30 de enero, 2007, the last full day on Holbox and for me it´s the last day of our vacation. I don´t count the days in Cancun. We will be doing errands, packing up, catching up with the latest news at Dos Playas...just tidying up everything before we go back to familiar surroundings where everything is understandable and routine. Back to mid-winter and the weather that slaps me in the face and reminds me to be humble. Back to English 24-7 where our lives are ordered and neat and organized and there are no stray dogs.
Ah, Mexico, mi corazon vive en ti, tienes parte de mi siempre, y no me dejas ir. Me tienes en las caras de los niños que se sientan al lado de nosotros en el camion, me tienes cuando escucho tu lenguaje tan lleno de ritmo y belleza, me tienes en la energia de tu gente suave y tierna, amable y no me quiero ir, no me dejas ir, mi Mexico, aqui quiero quedarme, y la verdad, aunque se vaya mi cuerpo, mi alma se queda, dejo un poco de mi espiritu, una sonrisa, una caricia, una "muchas gracias por todo."
Tengo la piel roja, roja, roja, el labio se me hicho´porque mi Sol me dio un beso demasiado fuerte, pero no me importa, llevo todo esto conmigo, aunque este viaje me deje en el rojo, no importa, me dio tanto...tanto...tanto.
Te quiero, Mexico, ahora y siempre.
Besos y abrazos.
Soy Lorena
1/31/07
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Monday, January 29, 2007
Holbox-el Norte
It is what it is--es lo que es--cada dia, cada momento. Llego´el Norte ayer y la marea subio´muchi´simo, tapando casi toda la playa donde caminamos creando un charco tremendo en frente del hotel y tuvimos que refugiarnos alla´despues de la puesta del sol y de sacar unas fotos de ella.
Soplo´un viento violento toda la noche y nos dormimos temprano. Amanecimos con el cuerpo tieso, pero el yoga ayudo´mucho.
We have the run of this place. We cook our own breakfast, make our own coffee and act like we live here year round. I think all the guests have gone except for a German woman and her daughter.
In some ways it´s beginning to feel like New England here. The weather is changing every five minutes. One minute it´s windy and cold, the next, the sun comes out and it´s hot, then the wind picks up again and it´s cold. So we put on windbreakers and shirts, then take them off, then put them on again. Oh, well, it could be worse. I could be shoveling snow or slipping on ice.
So, I´m not complaining, no me quejo. Pasado mañana regresamos a Cancun por dos noches y el viernes nos vamos para Boston otra vez. Ay, no quiero pensar en el verdadero frio y el mes de febrero que viene y puede ser el mas fuerte de nieve. Hasta ahora no ha nevado, realmente.
Here I am in Holbox on the beach and I´m writing about snow. Who´s in the moment now?
Maybe you are...maybe I should get there, savor the last few days of this trip.
What a trip it´s been.
I don´t want to leave Holbox.
I don´t want to leave Mexico.
I will just BE HERE for every last moment I have.
BE HERE
BE HERE
be here.
Soy Lorena.
1/29/07
Soplo´un viento violento toda la noche y nos dormimos temprano. Amanecimos con el cuerpo tieso, pero el yoga ayudo´mucho.
We have the run of this place. We cook our own breakfast, make our own coffee and act like we live here year round. I think all the guests have gone except for a German woman and her daughter.
In some ways it´s beginning to feel like New England here. The weather is changing every five minutes. One minute it´s windy and cold, the next, the sun comes out and it´s hot, then the wind picks up again and it´s cold. So we put on windbreakers and shirts, then take them off, then put them on again. Oh, well, it could be worse. I could be shoveling snow or slipping on ice.
So, I´m not complaining, no me quejo. Pasado mañana regresamos a Cancun por dos noches y el viernes nos vamos para Boston otra vez. Ay, no quiero pensar en el verdadero frio y el mes de febrero que viene y puede ser el mas fuerte de nieve. Hasta ahora no ha nevado, realmente.
Here I am in Holbox on the beach and I´m writing about snow. Who´s in the moment now?
Maybe you are...maybe I should get there, savor the last few days of this trip.
What a trip it´s been.
I don´t want to leave Holbox.
I don´t want to leave Mexico.
I will just BE HERE for every last moment I have.
BE HERE
BE HERE
be here.
Soy Lorena.
1/29/07
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Cartwheels on the Beach
¿Volteretas laterales en la playa? Does that make sense in Spanish? When I was a child I used to do ballet, tap and acrobatics and one of my favorite acrobatics was the cartwheel. I could do ten cartwheels in a row and not get dizzy. I can´t remember the last time I did a cartwheel, but I did three today on the beach. I could have done more. El cuerpo se acuerda, it´s body memory, like riding a bicycle. Once you learn to ride, your body never forgets. Es igual con las volteretas laterales. Que divertido. Mañana voy a hacer mas.
Hicimos yoga en frente del mar. La playa solitaria era nuestra. Baile´, hice mis patadas de kung fu. No hubo sol al levantarme, habia muchas nubes, pero no importaba porque me queme´con el sol ayer y aunque no lo pudiera ver detras de las nubes, sabia que alli´estaba mi Sol de todos modos, esperando la oportunidad de mirar a hurtadillas tan pronto que una nube decidiera desvanecer un momento. Y si, paso´. Amanecio´el dia con aire, asi que no habia bichos.
Es increible, aun aqui´el tiempo pasa rapido. Ayer con la puesta del sol, me pregunto´Teo, "Hoy que hicimos?"
"Pues," le dije, "caminamos en la playa, hicimos yoga, comimos, fuimos al centro, nos bañamos, leimos, nos metimos al mar....umm, paso´el tiempo."
"How do I have time to work for six hours at home?" He said.
"I don´t know, it´s different."
"That´s why we´re always rushing."
"And we drive such distances just to go to the bank and the store."
Pense´, My life is going fast. Each amanecer, each anochecer. Throughout most of the trip we did a lot. Now, these last few days, we are doing nothing and the time still flies by. It doesn´t slow down.
I shall end today´s blog with a line from Waiting for Godot, by Samuel Beckett.
NOTHING TO BE DONE.
Soy Lorena.
1/28/07
Hicimos yoga en frente del mar. La playa solitaria era nuestra. Baile´, hice mis patadas de kung fu. No hubo sol al levantarme, habia muchas nubes, pero no importaba porque me queme´con el sol ayer y aunque no lo pudiera ver detras de las nubes, sabia que alli´estaba mi Sol de todos modos, esperando la oportunidad de mirar a hurtadillas tan pronto que una nube decidiera desvanecer un momento. Y si, paso´. Amanecio´el dia con aire, asi que no habia bichos.
Es increible, aun aqui´el tiempo pasa rapido. Ayer con la puesta del sol, me pregunto´Teo, "Hoy que hicimos?"
"Pues," le dije, "caminamos en la playa, hicimos yoga, comimos, fuimos al centro, nos bañamos, leimos, nos metimos al mar....umm, paso´el tiempo."
"How do I have time to work for six hours at home?" He said.
"I don´t know, it´s different."
"That´s why we´re always rushing."
"And we drive such distances just to go to the bank and the store."
Pense´, My life is going fast. Each amanecer, each anochecer. Throughout most of the trip we did a lot. Now, these last few days, we are doing nothing and the time still flies by. It doesn´t slow down.
I shall end today´s blog with a line from Waiting for Godot, by Samuel Beckett.
NOTHING TO BE DONE.
Soy Lorena.
1/28/07
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Two taxis and a flat tire
Two years ago the taxi ride from Cancun to Chiquila took 2 hours and 15 minutes. Today i.e. Friday, the taxi ride took 5 hours. Well, two taxis and a flat tire, I said.
Empezamos a las nueve de la manana con Carlos, nuestro taxista, muy buena gente. Nos llevo' por otra ruta, una carretera de cuota, mejor, mas rapido. Despues de manejar un buen rato resulto' que la salida a Chiquila' estaba cerrada a causa del huracan Wilma. Alguien le aviso' a Carlos que regresando diez kilometros tal vez pudiera encontrar otra salida abierta. So we went back but it was no go. The exits were closed. Now we had to go all the way back to Cancun to pick up the old carretera that we had taken before. Llegando alla' resulto' que el propietario del taxi no habia renovado el permiso para que nuestro taxista manejara en la carretera federal. So he wasn't allowed to take his taxi on this road. He called another taxi to come and get us and take us to Chiquila'. Meanwhile we are patiently waiting thinking maybe we should have taken the bus, which usually takes 3 hours and 15 minutes.
Oh, well, our second taxi arrived about ten minutes later and after giving Carlos some pesos to cover the gas and working out a fair rate for the second taxi driver, so we didn't end up paying more than we had arranged, we were off.
La carretera estaba dura...rough, full of pot holes, llena de baches and mostly under repair. The plan was to catch the 12 noon boat to Holbox, but now it was 11 thirty and we still had a two hour or more ride ahead of us.
En camino se nos poncho' una llanta y nos paramos para que el taxista la cambiara. The flat tire.
Total que llegamos como siete minutos antes de las dos cuando salia el otro barco para Holbox. Tuvimos suerte porque nos subimos y no esperamos mucho para salir.
Durante la corta espera, Teo vio un perro que andaba en el barco caerse al agua. No one seemed to notice the dog except Teo who then called someone y un joven logro' a salvarlo mientras Teo detenia al joven para que no se cayera el al agua. Estaba yo adentro del barco leyendo cuando regreso' Teo y me dijo, "You missed all the action."
Llegando a Holbox nos encontramos con Esther, la administradora del hotel donde siempre nos quedamos y nos dio un aventon en su carrito de golf. Asi que no tuvimos que pagar taxi. Pense' que si hubieramos llegado a medio dia no la habriamos encontrado. Ella nos platico' de las noticias y de la derrumbe de la isla por el huracan.
I love this place. Much of it looks the same as before and much of it has been reconstructed and some hotels, restaurants and houses are just rubble, escombros. But it survived. Sobrevivio'. El mar ha subido un poco en algunas partes y hay menos playa, pero de todos modos la playa es hermosa y hay una tranquilidad que no se encuentra en ningun lado facilmente. Ojala' que se quede asi'.
Soy Lorena
1/27/07
Empezamos a las nueve de la manana con Carlos, nuestro taxista, muy buena gente. Nos llevo' por otra ruta, una carretera de cuota, mejor, mas rapido. Despues de manejar un buen rato resulto' que la salida a Chiquila' estaba cerrada a causa del huracan Wilma. Alguien le aviso' a Carlos que regresando diez kilometros tal vez pudiera encontrar otra salida abierta. So we went back but it was no go. The exits were closed. Now we had to go all the way back to Cancun to pick up the old carretera that we had taken before. Llegando alla' resulto' que el propietario del taxi no habia renovado el permiso para que nuestro taxista manejara en la carretera federal. So he wasn't allowed to take his taxi on this road. He called another taxi to come and get us and take us to Chiquila'. Meanwhile we are patiently waiting thinking maybe we should have taken the bus, which usually takes 3 hours and 15 minutes.
Oh, well, our second taxi arrived about ten minutes later and after giving Carlos some pesos to cover the gas and working out a fair rate for the second taxi driver, so we didn't end up paying more than we had arranged, we were off.
La carretera estaba dura...rough, full of pot holes, llena de baches and mostly under repair. The plan was to catch the 12 noon boat to Holbox, but now it was 11 thirty and we still had a two hour or more ride ahead of us.
En camino se nos poncho' una llanta y nos paramos para que el taxista la cambiara. The flat tire.
Total que llegamos como siete minutos antes de las dos cuando salia el otro barco para Holbox. Tuvimos suerte porque nos subimos y no esperamos mucho para salir.
Durante la corta espera, Teo vio un perro que andaba en el barco caerse al agua. No one seemed to notice the dog except Teo who then called someone y un joven logro' a salvarlo mientras Teo detenia al joven para que no se cayera el al agua. Estaba yo adentro del barco leyendo cuando regreso' Teo y me dijo, "You missed all the action."
Llegando a Holbox nos encontramos con Esther, la administradora del hotel donde siempre nos quedamos y nos dio un aventon en su carrito de golf. Asi que no tuvimos que pagar taxi. Pense' que si hubieramos llegado a medio dia no la habriamos encontrado. Ella nos platico' de las noticias y de la derrumbe de la isla por el huracan.
I love this place. Much of it looks the same as before and much of it has been reconstructed and some hotels, restaurants and houses are just rubble, escombros. But it survived. Sobrevivio'. El mar ha subido un poco en algunas partes y hay menos playa, pero de todos modos la playa es hermosa y hay una tranquilidad que no se encuentra en ningun lado facilmente. Ojala' que se quede asi'.
Soy Lorena
1/27/07
Thursday, January 25, 2007
What a day, continued...
(Read the previous entry first. Lean la entrada previa primero)
Despues de comer, dimos una vuelta y regresamos al hotel, Hotel La Laguna. Subimos a la terraza para sentarnos alla´ a mirar las estrellas y la luna que ya va creciendo. Mire´ la Luna un buen rato y me puse a pensar como su luz es el reflejo del Sol, viene del Sol y sin el Sol, la Luna no se ve, que recibe toda su energia del Sol, y con El, la Luna brilla, con El su luz brilla toda la noche y nos calienta a nosotros los seres humanos, y nos hace tener sentimientos romanticos y suaves y tiernos y nos ayuda dispersar el amor. La Luna si´es amor, pero su amor viene del Sol. Sin el Sol, la Luna no vive y no puede crear. Hmmmm....interesante.
Me parece un milagro como el Universo es tan equilibrado, dia y noche, frio y calor, invierno y verano, hombre y mujer, oceano y desierto, lluvia y sol, Luna y Sol...regreso a lo mismo. Ay, mi Luna, ay, mi Sol.
So here we are again in Cancun, taking off for Isla Holbox mañana. What are the magic words to use in Cancun? We can´t hide our gringo faces and they see us coming and think we must want to go on boat tours and tours to Disney-like places, and party boats, etc.
"Welcome to Cancun," I heard today. I thought to myself, I was here long before you were, my friend. So I said the magic words.
"Vivimos aqui, señor."
"Que les vaya bien," contesto´.
And we escaped another vendedor trying to sell us something. Whew!
Even my ex and his girlfriend get approached, and they look Mexican.
"Vivimos aqui´." Las palabras magias.
Soy Lorena
1/25/07
Despues de comer, dimos una vuelta y regresamos al hotel, Hotel La Laguna. Subimos a la terraza para sentarnos alla´ a mirar las estrellas y la luna que ya va creciendo. Mire´ la Luna un buen rato y me puse a pensar como su luz es el reflejo del Sol, viene del Sol y sin el Sol, la Luna no se ve, que recibe toda su energia del Sol, y con El, la Luna brilla, con El su luz brilla toda la noche y nos calienta a nosotros los seres humanos, y nos hace tener sentimientos romanticos y suaves y tiernos y nos ayuda dispersar el amor. La Luna si´es amor, pero su amor viene del Sol. Sin el Sol, la Luna no vive y no puede crear. Hmmmm....interesante.
Me parece un milagro como el Universo es tan equilibrado, dia y noche, frio y calor, invierno y verano, hombre y mujer, oceano y desierto, lluvia y sol, Luna y Sol...regreso a lo mismo. Ay, mi Luna, ay, mi Sol.
So here we are again in Cancun, taking off for Isla Holbox mañana. What are the magic words to use in Cancun? We can´t hide our gringo faces and they see us coming and think we must want to go on boat tours and tours to Disney-like places, and party boats, etc.
"Welcome to Cancun," I heard today. I thought to myself, I was here long before you were, my friend. So I said the magic words.
"Vivimos aqui, señor."
"Que les vaya bien," contesto´.
And we escaped another vendedor trying to sell us something. Whew!
Even my ex and his girlfriend get approached, and they look Mexican.
"Vivimos aqui´." Las palabras magias.
Soy Lorena
1/25/07
What a Day!!
I don´t know where to begin. It´s been a frustrating day trying to record this latest Blog. I won´t bore you with the details. Let me start with the journal I was writing on Tuesday, January 23, 2007 while traveling through the Yucatan in Mexico.
Another travel day, up at 6am, showers, breakfast at 7, pack up and off we went. Snacking on the way on Maria cookies and queso de tres cremas que compramos en Ocosingo, which I just found out is the headquarters for the Zapatistas. You´d never know it. It´s a tiny town and the people are very nice. No sabe a Revolucionarios.
Nos paramos en Xupujil para comer en un lugar que era estacion de autobus, restaurante, mini tienda y hotel. Comimos enchiladas de pollo con salsa roja. Fueron ricas. Despues fuimos a la mini tienda a comprar unos yogures y aparecio´ el mesero que no atendio´, ahora como cajero de la tienda.
Le dije, "Estas en todos lados...o ¿eres el gemelo?" Se rio´.
Adelante. I drove for awhile mientras Teo leia The Lonely Planet guide book and looked at the map. Before we knew it, we were in Bacalar and decided to stay there for the night.
Bacalar is not a new town. I´m sure it´s been around for awhile and I don´t know how to describe it except to say it´s quiet. The buildings are run down and in need of paint. The streets are muddy and the entire look of the Centro is casual and sloppy. The last time we were here we ate a meal in a shoe store. Si, de veras, comimos en una zapateria. Combo-business. Well, we have bookstore-cafes in the US, why not a restaurant-shoe store?
I shall stop here and publish, then continue in a new Blog...por si las moscas. No voy a revisar, asi que si hay errores, me perdonan.
Soy Lorena
1/25/07
Another travel day, up at 6am, showers, breakfast at 7, pack up and off we went. Snacking on the way on Maria cookies and queso de tres cremas que compramos en Ocosingo, which I just found out is the headquarters for the Zapatistas. You´d never know it. It´s a tiny town and the people are very nice. No sabe a Revolucionarios.
Nos paramos en Xupujil para comer en un lugar que era estacion de autobus, restaurante, mini tienda y hotel. Comimos enchiladas de pollo con salsa roja. Fueron ricas. Despues fuimos a la mini tienda a comprar unos yogures y aparecio´ el mesero que no atendio´, ahora como cajero de la tienda.
Le dije, "Estas en todos lados...o ¿eres el gemelo?" Se rio´.
Adelante. I drove for awhile mientras Teo leia The Lonely Planet guide book and looked at the map. Before we knew it, we were in Bacalar and decided to stay there for the night.
Bacalar is not a new town. I´m sure it´s been around for awhile and I don´t know how to describe it except to say it´s quiet. The buildings are run down and in need of paint. The streets are muddy and the entire look of the Centro is casual and sloppy. The last time we were here we ate a meal in a shoe store. Si, de veras, comimos en una zapateria. Combo-business. Well, we have bookstore-cafes in the US, why not a restaurant-shoe store?
I shall stop here and publish, then continue in a new Blog...por si las moscas. No voy a revisar, asi que si hay errores, me perdonan.
Soy Lorena
1/25/07
Monday, January 22, 2007
Domingo, el 21 de enero
No se puede escribir de todas las experiencias, solamente the highlights. Por ejemplo, en la ultima entrada no escribi` como nos llevaron a la casa de una familia maya y alla` nos vistieron de ropa tipica y sacamos fotos. Tampoco escribi`como una niña de once años, arrodillada en el suelo nos preparo` las tortillas de maiz negro en un comal para que las probaramos. La "cocina" era un cuarto hecho de adobe con un piso duro, pero no de tierra y tampoco de concreto. No se de que era el piso.
Again before I go any further I must make another correction. The town is called "Zinacantan." I left out an "a". Sorry, so many new places, so many new words, I can´t keep up.
(Remember, this is about Sunday). Today two wonderful and unexpected things happened...well, maybe three if I include the good cup of coffee we had this morning after traipsing over half the town to find the place. We visited the Reserva Ecologica Huitepec, which is a private protected area of woods with oak trees, medicinal plants, bromelias and many beautiful trees. It covers an extinct volcano and we hiked straight up for a thousand meters. The total altitude was 2450 meters high. Near the top we could see the church at San Juan Chamula. We were there for two hours and I could have stayed all day. It was so nice being surrounded by trees and plants of all ages, sunlight shining through the leaves and branches. (Ah, mi Sol). The air was fresh and cool and I was glad I brought my wind breaker. Occasionally there were stone markers that gave information about the plants, but sometimes the markers just asked a question and gave no answer. Por ejemplo, (there were hoses along the trail) one marker read: ¿Por que hay mangeras aqui?
¿Que diferencia hay entre la parte de abajo y esta parte del bosque?
Los arboles tienen los troncos torcidos. ¿A que se debe?
By the time we got down, our leg muscles were shaking, pero valio` la pena, it was worth it.
How many more times in my life will I be able to do this? I thought. And then I got to thinking how many more years do I have? Twenty? Thirty? I can´t imagine what it`s like to be ninety. La mama` de Teo tiene 95 años y sigue de lista, toma clases, estudia poesia, viaja por avion sola, vive sola, sabe de todo, habla de todo. Ojala` pueda ser yo como ella si es que llego a esa edad.
So the next unexpected wonderful thing that happened was, we found serrendipitously, (I hope I spelled that right), this restaurant called Jardines de San Cristobal. They were serving a buffet, it was comida time, we had exercised and we were hungry. The place was really elegant and the waiters invited us to view the food before deciding. What a feast!
Imagina una mesa larga con sopas, sopa de elote, sopa de pan, sopa de fideo, aguacates rellenos de atun, (avocadoes stuffed with tuna), ensalada, chiles, rabanos, beef tongue in sauce, pollo con mole, carne de res (beef) carne de puerco(pork), arroz, frijoles, salsas rojas y verdes. ¡Y los postres! ¡Ni hablar! Natilla, (something like vanilla pudding), chocolate cake, sweetened fruit, etc. We ate a little of everything. Comimos un poco de todo...casi. El mole fue el mejor mole que habiamos comido en la vida...exquisito. A first for me was beef tongue. I had never eaten beef tongue before, being vegetarian for twenty odd years. It was delicious and very tender. The idea was creepy at first, but I got over it pretty quickly after one bite. So the buffet cost 160 pesos por persona, which is much more than we usually spend, but translated into 16 US dollars, it was really reasonable. I´m talking quality like you would get from the Ritz Carlton.
Despues de la comida, Teo queria regresar a Zinacantan on our own this time, so we drove there and as we were looking for a parking place, four little boys from the town appeared out of nowhere and began to tell us where to park and that they would take care of our car. They were so cute, all of them, I could have taken them home with me. After we visited Zinacantan and saw the dancers still dancing going on three days now, and went into the church again where I bought three ribbons (listones) colgados de un santo, we went back to our car and spent a long time talking to the boys who were two sets of brothers, ages 10 and 12. They all went to school and spoke Tzotzil and Spanish fluently. We were surprised at how much they knew about the world, being from a small town of about 2,000, where everone knows everyone. Todos se conocen. Uno de ellos tenia un tio que se fue a los Estados Unidos para trabajar. Otro nos dijo "Aqui no se gana mucho dinero, por eso se van a EE UU porque alla` se gana mas...y se va de mojado."
When we told them we were from the United States up north where it snows, they were very impressed. One of them asked me why it doesn´t snow in Mexico. I told him Mexico is closer to the equator and so it´s warmer.
Les preguntamos si podiamos sacarles una foto y les encanto` la idea. I asked them if they would like to travel to other countries someday and without hesitation they all answered no.
Que interesante. Parecian felices y no tenian curiosidad de conocer otras partes del mundo.
Sus padres trabajaban la tierra y no les faltaba comida.
Saliendo de Zinacantan I felt enriched. So, really, four wonderful things happened.
Today was a day of travel, packing up and trekking back across the mountains to Palenque where we will spend the night and then it´s on to Chetumal in Quintana Roo.
Soy Lorena.
1/22/07
Again before I go any further I must make another correction. The town is called "Zinacantan." I left out an "a". Sorry, so many new places, so many new words, I can´t keep up.
(Remember, this is about Sunday). Today two wonderful and unexpected things happened...well, maybe three if I include the good cup of coffee we had this morning after traipsing over half the town to find the place. We visited the Reserva Ecologica Huitepec, which is a private protected area of woods with oak trees, medicinal plants, bromelias and many beautiful trees. It covers an extinct volcano and we hiked straight up for a thousand meters. The total altitude was 2450 meters high. Near the top we could see the church at San Juan Chamula. We were there for two hours and I could have stayed all day. It was so nice being surrounded by trees and plants of all ages, sunlight shining through the leaves and branches. (Ah, mi Sol). The air was fresh and cool and I was glad I brought my wind breaker. Occasionally there were stone markers that gave information about the plants, but sometimes the markers just asked a question and gave no answer. Por ejemplo, (there were hoses along the trail) one marker read: ¿Por que hay mangeras aqui?
¿Que diferencia hay entre la parte de abajo y esta parte del bosque?
Los arboles tienen los troncos torcidos. ¿A que se debe?
By the time we got down, our leg muscles were shaking, pero valio` la pena, it was worth it.
How many more times in my life will I be able to do this? I thought. And then I got to thinking how many more years do I have? Twenty? Thirty? I can´t imagine what it`s like to be ninety. La mama` de Teo tiene 95 años y sigue de lista, toma clases, estudia poesia, viaja por avion sola, vive sola, sabe de todo, habla de todo. Ojala` pueda ser yo como ella si es que llego a esa edad.
So the next unexpected wonderful thing that happened was, we found serrendipitously, (I hope I spelled that right), this restaurant called Jardines de San Cristobal. They were serving a buffet, it was comida time, we had exercised and we were hungry. The place was really elegant and the waiters invited us to view the food before deciding. What a feast!
Imagina una mesa larga con sopas, sopa de elote, sopa de pan, sopa de fideo, aguacates rellenos de atun, (avocadoes stuffed with tuna), ensalada, chiles, rabanos, beef tongue in sauce, pollo con mole, carne de res (beef) carne de puerco(pork), arroz, frijoles, salsas rojas y verdes. ¡Y los postres! ¡Ni hablar! Natilla, (something like vanilla pudding), chocolate cake, sweetened fruit, etc. We ate a little of everything. Comimos un poco de todo...casi. El mole fue el mejor mole que habiamos comido en la vida...exquisito. A first for me was beef tongue. I had never eaten beef tongue before, being vegetarian for twenty odd years. It was delicious and very tender. The idea was creepy at first, but I got over it pretty quickly after one bite. So the buffet cost 160 pesos por persona, which is much more than we usually spend, but translated into 16 US dollars, it was really reasonable. I´m talking quality like you would get from the Ritz Carlton.
Despues de la comida, Teo queria regresar a Zinacantan on our own this time, so we drove there and as we were looking for a parking place, four little boys from the town appeared out of nowhere and began to tell us where to park and that they would take care of our car. They were so cute, all of them, I could have taken them home with me. After we visited Zinacantan and saw the dancers still dancing going on three days now, and went into the church again where I bought three ribbons (listones) colgados de un santo, we went back to our car and spent a long time talking to the boys who were two sets of brothers, ages 10 and 12. They all went to school and spoke Tzotzil and Spanish fluently. We were surprised at how much they knew about the world, being from a small town of about 2,000, where everone knows everyone. Todos se conocen. Uno de ellos tenia un tio que se fue a los Estados Unidos para trabajar. Otro nos dijo "Aqui no se gana mucho dinero, por eso se van a EE UU porque alla` se gana mas...y se va de mojado."
When we told them we were from the United States up north where it snows, they were very impressed. One of them asked me why it doesn´t snow in Mexico. I told him Mexico is closer to the equator and so it´s warmer.
Les preguntamos si podiamos sacarles una foto y les encanto` la idea. I asked them if they would like to travel to other countries someday and without hesitation they all answered no.
Que interesante. Parecian felices y no tenian curiosidad de conocer otras partes del mundo.
Sus padres trabajaban la tierra y no les faltaba comida.
Saliendo de Zinacantan I felt enriched. So, really, four wonderful things happened.
Today was a day of travel, packing up and trekking back across the mountains to Palenque where we will spend the night and then it´s on to Chetumal in Quintana Roo.
Soy Lorena.
1/22/07
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Zincantan y San Juan Chamula
En la vida hay experiencias buenas, malas y regulares. De vez en cuando uno tiene una experiencia extraordinaria, an experience so special and unique it´s almost surreal.
Tuvimos una experiencia asi. En Zincantan y San Juan Chamula hoy es el festival de San Sebastian. Fuimos con un pequeño grupo en un combi con nuestra guia, Maria, a visitar estos lugares. Otra vez, fuimos los unicos gringos. Los otros eran suizos e italianos. Hablaban tres o cuatro idiomas, putting us to shame. I must get back to my French.
Llegamos a la feria, llena de miles de personas casi todas vestidas en rebozos y ponchos de los mismos colores, bordados a mano, mujeres, niños, bebe´s, aun los hombres. A sea of deep purples and blues, the colors of prosperity for this year our guide told us. This was a fertility celebration and there were dancers dressed to represent the jaguar, symbol of the Universe, the bird with an elote en la boca to represent la cosecha, the harvest, el mono to represent the animals and finally a man covered from head to foot in Spanish moss (musgo), the moss I grew up with that hung from trees in Florida, to represent plant life.
This celebration goes on for days. The men drink a type of alcoholic beverage like mescal and sometimes eat halucinogenic mushrooms. Yes, I thought some of them looked quite stoned.
The church in Zincantan fue otra experiencia surrealista, llena de flores recien cortadas y como mil o mas velas. Velas en el suelo, el suelo tapado con hojas de pino, velas en el altar y en todas partes. La iglesia en si´ fue mitad catolica y mitad maya. Las estatuas de los santos tenian listones de todos colores colgados de sus cabezas y arriba habia enormes cortinas de muchos colores de tipo seda estiradas del techo hasta la parte arriba de las paredes. Habia un olor fuerte a incienso porque quemaban mucho. Mucha gente estaba de rodillas, rezando, sobre todo las mujeres con sus niños. Senti´el calor de las velas y una energia de paz. Just being there was soothing. At one point I turned around and saw maybe thirty men streaming into the church carrying large bouquets of white flowers with white candles unlit, which they offered at the altar. It was so beautiful and moving and I said to Teo, "This is very Pagan too, isn´t it?" But then again, the Mayans were and are so connected to the earth. They understand the elements, earth, air, fire and water.
Entonces, fuimos a San Juan Chamula y entramos en la iglesia todavia mas grande con mas velas, mas gente y mas mezclada. Alla´ tocaban musica con cuatro harpas, unas guitarras very crudely made with large pegs, two accordians and a drum. Paramos alli´un buen rato, just taking it all in and feeling the hypnotic sound of the music playing the same tune over and over, una y otra vez, while kneeling women prayed in Tzotzil and a curandera did a ritual cleansing on a young woman. An interesting thing happened to me while I was watching this. For a moment I could feel the candles being passed over my head and I felt cleansed. I wanted to go with the curandera.
One of the musicians, uno de los musicos nos pregunto´ de donde veniamos. Le dijimos que los EE UU y le parecio´bien que estuvieramos alla´observando esta ceremonia. Estaba bien tomado el señor, pero buena gente y tranquilo. Se estrecho´la mano de Teo y de mi tambien y en ese momento ya se iban y le toco´salir con los otros musicos.
I think these experiences take some time to sink in and only just now, several hours later, I´m beginning to feel the power of this day.
And then I saw the moon, mi Luna, a tiny sliver like the tip of my fingernail and below her, the first star of the evening.
The mountains surround this city like a hug. I pass this hug on to all those who read this, and send you kisses from the moon.
Soy Lorena
1/20/07
Tuvimos una experiencia asi. En Zincantan y San Juan Chamula hoy es el festival de San Sebastian. Fuimos con un pequeño grupo en un combi con nuestra guia, Maria, a visitar estos lugares. Otra vez, fuimos los unicos gringos. Los otros eran suizos e italianos. Hablaban tres o cuatro idiomas, putting us to shame. I must get back to my French.
Llegamos a la feria, llena de miles de personas casi todas vestidas en rebozos y ponchos de los mismos colores, bordados a mano, mujeres, niños, bebe´s, aun los hombres. A sea of deep purples and blues, the colors of prosperity for this year our guide told us. This was a fertility celebration and there were dancers dressed to represent the jaguar, symbol of the Universe, the bird with an elote en la boca to represent la cosecha, the harvest, el mono to represent the animals and finally a man covered from head to foot in Spanish moss (musgo), the moss I grew up with that hung from trees in Florida, to represent plant life.
This celebration goes on for days. The men drink a type of alcoholic beverage like mescal and sometimes eat halucinogenic mushrooms. Yes, I thought some of them looked quite stoned.
The church in Zincantan fue otra experiencia surrealista, llena de flores recien cortadas y como mil o mas velas. Velas en el suelo, el suelo tapado con hojas de pino, velas en el altar y en todas partes. La iglesia en si´ fue mitad catolica y mitad maya. Las estatuas de los santos tenian listones de todos colores colgados de sus cabezas y arriba habia enormes cortinas de muchos colores de tipo seda estiradas del techo hasta la parte arriba de las paredes. Habia un olor fuerte a incienso porque quemaban mucho. Mucha gente estaba de rodillas, rezando, sobre todo las mujeres con sus niños. Senti´el calor de las velas y una energia de paz. Just being there was soothing. At one point I turned around and saw maybe thirty men streaming into the church carrying large bouquets of white flowers with white candles unlit, which they offered at the altar. It was so beautiful and moving and I said to Teo, "This is very Pagan too, isn´t it?" But then again, the Mayans were and are so connected to the earth. They understand the elements, earth, air, fire and water.
Entonces, fuimos a San Juan Chamula y entramos en la iglesia todavia mas grande con mas velas, mas gente y mas mezclada. Alla´ tocaban musica con cuatro harpas, unas guitarras very crudely made with large pegs, two accordians and a drum. Paramos alli´un buen rato, just taking it all in and feeling the hypnotic sound of the music playing the same tune over and over, una y otra vez, while kneeling women prayed in Tzotzil and a curandera did a ritual cleansing on a young woman. An interesting thing happened to me while I was watching this. For a moment I could feel the candles being passed over my head and I felt cleansed. I wanted to go with the curandera.
One of the musicians, uno de los musicos nos pregunto´ de donde veniamos. Le dijimos que los EE UU y le parecio´bien que estuvieramos alla´observando esta ceremonia. Estaba bien tomado el señor, pero buena gente y tranquilo. Se estrecho´la mano de Teo y de mi tambien y en ese momento ya se iban y le toco´salir con los otros musicos.
I think these experiences take some time to sink in and only just now, several hours later, I´m beginning to feel the power of this day.
And then I saw the moon, mi Luna, a tiny sliver like the tip of my fingernail and below her, the first star of the evening.
The mountains surround this city like a hug. I pass this hug on to all those who read this, and send you kisses from the moon.
Soy Lorena
1/20/07
Friday, January 19, 2007
San Cristobal
Oh, my God, our first week is over but it seems we´ve covered a lot of territory--from Cancun to Merida to Campeche to Palenque and now to San Cristobal.
BUT before I continue any further, I must ask for forgiveness for the stupid error I made in yesterday´s blog. Yes, I know it´s hard to believe I could make such a mistake, after all the explanations about the verb "gustar" I have given, but I did it. I wrote "nos hemos gustado este restaurante," when it should have been "nos ha gustado." The restaurant has been pleasing to us, of course, "hemos" in this case doesn´t make any sense at all.
Please forgive me, I make no excuses for my error.
Adelante....Hoy fuimos al Mercado Municipal. Me fascina ver el verdadero pueblo a traves de su mercado. Todo el mundo va al mercado a comprar comida, ropa, electronicos, herramientas, artesanias, etc. etc. Se vende todo en el mercado. Es un mundo entero. It´s a whole world unto itself.
Las mujeres indigenas llevan rebozos bordados a mano muy lindos de colores fuertes como azul, morado y rojo. Teo queria comprar uno para mi, pero cuando pregunte´ a unas mujeres que llevaban esos rebozos, donde se los conseguia, no me entendian porque no hablaban castellano. En seguida llego´ una señora lista que si hablaba español y nos dijo que ella podia llevarnos al lugar donde vendian los rebozos. Digo "una señora lista" porque queria cincuenta pesos por llevarnos. Teo le dijo que podiamos encontrar el lugar sin su ayuda muchas gracias, pero nos seguia ella bajando el precio cada rato. Treinta pesos, despues veinte, y cuando ya llegamos al puesto de los rebozos, le dije a Teo "Dale diez pesos". Se los dio y se fue la señora un poquito mas rica y nosotros solamente un poquito mas pobre.
It turned out the shawls were too small for me and besides I said, I just don´t have the right face. The indigenous women are tiny and the shawl seemed to wrap around and around, whereas on me, it didn´t even wrap once.
I never considered myself a big person, but here I feel big. It´s weird.
Salio´ el Sol hoy, un Sol fuerte y bastante brillante. Caminamos mucho y sabia que hoy no estaba tan sola como me sentia ayer. Me calento´ el Sol hoy, pude sentir su cariño abrazandome y estuvo rico. No se escucha ingles mucho aca, que bueno, pero el español hablado aqui tiene un acento distinto, no se´ como explicarlo. It´s like the words are clipped and they speak fast.
Well, that´s about all I have to say today. When I walked into this Internet place there was a trova singer alone with his guitar and he had just started to sing Hoy Ten Miedo de Mi by Fernando Delgadillo. La cante´ suavamente con el recordando otro tiempo, otro lugar cuando escuchaba esa cancion.
Soy Lorena
1/19/07
BUT before I continue any further, I must ask for forgiveness for the stupid error I made in yesterday´s blog. Yes, I know it´s hard to believe I could make such a mistake, after all the explanations about the verb "gustar" I have given, but I did it. I wrote "nos hemos gustado este restaurante," when it should have been "nos ha gustado." The restaurant has been pleasing to us, of course, "hemos" in this case doesn´t make any sense at all.
Please forgive me, I make no excuses for my error.
Adelante....Hoy fuimos al Mercado Municipal. Me fascina ver el verdadero pueblo a traves de su mercado. Todo el mundo va al mercado a comprar comida, ropa, electronicos, herramientas, artesanias, etc. etc. Se vende todo en el mercado. Es un mundo entero. It´s a whole world unto itself.
Las mujeres indigenas llevan rebozos bordados a mano muy lindos de colores fuertes como azul, morado y rojo. Teo queria comprar uno para mi, pero cuando pregunte´ a unas mujeres que llevaban esos rebozos, donde se los conseguia, no me entendian porque no hablaban castellano. En seguida llego´ una señora lista que si hablaba español y nos dijo que ella podia llevarnos al lugar donde vendian los rebozos. Digo "una señora lista" porque queria cincuenta pesos por llevarnos. Teo le dijo que podiamos encontrar el lugar sin su ayuda muchas gracias, pero nos seguia ella bajando el precio cada rato. Treinta pesos, despues veinte, y cuando ya llegamos al puesto de los rebozos, le dije a Teo "Dale diez pesos". Se los dio y se fue la señora un poquito mas rica y nosotros solamente un poquito mas pobre.
It turned out the shawls were too small for me and besides I said, I just don´t have the right face. The indigenous women are tiny and the shawl seemed to wrap around and around, whereas on me, it didn´t even wrap once.
I never considered myself a big person, but here I feel big. It´s weird.
Salio´ el Sol hoy, un Sol fuerte y bastante brillante. Caminamos mucho y sabia que hoy no estaba tan sola como me sentia ayer. Me calento´ el Sol hoy, pude sentir su cariño abrazandome y estuvo rico. No se escucha ingles mucho aca, que bueno, pero el español hablado aqui tiene un acento distinto, no se´ como explicarlo. It´s like the words are clipped and they speak fast.
Well, that´s about all I have to say today. When I walked into this Internet place there was a trova singer alone with his guitar and he had just started to sing Hoy Ten Miedo de Mi by Fernando Delgadillo. La cante´ suavamente con el recordando otro tiempo, otro lugar cuando escuchaba esa cancion.
Soy Lorena
1/19/07
Thursday, January 18, 2007
El Viaje Sigue
So we visited Yaxchilan and Bonampak on a mini tour with other travelers, three Italians, two French, four Mexicans and of course us, the two gringos. How refreshing to hear other languages besides English. Nos gusto´ mucho. Todos hablaban castellano menos Teo y el joven italiano.
Yaxchilan fue muy impresionante con las estelas y las estatuas, pero soy una persona que se fija en cosas inesperadas y mientras hablaba nuestro guia sobre Pajaro Jaguar Primero y su reino, me puse a mirar unas hormigas cargando pedacitos de hojas en una caravana, sort of a caravan. Nosotros, los seres humanos estabamos pisandolas sin darnos cuenta, y cuando ya medi cuenta, le mencione¨al guia lo de las hormigas y me dijo que ellas llenan sus nidos de hojas para comer despues durante la temporada de lluvias. Que interesante.
So then we go inside a cave-like part of the temple where our guide leads us with a flashlight. Bats are sleeping above our heads, we take pictures, but when someone shows us the hand-sized spider up above, that´s when the two Italian girls and I decide to "check out of this hotel" and we run for the exit. ARAÑA!! Me dan pavor las arañas. Los murcielagos son chulos y utiles porque comen los moscos...pero arañas, ay no.
Yaxchilan was great, the boat ride down the Usumacinta river, looking at the banks of Guatemala, but for me, para mi¨ Bonampak was the creme de la creme, worth every minute of the journey. To see first hand the original wall paintings that I have seen so many times in books was so special, the colors still so vibrant after all these years, oranges, blues, reds, de veras, una maravilla. Pronto van a tapar los murales y crear una reproduccion, que suerte tuvimos de ver el original. Sacamos fotos sin flash, con la luz de la lampara nada mas.
That was yesterday. Today we have breakfast at the Maya Cañada in Palenque where we have had most of our meals. It¨s a beautiful little restaurant, very Mexican and the food is excellent. De repente las emociones me agarran fuerte y empiezo a decirle al mesero que tanto nos hemos gustado este restaurante.
"Son lugares asi que nos hacen las vacaciones especiales," le digo entre mis lagrimas, "y no se por que estoy llorando."
And then it¨s on to the mountainous road to San Cristobal, a long drive over a million topes.
So here we are, in this city in the mountains and I don¨t know what to think yet. No hay Sol aqui, extraño mi Sol. Me falta mucho el Sol que quiero. Pasamos un bar donde ofrecen musica viva, a ver si vamos. Ha de ser diferente la musica aqui, quien sabe, ¿me gustara¨? A ver. No conozco a nadie aca...hace frio y no esta el Sol.
Soy Lorena
1/18/07
Yaxchilan fue muy impresionante con las estelas y las estatuas, pero soy una persona que se fija en cosas inesperadas y mientras hablaba nuestro guia sobre Pajaro Jaguar Primero y su reino, me puse a mirar unas hormigas cargando pedacitos de hojas en una caravana, sort of a caravan. Nosotros, los seres humanos estabamos pisandolas sin darnos cuenta, y cuando ya medi cuenta, le mencione¨al guia lo de las hormigas y me dijo que ellas llenan sus nidos de hojas para comer despues durante la temporada de lluvias. Que interesante.
So then we go inside a cave-like part of the temple where our guide leads us with a flashlight. Bats are sleeping above our heads, we take pictures, but when someone shows us the hand-sized spider up above, that´s when the two Italian girls and I decide to "check out of this hotel" and we run for the exit. ARAÑA!! Me dan pavor las arañas. Los murcielagos son chulos y utiles porque comen los moscos...pero arañas, ay no.
Yaxchilan was great, the boat ride down the Usumacinta river, looking at the banks of Guatemala, but for me, para mi¨ Bonampak was the creme de la creme, worth every minute of the journey. To see first hand the original wall paintings that I have seen so many times in books was so special, the colors still so vibrant after all these years, oranges, blues, reds, de veras, una maravilla. Pronto van a tapar los murales y crear una reproduccion, que suerte tuvimos de ver el original. Sacamos fotos sin flash, con la luz de la lampara nada mas.
That was yesterday. Today we have breakfast at the Maya Cañada in Palenque where we have had most of our meals. It¨s a beautiful little restaurant, very Mexican and the food is excellent. De repente las emociones me agarran fuerte y empiezo a decirle al mesero que tanto nos hemos gustado este restaurante.
"Son lugares asi que nos hacen las vacaciones especiales," le digo entre mis lagrimas, "y no se por que estoy llorando."
And then it¨s on to the mountainous road to San Cristobal, a long drive over a million topes.
So here we are, in this city in the mountains and I don¨t know what to think yet. No hay Sol aqui, extraño mi Sol. Me falta mucho el Sol que quiero. Pasamos un bar donde ofrecen musica viva, a ver si vamos. Ha de ser diferente la musica aqui, quien sabe, ¿me gustara¨? A ver. No conozco a nadie aca...hace frio y no esta el Sol.
Soy Lorena
1/18/07
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Chiapas
Choza,
Caballo,
Telefono celular
No bromeo...cruzando frontera a Chiapas llegamos a un pueblito, well, smaller than a pueblito, just a couple of chozas, with a horse parked out front and what did we see? A girl talking on a cell phone. Lo juro...I swear. Choque de los mundos.
Mexico is such a country of contrasts and contradictions, I love it. I suppose my country has it contradictions too, but it seems they are more striking here. Everything is close up and in your face. We gringos like to put distance between us and our environment, between us and our neighbor, between us and our poverty. In Mexico everything is anywhere and everything is everywhere. La pobreza y la riqueza existen una al lado de la otra.
They searched us in Tabasco just before we crossed into Chiapas...weird. Seguridad stop, soldados con rifles, puros jovenes. Young faces, I could have been their mother. I asked one of them if we were almost to the border of Chiapas, a question I already knew the answer to, but I knew if I spoke I would become human and no longer be merely a namesless gringa tourist traveling in a rented car in Mexico. He was polite and helpful and waved us on our way.
Hoy visitamos Palenque, (noten, mis alumnos que Palenque es un lugar y no es persona, entonces no lleva la "personal a"). Oops, sorry, didn´t mean to talk grammar. Mañana vamos a Bonampak y Yaxchilan, cerca de Guatemala...a ver como nos va.
Well, the days are moving right along. It´s been very warm the weather, I think I´ve forgotten all about New England winters.
Soy Lorena
1/16/07
Caballo,
Telefono celular
No bromeo...cruzando frontera a Chiapas llegamos a un pueblito, well, smaller than a pueblito, just a couple of chozas, with a horse parked out front and what did we see? A girl talking on a cell phone. Lo juro...I swear. Choque de los mundos.
Mexico is such a country of contrasts and contradictions, I love it. I suppose my country has it contradictions too, but it seems they are more striking here. Everything is close up and in your face. We gringos like to put distance between us and our environment, between us and our neighbor, between us and our poverty. In Mexico everything is anywhere and everything is everywhere. La pobreza y la riqueza existen una al lado de la otra.
They searched us in Tabasco just before we crossed into Chiapas...weird. Seguridad stop, soldados con rifles, puros jovenes. Young faces, I could have been their mother. I asked one of them if we were almost to the border of Chiapas, a question I already knew the answer to, but I knew if I spoke I would become human and no longer be merely a namesless gringa tourist traveling in a rented car in Mexico. He was polite and helpful and waved us on our way.
Hoy visitamos Palenque, (noten, mis alumnos que Palenque es un lugar y no es persona, entonces no lleva la "personal a"). Oops, sorry, didn´t mean to talk grammar. Mañana vamos a Bonampak y Yaxchilan, cerca de Guatemala...a ver como nos va.
Well, the days are moving right along. It´s been very warm the weather, I think I´ve forgotten all about New England winters.
Soy Lorena
1/16/07
Monday, January 15, 2007
Campeche
A moment in time...un momento solamente....Parque Principal, iglesia, tiendas, restaurantes, parecido a muchos lugares en Mexico pero distinto a la vez. I know I´m in Mexico, this place reminds me of San Miguel, but I don´t know anyone here. I know people in San Miguel and it feels strange to be in this limbo I´d like to call it.
Dimos vueltas cerca del Parque. De repente me di cuenta que un perro callejero nos seguia y por varias cuadras, atravesando la calle cuando era necesario. Por un momento fuimos almas gemelos, el perro y yo. Un alma perdido, el perro sin casa, sin conocer a nadie, como yo...un poco. Tenia la cara triste, la cabeza abajo. Pare un rato yo y le hable al perro. Se meneo la cola. He wouldn´t look me in the eye for more than a second, but he wagged his tail. I wanted to take him with me, feed him and bathe him, but that was not our fate. Nos siguio una media cuadra mas y lo vi entretenerse con algo debajo de un carro. Cuando mire para atras otra vez ya no lo vi.
Oh, god, you probably want to hear about my vacation and I´m talking about a stray dog.
Mañana, I promise. More about the trip later.
Soy Lorena
1/15/07
Dimos vueltas cerca del Parque. De repente me di cuenta que un perro callejero nos seguia y por varias cuadras, atravesando la calle cuando era necesario. Por un momento fuimos almas gemelos, el perro y yo. Un alma perdido, el perro sin casa, sin conocer a nadie, como yo...un poco. Tenia la cara triste, la cabeza abajo. Pare un rato yo y le hable al perro. Se meneo la cola. He wouldn´t look me in the eye for more than a second, but he wagged his tail. I wanted to take him with me, feed him and bathe him, but that was not our fate. Nos siguio una media cuadra mas y lo vi entretenerse con algo debajo de un carro. Cuando mire para atras otra vez ya no lo vi.
Oh, god, you probably want to hear about my vacation and I´m talking about a stray dog.
Mañana, I promise. More about the trip later.
Soy Lorena
1/15/07
Friday, January 12, 2007
I have arrived!
No longer on the verge, I am en camino, siguiendo mi sendero. I have arrived. I am back again, regrese a la Tierra del Sol, a la tierra de mi Sol, que me da calor, de mi Sol que me da apoyo, de mi Sol que me da la creatividad, de mi Sol que quiero tanto.
Ah, Mexico, todo es distinto, la energia, la gente, el aire. I feel I have come home again, back to the place I love. This visit will be different, lleno de esperanza, de misterio, every day I will be moving into the unknown and the unexpected. I will take the journey and I will let the journey take me and surrender to it, each and every day, each and every night, each and every moment. I will breathe in whatever this journey has to teach me. I will absorb its lessons and send them out again como olas en el oceano.
Pise la arena, camine en la orilla del mar, mojandome los pies en el agua salada and this grounded me and healed my anxious mind.
Ah, Mexico, mi Tierra linda, mi amor, mi vida y mi esperanza.
Soy Lorena
1/12/07
Ah, Mexico, todo es distinto, la energia, la gente, el aire. I feel I have come home again, back to the place I love. This visit will be different, lleno de esperanza, de misterio, every day I will be moving into the unknown and the unexpected. I will take the journey and I will let the journey take me and surrender to it, each and every day, each and every night, each and every moment. I will breathe in whatever this journey has to teach me. I will absorb its lessons and send them out again como olas en el oceano.
Pise la arena, camine en la orilla del mar, mojandome los pies en el agua salada and this grounded me and healed my anxious mind.
Ah, Mexico, mi Tierra linda, mi amor, mi vida y mi esperanza.
Soy Lorena
1/12/07
Tuesday, January 9, 2007
On the Verge
Estoy a punto de hacer algo. I'm on the verge of doing something. Estoy a punto de salir de mi país, estoy a punto de crear un poema, estoy a punto de componer una canción. I'm on the verge of learning something new. I'm on the verge of understanding the Universe, (well, okay, maybe not quite that close yet), but I am on the verge of living another day. And that's pretty cool I think. Que padre. Me levanto porque tengo que correr y bailar. Me levanto porque tengo que crear algo. Me levanto porque tengo que conectar con gente. I read a quote once by someone German but I can't remember his name. He said "Don't do anything unless the NOT doing it becomes a positive nuisance to you." So you see, I must create music or poetry or simply movement, because if I don't life then becomes too difficult for me. Why does creating bring about such satisfaction? El ser humano siempre ha creado algo desde el principio. In France I saw the cave paintings and they were amazing.
I am happy and sad at the same time. I am frustrated and satisfied at the same time. ¿Cómo es posible? Pero así es......la vida está llena de contradicciones. Night and day, luna y sol. El sol nos da vida, nos da luz, nos da el impulso de crear....bueno a mí me da el impulso y a lo mejor es distinto para otras personas. Sé que mi "sol" siempre está allá aunque haya nubes, que siempre me calienta aunque no lo vea, que siempre brilla aunque no me de cuenta. Mi sol es mi musa, él que me hace crear canciones y no puedo vivir sin él, porque mi vida y mi creatividad depende en él. Bien lo sabe, mi Sol, mi precioso Sol, que no deje de brillar y darme su luz. I am reflected in the Sun.
Soy Lorena.
1/9/07
Monday, January 8, 2007
A Friend
Someone to talk to, to connect with, to share ideas...una amistad es tan importante mientras andamos en este mundo. Me gusta la letra de esta canción por el grupo Rock "Meat Loaf."
Because of You
I was so hypnotized by the smile in your eyes today
Flying free as a bird caught inside every word you say
I want everyone to see...
This is big time, This is larger than life
See the sparks fly when you're standing by my side
Every step, every move, everything I do
Life is beautiful because of you
Every breath that you give
You're my sweet oxygen my friend
You made me follow it fast so my dreams could get past the end
I want everyone to feel...
This is big time, This is larger than life
See the sparks fly when you're standing by my side
Every step, every move, everything I do
Life is beautiful because of you
How did I survive before you came into my life?
Now I'd do anything at all, anything at all for you
This is big time........
Lyrics by: Rick Jude and Steve Balsamo
Creo que hay amistades que son más profundas que las relaciones entre un hombre y una mujer que son amantes.....digo, puede ser. Uno nace con ciertos parientes en su vida, pero una amistad está escogida, ¿verdad? We are mirrors for each other. I see me in you, you see you in me and together we reach deeper, farther, higher. We can soar, we can dive, we can swim in the muck and come up for air and reach some kind of conclusion or epiphany. Or not. It doesn't matter, but we can explore. I've always thought everything is a process, it's never really finished, it just keeps going. I guess "finished" would mean finished with this life, o sea muerto, dead, but maybe there is still more even after death, quien sabe. I think Deepak Chopra knows about life after death. I'm waiting for his book to arrive from Amazon because I want to know. I want to hear what Deepak has to say about the whole life and death affair. Not that it would change anything, but I am curious. Soy curiosa, siempre he sido una persona curiosa y me gusta pensar en cosas que no tienen respuestas...especulaciones, tal vez.
¿Qué es verdad?
¿Qué es espejismo?
Vamos a discutir el punto mis amigos, quizá a eso vinimos.
Seguimos adelante.
Soy Lorena.
1/8/07
Because of You
I was so hypnotized by the smile in your eyes today
Flying free as a bird caught inside every word you say
I want everyone to see...
This is big time, This is larger than life
See the sparks fly when you're standing by my side
Every step, every move, everything I do
Life is beautiful because of you
Every breath that you give
You're my sweet oxygen my friend
You made me follow it fast so my dreams could get past the end
I want everyone to feel...
This is big time, This is larger than life
See the sparks fly when you're standing by my side
Every step, every move, everything I do
Life is beautiful because of you
How did I survive before you came into my life?
Now I'd do anything at all, anything at all for you
This is big time........
Lyrics by: Rick Jude and Steve Balsamo
Creo que hay amistades que son más profundas que las relaciones entre un hombre y una mujer que son amantes.....digo, puede ser. Uno nace con ciertos parientes en su vida, pero una amistad está escogida, ¿verdad? We are mirrors for each other. I see me in you, you see you in me and together we reach deeper, farther, higher. We can soar, we can dive, we can swim in the muck and come up for air and reach some kind of conclusion or epiphany. Or not. It doesn't matter, but we can explore. I've always thought everything is a process, it's never really finished, it just keeps going. I guess "finished" would mean finished with this life, o sea muerto, dead, but maybe there is still more even after death, quien sabe. I think Deepak Chopra knows about life after death. I'm waiting for his book to arrive from Amazon because I want to know. I want to hear what Deepak has to say about the whole life and death affair. Not that it would change anything, but I am curious. Soy curiosa, siempre he sido una persona curiosa y me gusta pensar en cosas que no tienen respuestas...especulaciones, tal vez.
¿Qué es verdad?
¿Qué es espejismo?
Vamos a discutir el punto mis amigos, quizá a eso vinimos.
Seguimos adelante.
Soy Lorena.
1/8/07
Saturday, January 6, 2007
La Vista del Otro Lado
Today I saw the view from the other side of the stream, el otro lado del arroyo. Del otro lado todo era diferente, misterioso aun. El arroyo corría a la izquierda, no a la derecha. The stream seemed to run backwards, dare I say "backwards?" No, not backwards, just different. Not always is there "right" and "wrong" but merely a variation on a theme. The stream runs to the right, the stream runs to the left, and one is not more correct than the other.Vi una casa en la colina (mi casa) y pensé "¿Quién vivirá allá en esa casa morada? ¿Qué clase de gente pintaría su casa morada?" The purple house on the hill, oh my god. Qué misterio. Deben de ser artistas, excéntricos con gustos eclécticos, deben de pasar el tiempo fumando mota, deben de hacer muchas fiestas con gente extraña....deben de....deben de... etcetera ad infinitum.
Pero, mis amigos, que fácil es juzgar sin saber. "He drives a ______car, so he must be____"
He has long hair so he's a hippy. He has a shaved head so he must be a "white supremist skin head." He is black, therefore_________, she is Asian, so she_________. ¿De dónde sacamos estos opiniones estereotípicos? El "otro lado" es el lado desconocido, el lado que no comprendemos, el lado misterioso. So we judge it, we make assumptions, then believe those assumptions and make comments based on those beliefs. It all comes back to the Four Agreements, doesn't it?
So, there I was, standing on the "other side" of the stream, looking back into my world from a different viewpoint, la vista del otro lado, wondering, pensando, "how are things different from this viewpoint?" Nada es como parece...nothing is what it seems. So, making these judgments is really a waste of time.....and so inaccurate.
You have the right to remain silent. Hmmm....as if silence were right. You have the right to make a comment, even if your comment is not "right." Funny how silence can be misinterpreted. (Could it be that he/she is angry? Sick? Too busy?) I remember that expression No news is good news. But NO NEWS is NO NEWS. And oh, so easy to judge.
Es bueno conversar, platicar de un asunto, intercambiar puntos de vista, ver la vista del otro lado. See, listen to, feel another's point of view.
What kind of people paint their house purple? People who have been to Mexico and love the way bright colors are used for houses, buildings and doors. People who want to bring a little bit of that Mexican warmth into their cold New England lives, people who can't wait to go back to the land of the sun.
I think I said enough for today.
Ya basta por hoy.
Soy Lorena.
1/6/07
Thursday, January 4, 2007
Faith-la Fe
La fe....¿cuál es la diferencia entre la fe y el saber? Why is one thing based on "faith" and another based on "knowing?" When I go to sleep at night do I know I will wake up in the morning or do I rely on faith? (Picasso died in his sleep). Esta mañana vi el cielo cambiar su color de blanco a un color de fuego y sabía que el sol aparecería pronto. It doesn't matter if I believe in the sun or not, if I believe the earth will keep on turning or I think it won't, if I believe in the return of Spring. My faith is my own and has nothing to do with the function of the Universe.Busqué mi luna esta mañana y al principio no la vi, pero después la vi bajando al oeste, borrosa y escondida detrás de una nube. A los tres minutos ya se había desaparecido. ¿Sé que regresa esta noche o es pura fe? Tengo fe que alguien está leyendo este Blog....pero no estoy segura, entonces no sé de verdad.
I think I am seen, I think someone must be reading this Blog but I don't know for sure. So, what I was thinking about this morning as I was dancing in the labyrinth is how so much of my life is based on faith and my own projections, projecting my future. Por ejemplo:
Me despierto, I wake up with the faith that I will wake up. I have faith that my house will still be around me, that there will be food in the refrigerator, that my clothes will be in the closet, that there will be water for my shower, that I will arrive safe and sound to my classes, that my students and I will converse and laugh and hopefully learn something, que la Tierra seguirá girando, that the Earth will keep on turning and my heart will keep on beating another day, another year, another decade. Ay, mi corazón está lleno de sentimientos que no tienen palabras. Es curioso que con toda esta fe que tengo que tener, no ando con miedo, no me preocupo por estos detalles de mi vida. ¿Cuáles son mis preocupaciones? Es otra historia para otro día.
So, it makes no difference to be afraid or to worry because the Earth just keeps on turning no matter what we think or feel or believe. Some ancient peoples believed that the Universe would not continue if the gods did not have sacrificial blood and so they sacrificed themselves to ensure that the sun would appear and the rain would come and the crops would grow. We have different beliefs and it is the same.......the Earth keeps on turning. Our faith or lack of it changes nothing. Nada cambia y todo cambia.
Soy Lorena
1/4/07
Wednesday, January 3, 2007
My Moon
(A translation of sorts, from yesterday's thoughts)
La luna salió para sonreírme
La belleza de su plenitud fue inesperada
Mientras saltaba yo por el bosque
Durante el crepúsculo
La vi echar una ojeada por las ramas de los árboles
Tímidamente esperaba a que el sol se fuera a
Dar su calor a los que viven a la vuelta de la Tierra.
Llegaste temprano, pensé, la luz del día se entretenía
Pero quiere contar su historia, entonces llega
Viva y luminosa antes del anochecer
Y sube y sube al cielo
Siento su amor, siento su calor
Quiero abrazarla tan fuerte
Aspirarla, juntar nuestros almas
Que no haya separación entre nous
Salió la luna para sonreírme
Inesperada
Durante el crepúsculo
Ha de saber que la amo.
Soy Lorena
1/3/07
La luna salió para sonreírme
La belleza de su plenitud fue inesperada
Mientras saltaba yo por el bosque
Durante el crepúsculo
La vi echar una ojeada por las ramas de los árboles
Tímidamente esperaba a que el sol se fuera a
Dar su calor a los que viven a la vuelta de la Tierra.
Llegaste temprano, pensé, la luz del día se entretenía
Pero quiere contar su historia, entonces llega
Viva y luminosa antes del anochecer
Y sube y sube al cielo
Siento su amor, siento su calor
Quiero abrazarla tan fuerte
Aspirarla, juntar nuestros almas
Que no haya separación entre nous
Salió la luna para sonreírme
Inesperada
Durante el crepúsculo
Ha de saber que la amo.
Soy Lorena
1/3/07
Tuesday, January 2, 2007
Mi Luna
Our first snow has melted, our first night has evaporated into the dark tunnel of "time." But life goes on...todo sigue.The moon came out to smile at me
The beauty of her fullness was unexpected
As I skipped around the woods
In the twillight of the day
I saw her peeking through the branches of the trees
Shyly waiting for the sun to turn away and shine
His warmth on those beyond the curve of Earth
You are early, I thought, the daylight lingers
But her story must be told and so she comes
Bold and bright ahead of nightfall
And she rises and she rises
And I feel her love and I feel her warmth
I want to hold her ever so close to me
Breathe her in, meld our spirits into one
Know there is no separation between us
The moon came out to smile at me
Unexpected
In the twilight of the day
She must know I love her.
Toco un rayo de su luz, la misma luz que tocas tú
Y te siento profundo, ¿me sientes?
Somos uno
La Luna que refleja el Sol
Su luz fuerte y brillante
Se convierte en la luz de luna suave y tierna.
She must know I love her
As I love her father, the Sun.
Soy Lorena
1/2/07
Monday, January 1, 2007
A New Beginning
Take down the old calendar, put up the new one, remember to write "2007" on your checks, it's a new beginning. Why now? Why is January the first month of the year when it's the middle of winter? Tenemos que marcar el pasar del tiempo, ¿verdad? Creo que septiembre es un mes de principios, más que enero. En septiembre las escuelas empiezan, las vacaciones terminan, empieza el otoño y termina el verano. Hay cambios tremendos en septiembre. Oh, well. Maybe it's simply tradition and tradition is hard to change.
So, let's say "goodbye" to the old and celebrate the coming of the new and be grateful that we are still here.
Remember when the year "2000" was such a big event? We are seven years into it now. Han pasado siete años, siete años cortos o siete años largos, depende de tu punto de vista. Un año es un año nada menos nada más. It's just an agreement afterall.
We agree that another year has passed........whatever that means in the infinity of the Universe.
Enjoy.
Love.
Laugh.
Live.
Let go of the old, embrace the new.
Soy Lorena
1/1/07
So, let's say "goodbye" to the old and celebrate the coming of the new and be grateful that we are still here.
Remember when the year "2000" was such a big event? We are seven years into it now. Han pasado siete años, siete años cortos o siete años largos, depende de tu punto de vista. Un año es un año nada menos nada más. It's just an agreement afterall.
We agree that another year has passed........whatever that means in the infinity of the Universe.
Enjoy.
Love.
Laugh.
Live.
Let go of the old, embrace the new.
Soy Lorena
1/1/07
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