July 18, 2013

• Report # 1023

  Hey everyone, I’ve arrived in Monterrey, and I’m typing this up from my friend Arturo’s house. I arrived here last night after 1:00 am and we talked for a while before I went to bed. This morning I woke up around 10:15 am and talked with his mom for a while who made me a very nice breakfast. I have so many things to do and today I’m going to see if I can unlock my cellphone, and if not I’ll just get another cell phone and a number for here, and of course I’ll be looking into places to live, as I really need to find a place before I can go to the migration place, finish up the visa process and start working very soon. I’m hoping I can get this all done in the next few days and call the lady from Telepeformance next week and find out what day I can start working.

  I had an amazing few days in Puebla. It is a wonderful state with so much history, culture, natural beauty and a perfect climate; it is certainly a place I would love to live ! I spent a few days with my friend Deniz and she showed me so much and I’m super grateful for that. On Monday we toured some ruins, getting a chance to go through underground tunnels, walk through a field filled with historical places, and climb up a ruin as well. It was super cool and I really enjoyed it. We picked up some ice cream and later in the day we made a stop at a very modern art gallery. I really enjoyed it as the building was so modern and had some very cool art.

  We had dinner at a pizza place in the historic center of downtown when it absolutely started pouring. We were eating outside, but in a covered area so we were fine. Puebla seems to do the same thing everyday in July… at least all of the days I was there. It’s warm and sunny for the most part of the day, and in the late afternoon or early evening it really clouds over, starts pouring, and has some lightning and thunder as well. It’s fascinating weather and I really enjoy it as it’s nice to have the days finish up nice and fresh after walking under the hot sun. In the evening we returned to Cholula, where I was staying, and we went to the main plaza and went to the Italian Coffee Company to have some drinks and listen to the live band, which played mostly Beatles music. The Beatles are certainly popular in Puebla as I saw Beatles t-shirts and memorabilia almost everywhere.

  We got home not too late, but by the time I got to bed it was pretty late, so once again I probably could have used a little more sleep. I don’t think I’ve slept 8 hours once since I’ve arrived in Mexico, but once I’m settled in I’ll be able to sleep more. On Tuesday Deniz and I took a few buses to get to Africam, which is a giant zoo in Puebla. I didn’t know what to expect exactly, but I can say I was more than impressed and it had to have been one of the best zoos that I had ever seen. We stayed on the bus for the first part, and a lady from the zoo came on, acting as a tour guide, telling us about all of the animals. The first part of the zoo was like a Safari as we drove through many fields filled with exotic animals. I saw Giraffes, Elephants, Hippopotamus, Rhinos, Tigers, Lions, Zebras and so much more.

  After the Safari part we stopped and we got to the point of the zoo where everyone could get out and walk around for themselves. We saw Flamingos, Parrots, Anteater, Crocodiles, Kangaroos, monkeys, hyena, camels, llamas, emus, ostriches, butterflies, swans, bats, a Mexican Wolf, just so many animals really. While the theme of this place was the animals of Africa, they did have some animals from other parts as well, such as a big Grizzly bear from Canada as well as some animals from Asia and South America as well. We finished up touring the insect and reptile area which had everything from lizards and frogs to tarantulas and scorpions. We had to be back at the bus by 4:00 pm to head back to Puebla, so we made it back in time and took the bus ride back into town.

  I was very glad to have the opportunity to make it to that zoo as it was absolutely incredible and it was just so cool how they managed to create a more intimate zoo where people could see the animals more or less in their habitats, and not in a cage. That evening we went to another shopping centre, Angelópolis, and we had something to eat in a taco place in the mall. I had tacos and quesadillas Arabe, which were delicious. I don’t think I’ve gone so many days in a row eating melted cheese in one form or another though. We went to Cinépolis after to see World War Z, which was a movie about a plague turning people into zombies all around the world. It was a very good movie, but I thought it ended very poorly.

  At Cinéopolis I was asked about getting a membership card, which I really should have gotten last year, as I was going to the movie theatre three times a week, so to finally have one is nice. Once again I ate lots of popcorn and drank lots of coke, so some things never really change. As we headed out of the mall after the movie we saw a giant ferris wheel which has been installed in Puebla. It has to be one of the largest and most modern ferris wheels in the world. It was absolutely gigantic, with flashing lights and some parts of the ferris wheel where people could sit with see through floors. Unfortunately it was not open yet, so I definitely would love to make it back to Puebla and go on that ferris wheel.

  Yesterday morning I packed up all of my things and got out of my room around 9:15 am. I went to print off my boarding passes for the plane to Monterrey and then Deniz and I went to a town called St. Martín. At first I didn’t know why we took a bus way out to this town, but after getting off the bus and taking another bus out to the country and walking for 15 minutes, I knew exactly why. We were visiting an old style mansion type house, and it was incredible. There were actually two of them, one bigger one that housed the museum, and a smaller one out on the lake, that was empty, but allowed us to get to the roof and see a view of everything. The place has been turned into a tourist attraction and a camp ground and it was just a real paradise.

  There were super tall trees, a forest surrounding the lake, and a bridge leading out to a small island. We took lots of pictures and really enjoyed the place. Unfortunately we didn’t have enough time to explore the museum as it was 2:30 pm and we had to get back into town to take the bus and make it back to Puebla so I could take another bus and make it to the airport in Mexico City. We got back to San Martín fairly quickly, but the bus back to Puebla took a long time as the traffic was very bad. We got back into Puebla just after 4:00 pm, so I had just missed my bus to the Mexico City airport. I got a ticket for the 5:00 bus, which still left me with more than enough time.

  I sat with Deniz for a while and thanked her for everything as I really enjoyed spending those days with her and seeing so much of Puebla. There is definitely much more to see, so I’ll have to make it back there. While I was leaving Puebla on the bus it was absolutely pouring. There was lightning and thunder, and it was another big storm. The traffic was a little slow for the first half hour and the last half hour, but in between we made good time. I arrived at the Mexico City airport at 7:30 pm, so I had plenty of time to get to my flight, which was leaving at 9:00 pm. While I was trying to find my way to the gate, a guy who told me he was a pastor from Chicago started talking to me. He told me that no one was speaking his language and that he doesn’t know if it was because they just didn’t want to help him, or because of his skin colour. (he was black)

  He explained to me that he was coming from Cancún and that the bus he was on had lost his bags and if I knew of a place that helped with that sort of thing. He then was asking me if I could give him some money to take a bus. I was really in a hurry and I just explained that I was sorry but I couldn’t really help him. So hopefully he was able to figure everything out. I got to the check-in place, and surprisingly the line was pretty much empty, so I got through in less than five minutes. I was able to get through security pretty fast as well, so everything worked out well at the airport. I ate a sandwich and some M&Ms and just waited until the plane took off.

  We ended up being about 40 minutes late into Monterrey as there was a storm there as well with lots of rain, and the skies were pretty foggy, so the pilot must have had a tough time seeing. He flew past the city and turned back and was able to land everyone safely, and he was rightfully given a round of applause after for his good piloting skills. I met my friend at the airport and she got me to the neighbourhood where Arturo lives. I remembered the restaurant, but as it was dark and rainy I really couldn’t remember exactly how to arrive at is house. Arturo came and met us at the parking lot of the Las Alitas restaurant and I thanked my friend and headed back with my Arturo. Apparently Arturo was pretty interested in my friend as he asked if we were dating !

  So I’m very thankful to be here in Monterrey able to stay here for a few days. Arturo is awake and in about an hour when he is ready to go to his job, I will head out with him and try and get as much things done as I can. It will be a busy few days, but it will be very nice once I’m finally settled in. I have soooo many photos, but I won’t be uploading any of them today. For the next question:

  What was the worst storm that you had seen personally before ? How did things turn out ?

  I wish everyone all of the best with everything. Take care and I’ll talk to you all on Sunday, bye for now.

  • 1:18 pm
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