El Parque

 I don't want to represent this city unfairly so I will give a disclaimer that this park that we found on our way to find the church building was pretty much abandoned.  There were several friendly looking people who walked by and seemed surprised that kids were actually using it to play.  We have passed a bunch of nice parks, but this so far this is the only one that we've had the time to stop.  I took some pictures so that I can remind myself why I shouldn't complain about the see-saws in Eugene being dangerous. 

 It has already been a benefit of being here that Rocky and Daisy are actually playing together.  They couldn't figure out how to climb this chain ladder so they tried to make it into a type of swing.  Lucky for us there was this terrifying pole for Rocky to tempt fate on.  She got so high that I couldn't catch her and after yelling at her to get down and being ignored I went ahead and took a picture.

And for those of you who have been wondering how I will get them to keep their shoes on I'll let you in on the secret.  I showed them the red ants that were swarming all over the dirt and told them that they bite.  It worked while we were outside, but the wearing sandals in the apartment is still a battle that I'm losing.

We also have learned very quickly that crossing the road is not for the faint of heart.  While people are very nice to stop, you have to be seen first.  You can also make a right turn from the far left lane.  I don't think I'll ever figure out how, but they work it out.

Last night we headed into the city Centro where there is a big plaza surrounding a beautiful church.  The streets are all cobblestone because Queretero is a colonial era city and it is really awesome.  We were looking for a place to get some food and Brandon took a quick lap around to scout things out.  He said that he passed 20 ice cream stands but only one or two restaurants.  The Centro is where you go to enjoy a cool evening and treats.  Everyone was enjoying frozen desserts, but despite the availability of treats the people all look slim.  There were a bunch of people in a procession chanting something and along their route a bunch of guys wearing black robes and scary masks getting ready to jump out and frighten them.  Rocky was terrified.
I also noticed that despite the advice given in our student booklets, public display of affection is socially acceptable.  Good thing because Brandon and I are all about the PDA.  

In the main plaza there was a drum circle and a bunch of hippies dancing around.  It was nice to know that we can commune with them if we get too homesick for Eugene.

At the store I found shampoo but there was no conditioner anywhere.  I am surprised because the ladies here have such beautiful and luxurious hair.  Now I wonder if their hair just looks that way so they have never needed it, or if we're just being fooled in the U.S.  I'm pretty sure that, in my case, 2 months here in the sun and dry air without it will probably do enough damage to erase the 4 years of hydration that Oregon provided.  Good thing Brandon isn't anywhere near graduating so I can start again.
I also noticed that at the grocery store the eggs are just on the shelf, right next to the boxed milk without refrigeration.  I was just a tad nervous about it, but the scrambled eggs that we made for lunch were fluffy and delicious.  I guess it will be a few hours now before we know for sure, but so far everyone still looks healthy.
We've also been enjoying the mangoes, and kiwi which are unlike any I've tried before.  I've heard of strange people that eat fruit for dessert, which I have never really believed before, but after the sweetness of those mangoes I started to think it could be a pretty okay idea.  Especially if those mangoes were made into ice cream.

Brandon is the best travel companion ever.  He is so excited to talk to people and asks questions until he gets people talking.  That is how we found out from our taxi driver last night that the U.S. is trying to steal a mountain range in the Yucatan.  He told us that even though the U.S. is kind of a jerk of a country, he really loves American citizens, and despite the fact that it was time for tipping, I really believed him.