First Impressions: Mexico Livin'

Mexico livin' and Mexico lovin'. That's how it is :) Still cannot grasp the fact that I am living in Xalapa, Mexico for 3 months. At the risk of sounding blonde… I'm super chuffed that this sounds (is?) so exotic! And as I learn something new with each passing day, I'm loving this place more and more - from the Churches to the live music, from the elegant haciendas to the amazing coffee, from the sweet sweet Churros to the crazy piñatas (especially, I hear, when you have a few tequilas to go along with the piñata-bashing - which is definitely my plan)! And the fundamental element underpinning it all: as usual, it's the warm fun-loving people that pick up stray cats like me along the way.

Trying Churros for the First Time:
Luscious
- Park in Xalapa -

Admittedly the first couple of days here were tough. A cold front had come in and it was… well, cold. And if you've read a couple of my previous posts you will now well know just how much the "cold" and I dislike one another. I'd rather not getting into it, really. Back to the original story - it was cold. I wasn't entirely sure where to get a good meal, and wasn't comfortable with sputtering out my Italian version of Spanish just yet. Flat-mate/AidCom-colleague/fellow-dreamer Pepe wasn't around as he was somewhere in South America, and I felt truly alone. Not nice. Thank goodness our other AidCom colleague Ely is also in Xalapa, and although she doesn't stay in the same place as us, she started showing me the ropes, introducing me to people, integrating me into a Spanish language group-type thing, giving advice and directions - she is a source of wisdom, a fountain of información Mejicana (wouldn't you know it, those lessons are paying off)! And really, when you have good helpful people around you, the rest is history!

Street food that just makes you smile :)
This just feels so... sincere?

So… as the days passed, I started settling in, and the more I discovered, the more I got intrigued and the more I loved this place. Xalapa is situated in the state of Veracruz, is the state capital and often referred to as the "Athens of Veracruz" for it's strong cultural influence which is tied to the Universidad Veracruzana. Although I still haven't had the chance to explore all the cultural aspects (we do work after all), I've passed by galleries, parks, theaters, live music shows and lots of restaurants which I fully intend to explore. In the mean time, a few things I have seen and found intriguing are the following. For starters, they sell tortillas BY THE KG here. Yes. Not just in packets in the supermarkets that read "4 tortillas" - I mean, I get it. Tortillas move so fast in a household here, no one's going to count. "Just gimme 2 kgs please."

Tortillas by the Kg
Mind ---> Blown

On my "off" Sunday, Cristina, the ever-so-kind, wonderful and always-smiling Cristina, decided to show me Coatepec. Now, Coatepec is a town just under ten kilometers from Xalapa. It is the quintessential "coffee" town with a long legacy of coffee production, and with the old town to some extent still preserved. The architecture is beautiful with elegant haciendas of another era, their wrought iron gates in alluring patterns, and precious tiled walls and roofs. Cristina and I walked around for a while and I was totally taken.

Superwoman Cristina showing me around Coatepec :)

Hacienda - isn't it gorge?

Another Hacienda and Me :)

Coatepec is also dotted with artisanal crafts ranging from leather, to wood, coffee, chilli (<3). We ended up picking up a few things including, of course (for me), chilli and coffee. I was also quite taken by all the piñatas on display. I have a plan involving piñatas, eye folds and tequila!

Piñatas!!!

As we walked around we wandered into a couple of Churches - don't know why, this is not something I normally seek out - but boy was I glad I did. My breath was literally taken away by the intricate ornamentation. When you notice how much effort goes into rendering a Church so beautiful and unique, and realise that this is just one among thousands... well that tells you something about how important faith is here.

Churches in Coatepec

I have also been enjoying lots of Mexican food, from the delicacy known as Mole, to chilaquiles, enchiladas, tacos al pastor, empanadas, fajitas, antojitos mexicanos, and many more. Which were all really yummy. And I know I still have so many more dishes to try! But I will save that for a later post when I've tried a few more things. And that wraps up my first impressions of my Mexico Livin' ---> Mexico Lovin'. Although… right now it's 02:30 a.m. and the people in the flat upstairs are having a blast busting out in karaoke. Oh well, it can't all be perfect. Good night (if I manage sleep at this rate! haha)!