It has been quite an adventure since I arrived, leaving only traces of time to record my thoughts and update you all about my adventure over here. Tracy moved to Ixtapa right after we graduated from our teaching program. At first she was working in a Mexican private school which had no supplies for the kids and paid about $5 CAN an hour. That didn’t last long, obviously, because teaching is such a demanding profession and working for a scrap of a wage just doesn’t outweigh the emotional and professional demands of the job for a new teacher.
She’s been here for over a year now, and she sings four nights per week in local restaurants with band members on the electric guitar, on bass, and occasionally a sax player joins them. The music is amazing, her sultry voice accompanied by the instrumentals of these accomplished musicians who have been playing together for decades. Sometimes the boys even sing Spanish songs as well, which is fun.
The other night she met some boys from down under—Captian Pete from Australia, now residing in San Fransisco, and Russell and Peter (Blackie), both from New Zealand. Tracy, Frank and I were invited out on their boat for a trip over to Ixtapa Island for lunch. Little did we know we were about to board a 60 foot game fishing boat, capable of pulling half-ton sail fish and other varieties out of the water. I was happy to learn that the oceanic beasts were usually released back into the water, unless they swallow the lure, often a fist-sized hook enticingly loaded with live bait—a helpless fish dragged alive through the bubbling surface water as the boat trolls for game; nothing looks more real than a real swimming fish, I suppose.
We had a lovely lunch over on the island, a motor boat complete with chef coming to pick us up from our anchor point out in the bay. Before ordering we got to see the “menu”, a platter of freshly caught fish waiting to be picked out and barbecued up. Captain Pete picked out a snapper and another fish, and then we were brought an extra snapper after we had finished the first two. They were delicious! During the trip home I sat up on the bow and dangled my feet over the edge. It was a very choppy day so the ocean kept bucking up and spraying my legs with warm sea water.
Once we entered the marina we caught some live bait, which I helped with. It was really fun having to quickly grab the weight at the bottom of the line and hold the line over the built-in bucket so that the skipper could unhook the three to five flapping fish, sending them headfirst into the aerated water.
In the evening I watched a movie with Frank while Tracy was out at a business meeting (she dabbles in all sorts of professions here, and condo-selling is one of them) in the complex’s movie theatre. I think I already described the rows of white leather armchairs. Not a bad way to spend an evening!
Tracy also has some teacher friends who are staying at a hotel down the beach, and they came over to our pool yesterday and I chatted with them about my posting. It was nice to get some fresh ideas from teachers who have decades of experience, and to hear them talk about how crazy of a challenge it would be to teach under my current circumstances. It certainly is a difficult situation with so few kids, all at different developmental ages, but I definitely seem to enjoy jumping into challenging situations, and it sounds like it doesn’t get more so than a teacher working on their own in a rural comminity. Thankfully I have a wide net of people who I am constantly calling on for support and encouragement. Certainly couldn’t do it without all of you!
I tried a day of surfing at the start of the week. Went down to the surf beach with Frank and rented a board off a guy who was taking a break. Everything is available for a price here, and the capatalistic initiutive of these locals is amazing J Unfortunately the board was WAY too small, and so I spent the hour being battered by the waves rather than getting much action. Today I went with the bartender, also a surf instructor, and a server from one of Tracy’s singing spots and it was MUCH more successful. Caught waves almost every time I tried and got up every time. Longboards are more my style at this stage in the game.
Last night before Tracy went on to sing Frank and I went to a little restuaraunt to eat. Part of the beauty in visiting friends who live in a foreign country is that they take you to all the local spots you would never find as a tourist on your own. We went to a spot that Frank and Tracy call “The Living Room” because it’s literally in a woman’s living room, complete with a spanish soap opera on the television in the corner, the full kitchen and refridgerator in view, and grandma pulling apart a chicken under a row of family portraits beside the china cabinet. I wanted to take a picture but felt the spot so intimate, someone’s home even, that I was too shy to ask, but Tracy chats with the lady all the time and will take one to send to me. It was so awesome. Best encheladas ever, a gigantic plate of them, for $2 Canadian dollars.
Overall I have been incredibly impressed with this side of Mexico, which is much different than the bar-scene I remember from my graduation trip over a decade ago. This spot is where the local Mexicans, many from Mexico City, come to vacation, and having friends that live here means that I have been seriously pampered this week.
No comments:
Post a Comment