So, every time I come to an internet cafe, I always forget the purpose... which is always to write on here.
Right, so starting with the lady down the well (this has slightly dramatised it).
Last Saturday I was walking down a main road in Oaxaca Centro (after being denied into an
art galleria because they didn´t have change for my $200 (mas o menos $20 nz) peso note when admission is $10 pesos (aka $1)... I don´t know why the banks here don´t spit out $50 peso notes because with every withdrawl I have trouble and end up on pointlessly visiting Supermarkets...)
more importantly...
A lady (to paint the picture, she was about 30, short but medium for a Mexicana, wearing a two piece lime green top and 3 quarter pants), fall as she was trying to cross the road because there
was a broken drain grate (it was missing one of the pieces... dang, this is hard to explain but normally obviously it is not big enough for a leg to go through).
People instantly stop and swarm when anything´s going on here... and men were instantly running off to go find metal bars to try and pry it open. People were also coming out of the stores trying to assist... I at the beginning offered up my sunscreen as a lubricant, but I could see pretty early on that it was stuck in there damn well.
The lady was very calm at first, she called a few of her friends (others had already called the emergency services).. and wasn´t panicked or nothing.
It is a weird situation coz you want to help.. but can´t... the women were all standing around doing this handskake thing they do when something is out of their control.. or dificil.. saying Äye-yai-yai¨ (not just Speedy Gonzales says this) or !Dios mio! (Oh lord!).
The emergency services... suprise, suprise... weren´t the fastest of responders.
First the like sidewalk policia came.. then I think they called in the Tourist police, who paged the
ACTUAL policia, who showed up one-by-one until there were about 9 of them, but they had no equipment.
A man went and bought vege oil from a shop to try and help, which originally the police wouldn´t let him use.. .but after having the police presence for about 10 minutes but no action, they tried it. I was shaking my head, knowing within the first minute that we ovbviously need the Firemen, but had forgotten what ´Firemen´was in Spanish (Bomberos) so was just impatiently biting my tounge.
This was the stage where she started to panic. I guess when the policia arrived she felt relieved, but they did more harm than good. The ambulance was next on the scene, after a policeman had to jump on his motorbike (complete with Aviator glasses) to go wave them down after they drove right past, a block away.
Finally I saw some efficient people! I think in High school they must tell the fast-movers that they have to go to Ambulance school. Unfortunately, once again, they don´t have the equipment.. but after discovering that the big guns were needed, they did manage to calm her and feed her a drip.
At last! In the distance we heard the Bomberos themselves. Thankfully they had the equipment, and thankfully they cut her out withen about 20 seconds (although, could´ve used them about 30 mins ago, before her pain and anxiety set in). Her leg was looking a bit worse for wear when it immerged to the world again, but not broken... only distorted by I think the blood and pressure, because bellow the knee was very thin. They wrapped her legs and put her on a stretcher and carted her away.
I learned the next day that she was actually pregnant... but all was well in the end. I learnt this becuase it was aparently in the paper the next day... a man did appear in the last 5 mins and was getting all in the workers way (she was already surrounded by about 10 workers.. the police were now directing traffic), but I was confused that no one was telling him to move away (he was right in her face! give her some room por favorrr).
Anyways, it was like a comedy of errors on the émergency services part, but in the end she was okay.
In more relevent news, I have a mexican friend! I real-life Mexicana, with an indigenous name and all (just the name though....). Her name is Nayeli, which is a fun mix of Nayland and... Eli?
But it is pronounced Nah-Jelly (but with a Mexi accent).
She is soooo nice and funny.. .she laughs SO Loud that it makes me laugh. She is a really happy person, she laughs at everything I say!
She doesn´t want to marry because it is a contract, and because she generally doesn´t like Mexican men... either too Arrogant/Confident or metro-sexual. For some reason people here always ask about marriage.. I think it´s coz at 20 years old (she was 21 this year.. 1989 too) this is marriage prime time here. Seriously. My teacher is nervous because he is 27 and only has 2 1/2 years until he is deemed unmarriagable (word?).
and all her male friends are gay... familiar?
I met her through ´Intercambio´which I only learned about last week,... there is the opportunity to hang with a student learning English from another school. Today we went to the craft stores which are like amazing Spotlights mexi-style. They have EVERYTHING.. things I didn´t know existed, to throw a fiesta from scratch. Man, they are houses of TACK Y.
Update: I love tacky, I love crafts.. I was in heaven.
Some of the things even I find tacky. There are these little plastic wine classes with frills inside that I couldn´t work out the use for.. and little wooden things... Nayeli explained that they are keepsakes for weddings. Everyone gives a little wooden or plastic pointless thing, that the couple puts somewhere in their home and looks at and thinks ´ohhhhhh´.
This is the 2nd time I struggled with this concept.. the first being when my teacher in PV was telling us how she made a wooden box and put rice in it.
I was like ¨Why?¨ and she was like ¨Becuase it was their wedding¨and I was like ¨..... why?
I kind of get it when someone makes something... (although they make things that 1- Don´t serve a purpose, and 2- aren´t pretty). But buying something that the people know was 59c at the craft store seems like more of an insult. But this is how they do it, mexi-style.
The last Cooking Class with the Uni kids was CHILE RELLENES. A meal that my same PV teacher harped on about ,so I was eager to try. It was only me and my Aussie friend Kate (have a mentioned her? She is from Melbourne and is here with her Boyfriend Bruno who is originally from Mexico city but is a MexiAussie.. they are going to start a Mexican restaurant in Melbs and am I saying this because we all must visit ... when In Melbourne obviously.. and when it is open too...)
Anyways, Chile Rellenes is made with large chilies (non existent in our parts, but I plan to recreate with Green Peppers) that have been grilled odirectly on the stove flame, filled with tomato, tomato puree, onions, garlic, herbs, chilies and chicken (that was fried)... OR mine had cheese and herbs... OR the one I made SUCCESSFULLY on Saturday had all that of the original, minus chicken plus zuccini, corn and mushrooms... then you make batter with egg and flour and dunk it in it. You then shallow fry it in oil... and serve it with a salad so it doesn´t just look like a lard plate full of heart attack.
Boy, is it good! I was so proud of myself too for beating the odds and not screwing it up on Saturday morning.. although it was a mission... especially beatingthose damn egg whites!
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