I am a teacher?

The past couple of days have been the kind of days where you realize that 24 hours in a day just isn't enough. Sunday night I get little to no sleep at all. The nerves, excitement, and anticipation got the best of me. Monday morning I woke up at 5:40 so that I could get to school by 6:45 to finish all of the last minute details I had neglected to accomplish during the weekend. 6:45 in the morning is definitely pretty early, but it seems so much worse here since the sun doesn't rise until almost 8:00. So walking to school at 6:45 felt and looked like walking to school at 3:00 in the morning. Neverless, I arrived to my classroom (I'm pretty sure we were the first ones there) and got to work. I really didn't know what to expect, but I thought I was ready for the challenge. My homeroom of fifth graders (5C) began to arrive shortly after 7:00. I was in no way ready for them to come into the classroom so I kept working inside with the door closed. Around 7:40, I found Gina, the friend from La Crosse who had been a teacher here last year, and asked her what I was supposed to be doing. She let me know that I would need to go to the "patio techado" where my kids would be waiting in line. At the "patio techado", we received the welcome back to school message and then all of the teachers/staff introduced themselves. We ended our time at the "patio techado" praying in English and Spanish (Colegio Ingles is a private, catholic school so the students pray every morning before class).
Next, I lead my students back to the classroom and began my first real day as a real life teacher. I was actually quite amazed at how well behaved the students were and how efficiently we got through all of the material I had wanted to cover. Before I knew it, the students were lining up and heading to religion class and my first half of the day was over. Little did I know, my second half of the day would prove to be nothing like my first of the day. My sixth grade students (6C) rushed into the classroom after their lunch/recess break. I was told that I would have an extra student in my class bringing the final number to 30 instead of 29. I was fine with the idea except for the fact that my room only had 29 desks in it. I was told not to worry, that a desk would be brought to the classroom as soon as possible and that the extra student would just sit on the floor for the time being. From the very first moments of class, I realized that this would be my challenging group. Four or five boys were continuosly goofing around and testing my limits to see just what they could get away with. I had to stop the class almost every 5 minutes to ask them to be quiet and listen. It was a continual battle and I could feel my voice leaving me very quickly. I struggled through the information I wanted them to know and was extremely grateful when it was time for the class to head off to computers. When we got to computers, however, the teacher told me that she didn't have my class on her schedule. She must have seen the panic in my eyes because she quickly agreed to take them for the half an hour anyway. The students returned a half hour later and luckily the end of the day was only 10 minutes away. I was more than relieved to hear the end of the day bell sound and stood quietly as the students rushed out of the room. Gina soon came to my room ready to head home for the evening. While I had other things to get done, my brain was frazzled and I decided to leave with her. The rest of the evening was kind of a blur - I was stressed and tired and eventually decided to just go to bed around 10.
Today with my sixth graders went better, but I still wouldn't say things are at the level I would like them to be. I just need to keep working on being organized and consistent and eventually they will learn. I've been very firm and will continue to do so until the classroom is running how it needs to be. It has been a good learning experience thus far and I know I will continue to learn and grow as a teacher as time goes on. Hopefully this post doesn't sound too horrible, and stay tuned to see how my life as a real life teacher progresses!!

The last weekend before REAL LIFE begins

While I still had some last minute tasks to accomplish before the first day of school on Monday, I promised myself that I would have fun and forget about school for the rest of Friday night. While us roommates were sitting around the kitchen table disussing what we wanted to do for the evening, I got a phone call from an unknown number. When I answered, I was pleasantly surprised to hear someone speaking to me in English. It was Katie, another friend of a friend who had gone to UW-La Crosse and was now living here in Torreon teaching at Colegio Aleman. She had called to tell me that she and her fellow Colegio Aleman teachers were going to have a carne asada (cook out) at their house and that I and my roomates were invited. I had sent her a message earlier in the week asking if she was in town and if we would be able to get together at some point so I was very excited for her to call. My roommates and I continued to discuss what we might want to do for the night and in the end, decided that we were going to have a carne asada at our house and then go out to a club to see just what the night life in Torreon was all about. I called Katie back and thanked her for her invitation but explained that we were planning to go out instead and that I hoped we could get together another time.
Around 8:00 we started preparing all the food for our own carne asada. I attempted to make salsa (it turned out ok, but definitely not the best - I'm going to keep trying) while the other roommates (Natalie, Lesley, Gina, and Jolene) as well as the roommate's boyfriends (Chava and Javier) marinaded the meat, prepared the quesadillas, and got the grill going. Chava invited some of his friends over and by 10:00ish we were all enjoying the delicious food. It was a lot of fun getting to know new people and hanging out with native Mexicans. While almost all of them spoke English, by the end of the night we were all talking in Spanish. They were sharing good places to go in the city, teaching us how to dance, and inviting us to go out to dinner. It was a very enjoyable evening, and I was glad I allowed myself to have fun instead of stressing out about school stuff and what I still needed to get done.
Today I woke up late and headed to school to get some more work done. I think I'm pretty much ready for the first day but will be cramming to get my lessons done for the rest of the week. After working at school for a few hours, I went with Lesley and Victor to Victor's uncle's carnitas restaurant. I'm pretty sure I ate 7 tacos as well as chicharron (fried pig skin) and left feeling very stuffed. I spent the rest of the afternoon preparing some more school stuff, doing laundry, and finally taking a shower. This evening we may be meeting up with our newfound Mexican friends, but the exact plans are yet to be determined. Regadless, I'm sure it will be another enjoyable evening.

(Pictures below: Jolene and Javier preparing the food; Victor and Tom; Me, Lesley, and Natalie; Me and Gina)

Sobrevivi la primera semana!

I can't believe I have less than 4 days to prepare myself for the first day of school. This week has definitely gone by fast. Tomorrow I have to turn in all my lessons for the first week and I'm less than half way done. I feel very unprepared but I don't think I'm alone. The plan is to work hard tomorrow during the day, enjoy myself at night, and then work hard the rest of the weekend. As much of a perfectionist as I am, I still think I need to make time to enjoy myself and have fun. Plus it's Mexico, and everything always seems to work out while in Mexico.
Things continue to go well here. All of my roommates have now arrived. The two returning girls arrived late Wednesday night and have definitely had lots of useful tips and information to share. They both have boyfriends from Torreon so hopefully they'll be able to tell us more about where to go in the city. I do think us newcomers are doing a pretty good job of exploring the city on our own, however. Last night, Lesley, Natalie and I went to a nearby restaurant and later to an Irish Pub that's in the Intermall which is only a few blocks from our house. At the Irish Pub, we met up with a friend of a friend. When I was in La Piedad, some of Gaby's friends had told me that one of their friends was moving to Torreon for his job. To make a long story short, we met up with "El cuate (Hector)" last night and he seems like a very nice guy. He was excited to have someone to hang out with since he knows no one in the city and we were excited to have met someone who spoke only Spanish.
It's still crazy to think that I'm going to be living here for an entire year. I'm excited to start traveling, to meet my students, to make new Mexican friends, and much more. Things are off to a great start and hopefully they'll only get better.

All settled in...

Untrue to my word, I haven't made much time to write. I still have no internet but the issue will hopefully be resolved tomorrow. Things continue to go well here in Torreon. All of the other teachers are great. Everyone seems very openminded and friendly. It's amazing how easily you can bond with people when put in a new and unknown situation. I spent the weekend hanging out with the other new teachers and getting to know more about them. Friday we hosted a margarita night at our place (Casa E - I included a couple pictures at the end of this post) and played catchphrase. Saturday we all went to the pool at the club during the afternoon and then watched the Olympics at night in Casa D. The school provides us with a free membership to Club Britania which is about a 15 minute walk from our houses. It is a nice club with an outdoor pool, small gym with equipment, and fitness classes. The pool is definitely my favorite part, and I'll hopefully be able to enjoy hanging out there in my free time. Over the weekend, I also went to Sorianas and bought some groceries, walked around the school in search of restaurants and stores, and explored the Intermall. While I know there's still much more of Torreon to explore, I now feel like I'm pretty familiar with the area around where I'll be living. I also bought a cell phone on Friday so if anyone is interested in calling me write me an email and I can give you my house and cell phone numbers.
Yesterday, orientation began at Colegio Ingles. It was my first time on school grounds and I was definitely pleased with what I saw. We got a tour of the campus, discussed our major medical insurance, and talked about bills and salary. It was a lot of information, but a lot of useful information. I continue to be impressed with how well organized things seem to be (even if the people in Casa C and Casa D had to switch becuase there weren't going to be enough rooms for the male teachers). Today was another day full of information and I'm beginning to feel a bit overwhelmed. This is my first year teaching in my very own classroom with my very own students and I feel as though the first day is going to be very important. I am actually teaching two grades (5th and 6th) which is going to make more work for me but I will get a $400 pesos a month raise for my extra work. Another girl, Jenna, will also be teaching two grades (3rd and 4th) so I'm sure we can turn to one another when we feel completely frustrated and overwhelmed. Today we also talked with Sofia, an assitant to one of the kindergarten classes. She's from Torreon and gave us many helpful tips about where to go in the city so I'm excited to go to more new places. All in all, things are going well - my working life begins in less than a week - crazy! Tomorrow is dedicated to decorating our classrooms and beginning to plan our lessons so I'm sure I'll keep busy.

T O R R E O N ! !

After much anticipation, I am happy to say I am now finally here in Torreon and settled into what will be my house for the next year. Last night, I left La Piedad at 8:30pm and arrived here to Torreon this morning at 9:45am. I was pretty nervous about the trip but everything went very well. I was mainly nervous becuase I had to switch buses in Irapuato, but the transtion ended up being no problem at all. I even think I slept about 4-5 hours on the way here and only had to use the gross bus bathroom once. After getting off the bus, I asked a nice man to help me with my 3 giant and heavy suitcases. He dropped them off near a pay phone, took my $20 (pesos) tip and left. I promptly inserted the phone card I had bought into the public pay phone and called the first of six phone numbers I had been given in order to call for someone to come pick me up. After 4 failed attempts and feeling a bit more nervous, someone finally answered my fifth phone call. They informed me that someone would be on their way to come pick me up. I waited about a half hour until finally a white van arrived. It felt very surreal and I was extremely relieved to know that I was on my way to where I would be living for the next year. I was apparently the first to arrive and they dropped me off at one of the houses to wait while they went for others. I fell asleep on the couch and when I woke up many of my fellow teachers had arrived. We chatted for awhile getting to know one another, and just as I had expected, conversation came easily and we all seemed to get along well. We then toured all of Colegio Ingles houses and chose our rooms. I then spent the next hour or so unpacking my giant suitcases and organizing my room. The houses are all very nice and we're even lucky enough to air conditioning. My room and my bathroom are small but comfortable and I definitely welcomed a shower after so many hours traveling. After organizing, 4 other girls and I set off on our first adventure - a trip to Walmart to buy some essentials for the houses. We crammed into a taxi and had no problems until the ride back when we realized we didn't know our addresses. I had luckily brought a map the school had given us and with the map we were able to make it back. We then headed out in search of somewhere to eat. We wandered around for probably a half an hour before we found a hamburger and taco joint that we decided would have to do. After dinner, we hung out in the living room area of my house and all attempted to connect to the internet. Of course my computer is the only one that won't connect - I'm actually writing this on one of the other girl's computer since mine is not cooperating. All in all it has been a successful day and I'm anxious to see what is in store for the next year. We have the rest of the weekend to finish unpacking and continue exploring the city. On Monday, we have to go to school and begin our orientation. Hopefully what I have written makes sense (it has been a long day and I'm struggling to write coherent sentences) and I plan to now write more frequently since I can access the internet without having to go to an internet cafe. It's nice to finally be here in Torreon, and I'm looking forward to the adventures that are soon to come!

Sigo aqui...

So I have to admit that the food and fun has finally caught up with me. On Saturday, after my fun night out, I woke up with a horrible stomach ache. I thought my acidophilis was going to save me, but it turns out you can´t escape the wrath of the food of Mexico. It was all worth it though. Friday night was a lot of fun. Memo and a bunch of his friends invited me to the Jardin Real to see some mariachi and do some dancing. When we first arrived, people were singing kareoke. Soon after, however, the mariachi band started. Between the 5 of us there we ordered a bottle of tequila (in Mexico, people don´t order individual drinks but instead buy an entire bottle to share) and enjoyed the botanas (appetizers) that they served. After a few cubitos (drinks with Tequila) I found myself out on the dance floor with Memo dancing banda, cumbia, and more. I clearly stood out being the only gringa there, but it didn´t matter since I really was having a good time. Saturday was pretty much a lazy day until the early evening when I was invited to go play volleyball with friends of the family. Having nothing better to do, I decided to go. Everyone there was incredibly nice yet again - handing me drinks and food right away and inviting me to play on their team despite my lack of athletic ability. I ended up playing 3 consecutive hours of volleyball and was doing quite well by the end. After volleyball, I went with Memo to a fiesta. There had been a baptism and a large, elaborate party had been organized to celebrate. While I didn´t know many people there, it was very interesting to see what a typical party is like here in Mexico. Even more interesting was the Quinceanera (the very important party of a young girl turning 15 years old) that I went to with Memo after the first party. I had heard a lot about quienceaneras but had never gone to one myself. I was shocked to see how elaborate of a party they have. Everyone was extremely well dressed and the entire place beautifually decorated. They had flowers and cake and it reminded me of what an elaborate wedding reception would be like in the United States. The girl turning 15 was wearing a gorgeous dress and was accompanied by many friends who acted as her escorts. It was a shame I wasn´t feeling the best because I´m sure I could have had a lot of fun eating, drinking, and dancing like everyone else there. Sunday was another lazy day until the evening. At 6 I went with Paco and Lesli (friends of Gaby) to the luchas libres. The luchas libres are pretty much the Mexican version of our WWE. All of the luchadores (people who participate in the fighting matches) wear elaborate costumes and interact quite a bit with the crowd. While I wouldn´t be caught dead at a WWE match in the U.S. it was amusing to go to the luchas here. It was a good time if only to make fun of how rehearsed the fighting matches seemed. After the fights, I hung out with Memo and his friends one last time since it was Memo´s last day in Mexico before heading back to Wisconsin to work in the restaurant. It was nice to spend time with him here, and hopefully he knows how much I appreciate him showing me around.

el 5o dia

Believe it or not I´ve been here 5 days already. And to be honest, it kind of feels as if it has been more. I´m still enjoying myself and taking advantage of having nothing to do. On Wednesday, Gaby and I went with his friend Roberto, Roberto´s girlfriend, Rosi, and Rosi´s mom to Guanajuato. It was a tight fit in a little car, but we made it. About half way through the trip there we came to a complete stand still on the highway. While I can understand that there´s going to be a little bit of traffic after an accident, we literally didn´t move for more than an hour. Once we were finally detoured to a different route, we saw that a mango truck had tipped over blocking both lanes of the highway. It was somewhat amusing since we soon saw that Mexicans from everywhere had gone running to the scene of the accident to take as many mangos as they could manage. Soon after, we made it to Guanajuato and I was definitely glad I had gone. Guanajuato is a beautiful city built into the steep hills. We walked around the callejones (alleys) for quite awhile and went to a museum that talked about all of Guanajuato´s leyendas (legends). We also stopped at the town of Leon on the way back to go shopping and watch a movie. It was nice to see other parts of Mexico, even if I didn´t spend a whole lot of time there. I´ll hopefully be able to add some pictures that I took so that you can all appreciate just how neat Guanajuato is. Yesterday and today I didn´t do anything all too exciting. Sat by the pool, walked through the centro (the city center), ate more yummy food, and of course spoke some more espanol. It´s nice that I know a few different people here so that when one person gets sick of showing me around they can pass me off on another. Everyone has definitely been extremely nice and very accomdating. Memo (one of the waiters from Tequilas) took me to meet his grandma and other friends of the family, and everywhere I went I was immediately invited to sit down and have something to eat. I love the people here, they have to be some of the nicest in the world...Yesterday I also went with Gaby and Memo to one of their favorite seafood restaurants. For anyone who knows me, they know that I don´t like seafood in any way, shape, or form. Yesterday, however, I had a caldo de camaron (shrimp soup) and even tried some pescado (fish). It wasn´t as bad as I thought it was going to be. Either things taste different here, I´m growing up, or anything with enough salsa tastes good to me. Tonight the plan is to go to a bar where they have banda and mariachi, it should be a good time. Hopefully I´ll take some more pictures and have some stories to share for next time. Hasta luego....