and I was really surprised she didn't get mad at me and said that he got what he deserved because she knew he was bugging me. I thought he was mad at me but once he walked back over (to bug me some more) he smiled and laughed it off.
        During snack, I made a deal with Evodio in which he said he would stop bugging me if I answered one question truthfully. I did and he sort of held up his end of the deal. (Sort of). After Math class, we made cards inviting our mothers to a Mother's Day event. In PE class we played a game that she (Adela the PE teacher) claimed was like flag football but the only thing that it really had in common was that we wore a flag on our hips. To get a goal you had to run into the goal with the soccer ball, it was sort of like keep-away leading up to that point because you would pass the ball between you and your teammates and if someone pulled your flag as you had the ball, it was a turnover.
      My dad let us stay home from soccer practice because it had rained a lot earlier. It made for a nice change of pace!!

A little trip to Sima de las Cottorras.
            On a Saturday after a sleepover (after watching the new Iron Man 3) with Lorena, we set off with Memo (our parent's Spanish teacher) and his boyfriend Arturo to go to the "Chasm of the Parrots." The drive felt longer than it was on the way down. We finally got out of the car to be greeted by flies that zoomed into our car before we figured out what was going on. The weird thing was, it seemed that the only places that had a lot of flies, were places that had a roof. Outside, there was barely a hint that the place was fly-infested. To see the lookout over the chasm, you walked a short distance and it seemed as though out of nowhere, there it was: a very deep and large circular-ish hole with lots of green trees on the bottom.
         After getting settled, we took a walk around the edge of the chasm. As we walked we saw groups of parrots fly out of and into the hole; the parrots were little and bright green with golden undersides. They were swift and fancy and reminded me at one point of the flying keys from Harry Potter.
         Over the course of the one-night trip, we played many games of Spit (some call it Speed). At dinner, we ordered too much food and Oscar and I each ate too much of something hot, in this instance it was a Jalapeño. After the initial burning of the spicy pepper, my lips burned really bad so I ate some plain lettuce which didn't help as much as I hoped it would, and in the end got a magnificent tip from Arturo: eat sugar. I put some sugar in my hand and after a couple of pinches of sugar, it cleared up!! That is really an awesome solution, not only cause it takes the burn away but it also tastes great!!!!
         Back at our cabin, we gathered around a fire we built in the pit and roasted marshmallows for S'mores that tasted very different in part because of the lack of graham crackers and in part due to the fact that the marshmallows were half yellow and half pink and had a different flavor.

The latest soccer and ultimate news:

A couple of weeks ago, Oscar had a game at 10:00 am and they won 3-2 and I had a game at 12:00. We were behind 1-0 in the first half and Lenny and Michelle (a boy) were pissed at each other and everyone was fighting and ticked off at the fact we were losing. Then after watching the little kids game, Profe finally showed up and he helped diffuse the tension. He told us sort of jokingly, "How is it possible that you guys are losing to them?" (we beat this team in the finals). "If you guys don't win, you guys will have a punishment at practice on Tuesday." At that, Gabi (a solid defender) tried to supress a smile and murmered to his brother Eric (another great defender) "Then I am not going to practice that day!" Then Lenny gave me a big smile and said, "Even with that we might lose." It helped lighten the mood and everybody played better as a result of that.

Last Thursday, another girl (I mean woman) came to soccer practice. She is Profe's daughter and her name is Ariani. She said that she loves soccer but has not played in five years because of the birth of her child. Her kid is now three so she thought she would start playing again. If she hadn't said that she had a three-year old I would have guessed that she was in her early twenties (I found out later she was; she is 22). She must have been an amazing player before she temporarily quit, because she scored two goals during our scrimmage!! At about 5:30 I saw that Miguel (not the soccer Miguel but one of my new friends from ultimate) and Tilo were watching like they said they might. After we finished the scrimmage and talk with Profe, I went over to say hi. We talked for a bit and then decided to go to see if the people that we normally play ultimate with on Sundays were still playing in a little field next to the stinking river. They were, so the five of us joined them in the game for a few points. Tilo turned out to do great for his first game. He could catch and throw pretty well and even did a defensive block.

I realize that I haven't talked a lot about my Sunday ultimate games so I will take the liberty to do that right now. Every Sunday at about 4 o'clock (or about 4:30 Mexican time) my dad and I (and occasionally my brother) go to "las Canastas" which is a rickety road next to a river that goes up into this mountain. At the end of the road after you pass through a gate, you pay five pesos per person to this older guy who used to get mad at us for leaving after 6:00 p.m. (now he doesn't mind and we are allowed to stay till 7:30!). We throw for a surprisingly long time and then we play. Beto is the other really good player (besides my dad) so he and Dad are always put on opposite teams. Some other regulars are: Luis who was a beginner when we first started but now has gotten quite good, he has a really good sense of humor and we always joke around, especially about the way that I say the name Patrick in English. Mari Paz is another, she is sweet and shows up often. Tamara is Beto's girlfriend and she is really nice and I sometimes guard her. Tonatiuh and Eric are both funny and pretty good. Miguel is someone who is really fun to guard 'cause we are a pretty good match for each other and we goof off a lot. I really like his sister also but she doesn't come as often. Pao, Diego and Santiago are the other younger players (Miguel is sixteen): Pao is 11, Diego (her brother) is younger but I am not sure how old, and Santiago (their neighbor) is closest in age to me: 12. We all get along and I am glad to not be the youngest.

I really love playing Ultimate not just because I love the sport (which I really do) but also because I love seeing all the people there and right now even, I am anxiously looking forward to the game and wishing I could go and play right now!!!

The third birthday that took place in Mexico.

                    As usual, when I woke up on the morning of my birthday, I felt normal and unchanged. I was a little disappointed because it was my 13th birthday and that is when you become a teen; I should feel different right? I 'm not sure how exactly I expected to feel changed, but whatever I expected, it didn't happen!

                   I arrived at school and was pretty much the first person to arrive -- that was good -- I then had time to hide my birthday doughnuts from my amazing but food-loving classmates. Kevin came and didn't remember my birthday (not that I can blame him because I don't know his) and I didn't care to remind him for the fear of seeming stuck up so we just said hi and that was about it. Mafer came next and she gave me a big hug and told me that I wasn't little anymore which is like the opposite of what my classmates normally say to me which is, "Oh, you are so little!" We went downstairs to shoot some baskets, then Lore came in holding a small hand-made box that she had made. It was full of candy and with multiple panels of paper inside that said really sweet things. I gave her a big hug and we went upstairs (her dad is the first teacher of the day and he followed closely behind). Mafer gave me a cute pink candle on a little stand that Cowjie later bit (needless to say, I got quite mad at him). Ana gave me a bag of candy with little origami stars and one amazing rose (I believe).
                 For breakfast, Toño brought little baby sandwiches that had some sort of mild mole sauce in them. Evodio mentioned that I had promised to bring donuts for my birthday, and I told him that I had brought them but that they were hiding in another classroom. Those were the magical words for GAME ON. He then started running up the stairs to ransack all the classes in search of the donuts. I tried in vain to stop him but when Toño came up, he helped me hide them. He slipped into the room that Evodio was searching and as I tried to come in to protect the precious cargo, Evodio grabbed the door and the wall and blocked me from entering. He told Toño to keep looking but since Evodio was facing toward me physically preventing me from going into the room, he didn't see that Toño found the box, and carefully placed it in another corner and covered it in something else. Evodio eventually found the box but did not actually eat any. He kept trying to make deals with me saying things like, "What will you give me to not eat them?" and "Just give me one donut" (obviously I did not accept). These sorts of things are pretty normal between us and I don't mind them. Usually.......well except that time when he stole one of each of Lore's and Mafer's shoes and both my shoes and I had to put on one of Mafer's and one of Lore's shoes to go chase after him.
              After the English class that we very often have in the morning, we had swim class. I don't remember many details about that class besides the fact that Evodio had a fever and changed into his clothes but didn't get in. After, I tried to pass donuts out to everyone but some people didn't hear and thought I was excluding them (including my teacher) and so I got a stern talking to from my teacher who, after my explanation, gave me a big birthday hug as did my classmates.
              After school, my mom and I went to a pretty painful pedicure where they pushed and ripped off my cuticles. One of my toes started bleeding! After that, we went out to eat at Entropia where for dessert, I got a brownie with ice cream and homemade pound cake that Oscar made with my dad. It was a pretty successful birthday for me and I will never forget it.

Ana's present that she gave me

The box that Lore gave me

These next photos show how to open it (it is handmade)

The band holds all the walls of the box together

The candy, chocolate and sweet notes on the inside

Mafer's gift

A crucifixion, a trip to Palenque and a fiesta de quince años.
                   I was in the middle of some sort of cold when we drove to Tuxtla to pick up the Messersmiths (for those of you who don't know them, that is Tammi and Scott who are the parents and Josie and Sasha their children). Those of you who have taken the curvy drive between San Cristobal and Tuxtla will know that the elevation drops at a surprising rate when you go to Tuxtla. Now as I recently learned, when you have a cold that is an awful time to change elevation because your ears are already sort of plugged up. After a while in that manner, it sort of makes you feel like your head is about to pop open like a ripe nut (NOT A GOOD FEELING). On top of the discomfort you can't hear very well so you feel like you are deaf and yelling at everyone without meaning to!
                The whole thing was worth the outcome though, which was getting to see the Messersmiths and have them stay with us for a while. Gradually as the trip went on, I became able to hear and my runny nose went away.
                Having the Messersmiths here was really a lot of fun because we walked around the city and showed them all the best sites of the city. I was reminded why the city was so great as I walked the andadors that I don't walk as often any more, went to the artisan's market and sat in the zocalo. It's as if I got to see the best parts of the city through new eyes.
                We went to the Good Friday reenactment of the crucifixion, which was interesting but very similar to the way I remembered it (and the same weird-shaped ponytailed guy was one of the Roman soldiers). One night in a kids' meeting at night in the room we shared (my bedroom) we decided to do an Easter surprise for the adults. We made a note saying that they shouldn't eat anything on Easter in the morning and only drink coffee if absolutely necessary so as to save their appetite for the breakfast we were going to make for them. On the day of, we woke up and made scones and menus offering different things for breakfast. Josie and I were the chefs and Oscar and Sasha the servers. The scones turned out really yummy and the breakfast was very successful; the day was warm and sunny and we set up the tables in the shade outside.
               We had been dyeing eggs for the easter egg hunt for the last couple of days so then as the kids went upstairs to blow up balloons to pass the time, the adults hid the eggs. They were surprisingly hard to find!! There was one that was never uncovered which seems to be like an unintentional Easter tradition!
               One day sometime before we left for Palenque Josie got pretty sick; she had really bad stomach cramps. We were unsure if she would be well enough to go to Palenque at the same time as us. After delays because of the mechanic that had our car, we left hours later than we were planning on fortunately we left at a good time for Josie so she came with us! We had a discussion about whether to leave then or the next day. We were thinking of postponing it because of a short-lived but powerful rain storm and the fact that it is not recomended to drive at night especially on that road. We ended up going anyway. The drive was a little rough with Josie and I changing seats with Scott and Tammi to sit in the middle because of my carsickness and her illness. We ended up surviving the 5 1/2 hour drive and had a super late dinner (I ate one of the hotel's wonderful hamburgers!!).
              Our stay at the hotel Chan Kah was very enjoyable because of the delicious food and three wonderful pools. We heard and saw the amazing howler monkeys. They fascinate me in some way I can't explain with such a loud voice coming out of their small seemingly un-interesting bodies. Poor Josie had a rough first couple days there because her sickness got worse and she was vomiting and feeling bad. Around the last day, she mostly recovered and we all swam together and had fun drawing tattoos on each other. She was still sick when we went to the ruins so only Scott, Sasha, my dad, Oscar and I went. I had seen it two times already but I still had fun racing up the killer  stairs (literally killer stairs--one trip and bye-bye! ) and my favorite part was seeing the recently opened "Red Queen's Tomb" which is the only place in which you get to walk straight inside the pyramid.
             We drove back earlier to arrive in time for Lorena's (not my best friend Lorena, but the one whose family we stayed with when we homestay visits) "fiesta de quince años." Upon arriving, we showered and dressed up fancy. I was wearing nylon black tights, a pretty black dress with thin straps and a orangish-redish sweater with a gold branch pin that I got for my birthday. As we arrived at the traditional mass, we realized just how cold it was (VERY). We had to keep standing up but every time we sat down, Josie and I put my mom's nice coat over our legs and Sasha shared her mom's shawl with me (which is surprisingly warm). We silently discussed with our eyes and expressions whether we should cross ourselves or not. I think we generally did not which was easier because I had a hard time remembering if it was left right or right left (spectacles, testicles, watch and wallet but which side is watch and which is wallet -- thanks a lot, Scott, for that memory device). If I observed correctly it was left-right.
           After walking out of church behind Lorena in her puffy green-blue one strap dress, we all walked through the frigid air and into our cars. We followed Rogelio (one of the nicest band members who plays soccer with my dad) while he was in a taxi with his girlfriend and her sister. At one point they pulled over ahead of us when they were out of sight to make sure we were able to follow them.
         We arrived at the place for the "fiesta de quince años" more bundled up and found that it was like a reception area for a wedding, the theme colors were green and gold so there were balloons and ribbons around the chair that coordinated with that. We all got to sit at a table together and only shared it with two other people we were originally un-aquainted with; they were really nice. Mostly all of the female family members went bustling around setting down food and all around working really hard. The waiters went around and took our drink orders. The parents got alcoholic drinks (they had a lot of those) and the kids got coke. Normally coke is an off-limits drink for night time because of the caffeine, but in this case, it was past nine and the party was only getting started. We sat around, observed, drank more coke and made comments to each other. The waiters were surprisingly efficient and over all I think I had some crazy number of cokes: 5-7 full glasses. I thought that that would make it hard for me to sleep after the party but that yummy chemical drink helped me stay awake through the whole thing.
       Lorena came out with her "chambelanes" (teenage, boy dancers who dance with the quinceñera) and they did the a cool dance to "Moves like Jagger" by Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera. Then they did a traditional dance like the last doll dance where she is given her last doll before becoming a woman. They did some traditional dances and then at 11:00 p.m., they finally served dinner: hamburgers for the kids and a plate with chicken, pasta and a salad I believe for the adults. We were really hoping to be served the cake because as the invitation said, "if you don't go to the mass, you don't get cake." I thought they were going to serve the cake at 12:00 am but was dismayed when it wasn't. We stayed longer and watched a whole 'nother set of dances after a costume change. The boys changed into halloween masks and costumes and did a dance around Lorena who wore a shore black one sleeved dress with black tights.
     At 1:00 am, we just got way too tired so Tammi took the remaining kids home while my parents stayed to please Lorena's parents who always want us to stay longer! We found out later that at 2:20 am they served cake, and then they left 3:30 am after another set of dances!!

             

Favio in a Dora costume at the dance in the center

From left to right: Maya the mime, Lore/Frankie Stein, Mafer/Draculaura, me/random dancer person and Ana the geisha doll

The cowj-ster

Oscar as he opens up his birthday present from me: an emergency food kit full of chocolates, popcorn and candy

Papa Tom and JoJo on the Andador

Ricardo (Ana's brother), Oscar and Claudio (Lore's cousin) looking too cool for the school play they are in!

Sasha and I after a Palenque temple run race (all we did was race up the stairs, which is a GREAT workout).

The toddlers dressed up in their spring costumes, from left to right: Marco, Santiago, Paola, Max, Naomi, Regina and Naomi's twin Sienna.

Yep, I am a tree hugger (and a giant one at that!).

The hotel restaurant that overlooks the 3 pools.

The waterfalls of Agua Azul.

Altar made in the street on Good Friday.

They were happy to let us take pictures of them.

And really, my dad couldn't resist!

(Fake) Jesus on the cross.

Waiting for the parade to come down the street.

The party invitation for Lorena's birthday party.

The kids' table at Entropia.

Baby Oskie.

Starting our hike in the forest.

We call it the Indiana Jones bridge! Guess why!

One of our many river crossings.

The bridge to Terabithia.

Watching our stick boats race by

At the adorably little church in the nearby city

The Judases in the town (they were blown up later) 

They were all based on what they think the sins of the world are

The staff at the Easter breakfast with the yummy scones we made

Tammi and Scott eating their breakfast in the back yard

Opening our Easter bags

They were hidden in hard to find places and were full of candy!

The other two people that shared our table at the fiesta de 15 años, Daniela (Lorena's little sister) is the girl fast asleep under that woman's shawl. The little kids would sleep on her for a while and then hop up and go to play.

The lights for dancing at the party

The four of us on a scavenger hunt at Guadalupe church

At the zocalo with the scavenger hunt clues in our hand

What was left of our cotton candy that we shared across from the Cathedral.  A kid tried to make us pay 20 pesos for this little thing

Mr. Shadow mustache

That was as close as it got to my face

The shining star on a stick

No we are not singing the national anthem

Sasha on our trip to the ruins

The first pyramid and on the second pillar on the left is....

This awesome skull

GUERAS!

This temple had a great view of the whole site

Not to mention the jungle!

Wow, that looks weird!!!