Off to Mexico : part 4

The arrival! Guadalajara, Mexico

I made it all the way! While landing in Guadalajara, I saw some pretty awesome canyons (see photo). The second I walked out of the plane, I got smacked in the face by the heat. It's was 30 that day. I had no problem at all with customs. I was not selected for the random search so I won't complain about that. Then, I took a cab to the apartment. Man, I thought Québecers were crazy drivers... Once arrived at the apartment, I was greeted by a lovely blonde German, Simone. She was kind enough to help me with my bags (thank got because I had 4 stories of stairs to go up). Her boy friend Patrick, also lives with us, took over the suitcase situation. They are cute. I hope to pick up a few German words by the end of my stay. Mikki was here as well. She had been in Guadalajara for 3 years and knows her way around the city quite well. Needless to say that she will be very useful to know the do's and don'ts of Guadalajara. 

My attempt of unpacking was not the greatest since I was exhausted by the 3 flights and all those hours at airport. The room is small but cozy. It was quite dirty for my taste and I am far from a clean freak so you know it's dirty! Momsy would have freaked out if she would of saw it haha. Apparently the Canadian from Sherbrook who was in my room before cleaned it. Simone said that it was very clean for his habits. I cleaned a little and got settled in. You can see the view I enjoy in the picture. Yes, that is a Mc Donald's and of course my Moncton Ultimate frisbee! I had to buy a fan at the Wal Mart to be able to sleep. I am going to have to get used to this heat. I also need to get used to the noise! They were right at my pre-departure workshop. It is and will be hard to get used to this noise. Our apartment is on a very busy street. The Wal Mart is just down the street from here too. It is very convenient. The Wal Marts here has everything... like EVERYTHING. Hard liquor, beer and wine! haha! 

Today, I went out exploring a little. I went to the Scotia bank which is on my street but a rather long walk away. I kept walking to get to the clinic where I was supposed to get my drug test. This is where my first communication barrier was hit. One of them spoke a little English so we tried to figure things out. It did not work out as well as I thought. I could not do my tests that day due to a lack of information. Therefore I communicated with my supervisor for the information I needed and will go back tomorrow. I took a cab back during which I had my first 100% Spanish conversation! haha! It actually went well and the cab driver was very nice. It was a long drive so we chatted the whole time. I told him I was French but I also speak English and then he said that it explained my accent a lot. He also said I had nice eyes. I think he just wanted a big tip haha. I later went to Wal Mart to get a cell phone. That was a little complicated. Hopefully I got something good. It was like 40$ CAD. I don't think I will be using it that much. I also walked threw a mall. Almost all shoes! haha. Yes Mare, I thought of you. There were security guys here and there. They were mostly in the most busy parts of the town. Some of them even had guns! No, not hand guns but like semi automatics or something! Big mofo guns! There was one outside of the bank as well. So, I took that in advantage and took out some money. hehe.  

The only down side I saw so far is that there is a flour factory not too far. It tends to smell sometimes when the wind is blowing in the right direction. After 4 months, Simone did not get used to it, so I probably will not either.

On that note, I will go read a non academic book.

Mucho amor,

Val