Daily Life

Routine

I’m settling into a routine. On the weekends I wake up, run on Dos Barsco, and then come home and eat breakfast as always. My roommates are usually still asleep. I go to bed 12:15 every night, as I don’t have to wake up until 8: 15 during the week. I don’t want to wake up at a different time on the weekends. On Saturday I go to the Bodega to get both frozen and raw vegetables, paper towels, and other necessities. I go to the market on Tuesdays, since it’s only two blocks from my apartment. I update the blog, finish my lesson plans. I stretch before making dinner at 9:15.

During the week I wake up at 8:15 so I can teach my morning class, which has three students. I go home, and I either go to the gym, or I go running. I don’t like training after I’ve been awake for several hours. I prefer to get out of bed and work out, but what can I do? Afterwards, I have some lunch, take a shower, translate an article in Spanish, brush my teeth, and then go back to school from 3:00 to 8:30. On Tuesdays, after my morning class, I take a Spanish class with Salvador, a part-time teacher at CulturLingua. I come home at night, pack a lunch for the next day, make dinner, catch up on e-mail, read some news, and make preparations for the next day.

Inconveniences

I knew I would have to put up some inconveniences when I came to Mexico. Not only because I’m in a different country, but also because I’m in a new place. Traveling anywhere different requires adaptation and tolerance. I don’t pay for the apartment, which helps me save money, but this also means that the conditions aren’t as good as they are back in Virginia. My room is large, but doesn’t need to be, since it has no desk (other than a couple old desks found in a classroom), hardly any storage, and no dresser. But oddly it has two beds and a yoga mat (which I use).

Water is another problem. Water is not potable in Mexico. We therefore spend 80 Pesos every two weeks to buy five large water dispensers. I can’t rinse my toothbrush with the water, so I have to use the water in the tea pot. If I want cold water I have to take ice out of the ice trays in the freezer. Cold water requires advanced planning therefore. Hot water isn’t instant. When we want to take a shower, we have to turn on the heater for 15 minutes before we can take a shower. Even then the water temperature is only luke warm.

While we do have internet access, there is no printer. I still can’t find a store that sells office supplies, such as paper and pens. For those items I have to go to the Bodega every week. Half the light bulbs here don’t work. When it rains hard, some of the water seeps through the windows.

Kitchen

I require a good kitchen. Because I like to cook and prepare all my food, I need a large amount of space, and essential tools: colander, knives, forks, pots, pans, a blender, bowls, a teapot, pantry space. This apartment was not built for me. There’s only a small pantry for all my food. Erika told me that before I came the refrigerator was empty. I have to light the stove and oven with a lighter. There are no drawers. There’s no dishwasher, which means my roommates leave their dirty dishes everywhere. I basically own the freezer (Kris keeps some hot dogs in there). I keep everything I need in a separate place. I have my own measuring cup, my own cutting board, my own paper towels, and my own silverware.

But I'm adapting.

Kevin