Torreon, Mexico
October 8th-October15th
Theme of the week: Justice
October 8th-October15th
Theme of the week: Justice
Cindy, Viveck Rueda ~ Mali, Gorda
Leonie (From Belgium)
Leonie (From Belgium)
10-8-18 Monday
First International Travel Day... After spending the night in the airport, we boarded our first flight from Houston to Mexico City. Then we had a four hour layover in Mexico City, and boarded the next flight to Monterrey. The we had a six hour bus ride from Monterrey to Torreon. It was a 24 hour travel day with about three hours of sleep... Wheew! In the airport I got to frustrated because I was so hungry and I couldn't buy anything because of the currency exchange. When I finally got money, I couldn't order a subway sandwich because of the language barrier. That was my first experience with culture shock. When we arrived at Ibero Torreon, all the host families where lined up and cheered for us as we walked into the room. Their excitement for Vive la Gente was so welcoming after a rough travel day... Then a full mariachi band comes and performs onstage! Immediately, we were immersed into Mexican culture, and our Mexican cast mates all started crying because they had missed their home. It made me so excited for the next four weeks. I met my host sister, Cindy, and she is awesome! She speaks English too!!!Then we went out to dinner, and I tried tacos al pastor for the first time. This meal was the best thing that I had tasted in my entire life. It's my new favorite food. Their house is in a gated community. It is completely livable, but it is very different from my last house in Houston. I went from living in a mansion with AC, my own bathroom, a comfortable bed, and a pool, to a small apartment with no doors, no wifi, no hot water, and a tiny pull out bed. The family in Mexico is very well off compared to the rest of the city, and it is really interesting to see the difference. Leonie and I headed straight to bed when we got the chance.
10-9-18 Tuesday
Today, some members of the cast went to Hecat primary school to do a Culture Fair and International visitors. Most of the students who went there did not speak English so I had to share facts about Minnesota in Spanish. I learned more Spanish today than I did in all three years of classes in high school. Many kids were interested in the midwest because it was apart of Estados Unidos. We talked to kids from kindergarten to middle school. The older the students were, the more English they could speak. This school was donated for families with low incomes so that poorer children could receive an adequate education. It was a very nice school, and they only have to pay $15 a month. This is very cheap for schools in Mexico. After lunch, we played some games with the kids and they reacted with enthusiasm. When it was time to go, the kids would not stop hugging us. It was very special. Then we had guest speakers come in and talk about gender equality in Mexico. We got invited to a traditional Mexican fiesta in the night. Cindy came with us to the party. There was so much culture at this party from the drinks, to the music, to the dancing. It was one of my favorite memories so far!
10-10-18 Wednesday
Today I was a crew leader for Albergue Del Padre Manuelito. This is a home for children who have parents in prison, or who are unable to take care of their kids. This was one of the most impactful community action projects that I have ever done because the kids were so loving, compassionate, grateful, mature, understanding, and intelligent. I was so impressed how kids in such horrible circumstances can get attached to random strangers within a day. We just played games with them, and attempted to have conversations with them. I used my google translate all day, and even though we had a language barrier, our connection was so strong. The 10 year old girls were obsessed with my blond hair and green eyes, and they asked me in Spanish... “tienes in novio.” At the end of the day we had a debrief with the kids and asked them what they learned. Many of them raised their hands and repeated how grateful they were for us coming. It was amazing to see the impact that we had with kids from just playing with them. When we left, many of them cried, and so did all of the volunteers from Up With People. If that doesn’t show you the connection that was made, I don’t know what does. This was an experience I will never forget, and it taught me how important it is to give back to the community. At night we went to a party with Cindy’s friends from college. He was hosting Mattias and Eliot! It was another late night, but so much fun!
10-11-18 Thursday
The community action project for today was called Pi Pao. This is a school for children with special needs. We did many personal flags and international visitor workshops with them. Today I lost my voice and feel terrible so Ellen put me on vocal rest. At the CA, I was not allowed to talk to the kids so I went along and took pictures at the site. This school was founded after a girl was killed in the U.S. Her dad built the whole school her honor and impact over 150 families a day. Going into these poor areas make me so extremely grateful for the life that I have lived so far. At night, my host family wanted to go out again, but I stayed home because I could feel myself getting really sick. I lost my voice completely so we will see what will happen tomorrow for show day...
10-12-18 Friday
Show Day! Oh geez, it's been a rough day. I woke up unable to speak, sing, or vocalize in any way. Ellen wanted to hear me sing Keep Hope Alive and see what I could do, and there was no way I could sing in the show later. I taught Ellen (Our Vocal Instructor) all the blocking, lyrics, and riffs of my part. She was terrified to perform as Hope so I tried to be as encouraging as possible. During rehearsal, I went on stage to practice the Mexican Medley, and then I had a complete heat stroke. Momo took me outside and I just cried it all out. Then Yui came and took me to the staff work office so that I could cool down and relax a little. I couldn't believe what was happening to me. I HATE BEING HOT!!!!! I did not perform in the show so I got to watch. Then instead of striking, I went home early with Viveck. I hope that I get better soon because we have a busy next few days.
10-13-18 Saturday
Today was a community discovery day where the entire cast went to the magic town called Parras. We had a tour of the mansion of the richest family in Torreon and they own a wine vineyard. We saw all the trees, and the processes of how to make wine. Then we drove into town for some wine tasting. While we were there, a group of us went into a restaurant. We ordered Pina Coladas, Margaritas, and Martinis. They didn't even ask for an ID! It was so fun to order drinks with my closest friends in the middle of the desert in Mexico! When I think about my life, I get jealous of myself. At night, we went to Hayden's birthday party... crazy night! Most of the cast was there and there was a lot of alcohol. After the party ended, Cindy took us downtown to some bars for more drinks. I got to experience so much culture through this experience. There was an electric current that shocked everybody's hands, and if you let go because of the pain, then you lost the game. It's a Mexican tradition. I love it here so much. We did not go home until three in the morning, but it was the best night I've had in a while.
10-14-18 Sunday
It's host family day!!!! We woke up extremely early after a late night. Cindy and Viveck took Leonie and I to Las Grutas Rosario. This is a cave in the mountains of Torreon. It was about a two hour drive to see the caves, but the scenery was stunning. We toured the caves, and Cindy had to translate everything for us. Then we drove to Mapimi, which is a mine in the middle of the mountains. This was the coolest host family day so far because of the views. I am really going to miss this family. They were my favorite so far because Cindy was like a college roommate who took us out almost every night. I had the most amazing experience in Mexico and I can't wait for the next three weeks here!
BEST WEEK EVER!!!!
10-9-18 Tuesday
Today, some members of the cast went to Hecat primary school to do a Culture Fair and International visitors. Most of the students who went there did not speak English so I had to share facts about Minnesota in Spanish. I learned more Spanish today than I did in all three years of classes in high school. Many kids were interested in the midwest because it was apart of Estados Unidos. We talked to kids from kindergarten to middle school. The older the students were, the more English they could speak. This school was donated for families with low incomes so that poorer children could receive an adequate education. It was a very nice school, and they only have to pay $15 a month. This is very cheap for schools in Mexico. After lunch, we played some games with the kids and they reacted with enthusiasm. When it was time to go, the kids would not stop hugging us. It was very special. Then we had guest speakers come in and talk about gender equality in Mexico. We got invited to a traditional Mexican fiesta in the night. Cindy came with us to the party. There was so much culture at this party from the drinks, to the music, to the dancing. It was one of my favorite memories so far!
10-10-18 Wednesday
Today I was a crew leader for Albergue Del Padre Manuelito. This is a home for children who have parents in prison, or who are unable to take care of their kids. This was one of the most impactful community action projects that I have ever done because the kids were so loving, compassionate, grateful, mature, understanding, and intelligent. I was so impressed how kids in such horrible circumstances can get attached to random strangers within a day. We just played games with them, and attempted to have conversations with them. I used my google translate all day, and even though we had a language barrier, our connection was so strong. The 10 year old girls were obsessed with my blond hair and green eyes, and they asked me in Spanish... “tienes in novio.” At the end of the day we had a debrief with the kids and asked them what they learned. Many of them raised their hands and repeated how grateful they were for us coming. It was amazing to see the impact that we had with kids from just playing with them. When we left, many of them cried, and so did all of the volunteers from Up With People. If that doesn’t show you the connection that was made, I don’t know what does. This was an experience I will never forget, and it taught me how important it is to give back to the community. At night we went to a party with Cindy’s friends from college. He was hosting Mattias and Eliot! It was another late night, but so much fun!
10-11-18 Thursday
The community action project for today was called Pi Pao. This is a school for children with special needs. We did many personal flags and international visitor workshops with them. Today I lost my voice and feel terrible so Ellen put me on vocal rest. At the CA, I was not allowed to talk to the kids so I went along and took pictures at the site. This school was founded after a girl was killed in the U.S. Her dad built the whole school her honor and impact over 150 families a day. Going into these poor areas make me so extremely grateful for the life that I have lived so far. At night, my host family wanted to go out again, but I stayed home because I could feel myself getting really sick. I lost my voice completely so we will see what will happen tomorrow for show day...
Show Day! Oh geez, it's been a rough day. I woke up unable to speak, sing, or vocalize in any way. Ellen wanted to hear me sing Keep Hope Alive and see what I could do, and there was no way I could sing in the show later. I taught Ellen (Our Vocal Instructor) all the blocking, lyrics, and riffs of my part. She was terrified to perform as Hope so I tried to be as encouraging as possible. During rehearsal, I went on stage to practice the Mexican Medley, and then I had a complete heat stroke. Momo took me outside and I just cried it all out. Then Yui came and took me to the staff work office so that I could cool down and relax a little. I couldn't believe what was happening to me. I HATE BEING HOT!!!!! I did not perform in the show so I got to watch. Then instead of striking, I went home early with Viveck. I hope that I get better soon because we have a busy next few days.
10-13-18 Saturday
Today was a community discovery day where the entire cast went to the magic town called Parras. We had a tour of the mansion of the richest family in Torreon and they own a wine vineyard. We saw all the trees, and the processes of how to make wine. Then we drove into town for some wine tasting. While we were there, a group of us went into a restaurant. We ordered Pina Coladas, Margaritas, and Martinis. They didn't even ask for an ID! It was so fun to order drinks with my closest friends in the middle of the desert in Mexico! When I think about my life, I get jealous of myself. At night, we went to Hayden's birthday party... crazy night! Most of the cast was there and there was a lot of alcohol. After the party ended, Cindy took us downtown to some bars for more drinks. I got to experience so much culture through this experience. There was an electric current that shocked everybody's hands, and if you let go because of the pain, then you lost the game. It's a Mexican tradition. I love it here so much. We did not go home until three in the morning, but it was the best night I've had in a while.
10-14-18 Sunday
It's host family day!!!! We woke up extremely early after a late night. Cindy and Viveck took Leonie and I to Las Grutas Rosario. This is a cave in the mountains of Torreon. It was about a two hour drive to see the caves, but the scenery was stunning. We toured the caves, and Cindy had to translate everything for us. Then we drove to Mapimi, which is a mine in the middle of the mountains. This was the coolest host family day so far because of the views. I am really going to miss this family. They were my favorite so far because Cindy was like a college roommate who took us out almost every night. I had the most amazing experience in Mexico and I can't wait for the next three weeks here!
BEST WEEK EVER!!!!
Awww jeez!!! I know how much you hate being hot but if it makes you feel any better it’s been raining and dreary here. I really hope you get adequate rest so you don’t get too drained - it happens - drink water and take some time off so your voice heals - I love reading about your impact days. So great and you are not going to forget those moments - love ya!!! Get better soon - said some prayers for you today in the prayer chapel at Hosanna. Love ya Liv!
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