Dear Both,
(PS I forgot to send you both the link to a photo of Pilar on flickr, which was and still is the only photo I have to hand of her. http://www.flickr.com/photos/zacha/352230417/ (Anahí is said Ana-ih, like Anaïs.) My photos are on a CD in the house where I live, while I use the net here at James and Karla's or at Pilar's.
So it goes like this: I'm living with Gabo (Gabriel Millan), another friend via James and Karla. He lives up the hill a few blocks, and a big hill, from J & K and in a little block of units above another friend called Pales (from Palestina. His name is said like Palace) who is a lot like Tully or Owen. Pilar lives downtown 45 minutes by bus or taxi. All of Cuernavaca is built on a hill - we're a little south of Mexico City (D.F. "District Federal" - the country of Mexico is named after the city, which was originally named after the Aztecs (the Mexica) who were first called Aztecs in the 1800s, to distinguish them from the newly-named country. So, Mexico is really the name of the city. But we call it D.F.), and the city is built on a grid plan with huge avenues. It's like a plaid skirt has been laid down the side of a mountain. To make things more bizarrely planned, downhill is south and uphill is north - just like you always knew was right when you were a child. Tonight I'm going to the movies to see Night at the Museum with James in english, even further down the hill.)
So it goes like this: I'm living with Gabo (Gabriel Millan), another friend via James and Karla. He lives up the hill a few blocks, and a big hill, from J & K and in a little block of units above another friend called Pales (from Palestina. His name is said like Palace) who is a lot like Tully or Owen. Pilar lives downtown 45 minutes by bus or taxi. All of Cuernavaca is built on a hill - we're a little south of Mexico City (D.F. "District Federal" - the country of Mexico is named after the city, which was originally named after the Aztecs (the Mexica) who were first called Aztecs in the 1800s, to distinguish them from the newly-named country. So, Mexico is really the name of the city. But we call it D.F.), and the city is built on a grid plan with huge avenues. It's like a plaid skirt has been laid down the side of a mountain. To make things more bizarrely planned, downhill is south and uphill is north - just like you always knew was right when you were a child. Tonight I'm going to the movies to see Night at the Museum with James in english, even further down the hill.)
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Mexico is very cool. It's the country most like Italy that I've ever been to. There are lots of bad things here, poverty especially, but to a tourist they're more annoying than anything else. The food is fantastic. The people are really friendly. You'd need to ... go out with a Mexican to really see any of the conservative parts of the culture here. Unless the men whistle at tourists, too. It's a good country not to be blond in. (Unless you want a longer visa, JV tells me.)
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Money will be tight for me for Australian scale things, like planes, but not for Mexican scale things, like living. If you can only get as close as Yucutan (places like the island of Cozumel, Playa [beach] del Carmen or Cancun) try to get to Tulum - the beautiful Mayan ruins where you can also go to the beach. ( http://www.differentworld.com/mexico/places/tulum/tulum.htm ) Veracruz is the port most likely if you come near Mexico City.
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Money will be tight for me for Australian scale things, like planes, but not for Mexican scale things, like living. If you can only get as close as Yucutan (places like the island of Cozumel, Playa [beach] del Carmen or Cancun) try to get to Tulum - the beautiful Mayan ruins where you can also go to the beach. ( http://www.differentworld.com/mexico/places/tulum/tulum.htm ) Veracruz is the port most likely if you come near Mexico City.
Visas are fine, and renewable-ish, if you don't work. If you work over the net, like James, from another country that's fine too. To work here, you need to work in a language school, teaching english - and the school sorts you out a visa for this.* Visas to work here normally are hard. And, unless you want to settle here for good, bad - because the money's not enough to leave the country again. ("It would take me 2 years to save enough money to fly to Australia." Pilar told me, in one of her first letters. ...)
Thanks for congratulations. Had always wanted not to be at my graduation ceremony, but hadn't realised that I was this organised in arranging it. Hope that Anna's drinks were a good peda. (Mexican way to talk about a good evening of getting drunk with one's good friends - as opposed to the other sort of drunk. It means "fart" literally, but it's best not to think about that. Like the scorpions. (Try to avoid coming in May.))
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Will post many more photos soon, and should be able to arrange an Australian Skype number you can call me on (or, more often, leave voicemail on) soon too.
* In theory. I had it later explained to me that what happens is that the school tells you that it's sorted out your visa for you.