School in Merida is No Joke (Michael Keach)

¡Buenos días, América! When I wrote my last entry, I had not yet begun classes in Mexico- and let me tell you, its no longer all fun and games. Don’t get me wrong- there are still plenty of opportunities to go out, dance, explore, and have fun. However, there is now always the looming deadline somewhere in my mind. The first week and a half in Mexico was a fun-fueled tour and exercise in “getting to know another and your environment.” Everyday, we had a fun activity planned- visiting ruins, snorkeling, hitting the beach- the only responsibilities we were charged with involved keeping track of our wallets and looking out for one another. I’m not going to lie- the addition of class definitely bummed me out a bit. I’ve never been what would be considered an “academic” (well, at least by Centre College standards) and so naturally, I would prefer to have kept on partying and learning by fieldtrips, rather than papers and reading assignments. However, I’m not yet aware of any school that operates in such a fashion. To be honest, I had some crazy idea that the workload in Mexico would be a joke compared to the rigor back in Danville. How naïve I was! The classes that I am in right now are actually very challenging, and time consuming. I had been fed tales by Centre friends who had been abroad- “Don’t worry- It will be cake. There are only like 30 days of class per semester.” While it may be true that there are only 34 days that I am scheduled to have class this semester, each day I am in class for 4 hours. Though we don’t hold class on Fridays down here, I still attend class for 16 hours a week- a significant increase compared to the 12 or so hours stateside. On Mondays and Wednesdays, I have class from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. - which can really be trying on one’s concentration. I guess I can’t complain too much, though. I know of several girls down here who take all four of their classes on the same days. While they only have to go to school 2 days a week, each day they have class for 8 hours! I am in two anthropology classes, and two Spanish classes. I take a Folklore anthropology class taught by Prof. Passariello, and it is definitely my favorite class. We have been reading several books, but the one I really enjoy is about the various folk saints of the Mexican people. One particularly interesting character is Jésus Malverde (The bad green one!), a train robber in late 1800’s Mexico who would redistribute his wealth among the poor. Today, he is prayed to and venerated mostly by drug dealers and criminals. Because the Day of the Dead is approaching (Nov. 1-2), last Monday we met at Prof. Passariello’s home to craft in the theme of the holiday. I had a lot more fun with this activity than I had anticipated. I made a skeleton- horse, complete with real dead flowers, glitter glue, and little sparkly fabric puffs. My other anthropology class is about the ancient Maya, and I certainly am learning a lot. For our midterm exam last week, we were permitted open- books. The catch: each response (all ten of them!) had to be AT LEAST a whole page typed (double spaced, of course.) I ended up with 16 pages, after about 8 hours of labor. My Spanish conversation class is a lot of fun. Rather than focusing on reading or book exercises, our homework consists of interviewing Mexican citizens or reading the paper and presenting our findings. We also have debates and conversation during class, which I think is more essential to learning the language than is writing or memorizing vocabulary. Our midterm consisted of watching a movie in Spanish, and then answering 5 questions to test our comprehension. My Mexican literature class is most trying for me. We are always reading, always in Spanish, and the language is complex. It takes me forever to do my homework, because it seems as though I have to use my dictionary to look up every other word. Our midterm for that class was to write 8 pages, either an essay or a short story. I chose to write a short story, because you can’t really give a wrong answer when you are creating your own story. I hope my professor agrees with me. Right now, I am on my final day of fall break. With the exception of one or two others and me, the entire Centre crew went to Cozumel. I am sure they had a blast, and I can’t wait to hear the stories. In fact, they are probably on their way back right now. I opted to save a bit of money and hang around Mérida for the break. As of now (this is before I have heard the wild tales) I am glad I stayed home, because I slept in until well past noon everyday, and also got a whole ton of work done. I also had time to write my friends and call my parents, for the first time since I arrived. Also, Friday night I had the opportunity to experience a small town’s celebration and dance. I don’t know the name of the city, but it is about 30 minutes from Mérida. Alison (Prof. Passariello’s assistant and my good friend) invited me to attend the cultural event with her, along with Claudia (who works as a sort of liaison and interpreter for our Mexico program) and several of her friends. I witnessed a style of dance that I had never seen, and the women dancing had beautiful, ornate dresses. Alison and I were the only gringos there, and I feel like this was the most genuine Mexican cultural experience I have seen. I am about half- way through my Mexican excursion. I have certainly learned a lot, and I have realized that though many things are way different in Mexico, Americans still have a lot in common with Mexicans. Will I be happy to get home to Kentucky? Certainly, without a doubt. I have always taken for granted the resources and rights we have at our disposal in the States. However, I think my stay in Mexico has enriched me as a person, and will forever change my perceptions and attitudes. Adiós, Michael Keach Sunday, October 18, 2009