mucho mucho

Well, hola!

I'm sorry for not updating this week - I've been very busy getting into the swing of things (classes started this week) and exploring. So here's a recap (and I'll post some photos at the end if the internet allows):

On Sunday, a group of us ventured into Puebla to go to Wal Mart for some essentials. It was our first bus ride without Patricia or Raul (our professors/fearless leaders) and we got off at the correct stop and everything. Side-note: I costs 5 pesos (about 50 cents) for a bus ride from Cholula to Puebla which takes anywhere between 15 minutes and a half hour depending on which bus you get on and how often it stops. Though this adventure sounds short and sweet, it basically was our whole afternoon and lemme tell ya - the bakery in Wal Mart is AWESOME. It's just like all the little ones around town, but in a Wal Mart. Why America hasn't caught on to how great it is to offer amazing fresh breads and baked products like they do down here is beyond me.

Then, during the week, classes started and we all got used to that. I have fallen in love with Bookmaking and it's totally my favorite class ever. I bought some gorgeous paper from a little old lady at the base of the pyramid for covers at 10 pesos a sheet (about $1 US) and am having fun looking out for interesting posters to use for future book covers. Most of the Lucha Libre posters are pasted onto polls and walls, though, which makes it impossible not only to rip one down, but also to make use of. I've been working on my photography independently, but since there are two studio spaces upstairs, I still get to work in a productive environment and I've kind of joined the Senior Prints class, which is small and therefore has room for me to work on my computer. Pre-Columbian Art History, which has only met once so far and will become more prominent during our upcoming field trips, is shaping up to be a very interesting class. Raul teaches it and makes it very entertaining. Raul is also giving an informal Spanish class Wednesday afternoons in which he gives us very practical lessons - like pronunciation, how to tell rowdy people at bars to leave you alone, and how to say other cute/useful phrases in Spanish.

Yesterday was a very grand adventure. A bunch of us (broken into 3 mini groups) took a bus to Atlixco (a town outside of Puebla where the last Art & Design students stayed). To get there, you must take a bus first to the CAPU in Puebla for 5 pesos. Think airport for buses. This is the way to travel! For 18 pesos (about $1.80 US), you get a ride from the CAPU on a charter bus to Atlixco, which took us over an hour on the way there and only 45 minutes on the way back (even though they're nicer buses, they still pick people up along the way which can slow you down a lot). We left in the afternoon after lunch (meatballs and beans... hmm...) and so got to Atlixco just in time for dinner, which we had at La Capilla. We also walked around the market... well, really it was like 5 square blocks jam packed with trucks full of fruits and vegetables and many other vendors. We heard that Atlixco is famous for their ice cream, so after dinner we ventured to the Zocalo (which every town has, it's a big area in the center of town that functions like a park) and had some awesome dessert at Rosita's (16 pesos for a single scoop waffle cone) and everyone got something delicious. I picked up some fun souvenirs including a DVD for 20 pesos - Love in the Time of Cholera (YAY!) - and some bracelets and a bandana with the Virgin Mary on it. All in all, the whole day cost me about 200 pesos, which is only 20 USD.

When we got back, a half dozen of us went half a block from the hotel to a little bar and partied with some chill locals. I think this bar was my favorite for several reasons: 1) it's very small and not crowded, 2) it's well lit which 3) let's you see that it's clean, and 4) is half a minute from the hotel. Tonight we're meeting some of our new friends at La Roka (considerably farther away, but worth the walk for the interior, which I have yet to see but involves colorful waterfalls).

But right now I'm going to my favorite place in Cholula - Cafe Tal - a little coffehouse/cafe in the Zocalo (about 7 minute walk) where (coffee) drinks are delicious and average about 20 pesos and the food also ranges around 20 pesos. It's pretty much THE place to be (in our opinions).

The photos don't seem to want to upload for me right now, so I will attempt again later!