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We spent much of our time at the language
school, Cemanahuac, which was
started by two children of Presbyterian missionaries. They always
seem to find a way to get the swimming into the publicity material so I
figured I would too. Here it is, la alberca. There
would have been time to swim in the afternoons, but since we ate at home
at 2:30 or 3:00, we didn't often make it back. A siesta or trip to
the Internet cafe or movie theater (especially on discount Tuesday) was
often more appealing.
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Classes were small with no more than 5 students to an instructor.
All of the instructors are native Spanish teachers, and most spoke little
English. In fact, some students didn't speak English.
On the top right is Edith, my teacher for a week. We rotated to
different teachers each week which allowed us to experience different
teaching styles.
Edith also introduced be to the wonderful Spanish short stories of B.
Traven, which I highly recommend. |
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After the July rush left, the school
started to feel more like a family. Here we are celebrating a
student's birthday. The teachers all sang, "Las Mañanitas"
which is the song Mexicans sing on someone's birthday. Then they
sang the English "Happy Birthday."
On of my teachers told us that long-term students have even dated and
married the instructors in the past.
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There was a small cafeteria at the school which made delicious
food. Eleanor and I often had snacks there at the mid-morning break
since the meal at home wouldn't be until mid-afternoon. Class went
from 9:00 to 1:00 with a break at 11:00 that was long enough to eat some taquitos,
chiles relleños, or cut fresh fruit. Pictured here are some
of the folks who worked at the cafeteria. |
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Also during the break was time for
shopping. Different vendors brought their wares to the school each
day. We bought a couple of things from the ceramic vendor here over
our seven weeks at Cemanahuac. He was quite friendly.
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Shown here is Silvia. She taught many of the "after-school"
grammar and pronunciation classes. Silvia could make otherwise
mundane subjects interesting. (If you look carefully you can see
her drawing a picture of an animal here.) She was also flexible and
was willing to teach us the things we needed to learn even if they
weren't scheduled for that day in the standard curriculum. |
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Martha was my teacher for a one-hour
"after-school" religious vocabulary class that the school set up
for me and another seminary student. At least it was billed as
religious vocabulary class. Often she asked me to read a passage in
Spanish and then explain it to her. Later, she asked me to preach on
it. Then she shared her theological insights which were quite astute
and very enlightening to me. If she were a Protestant in the U.S.,
she might be a seminary student or pastor. Read
a bit about her in my FTE report.
Another teacher whose picture I don't have, Maria Luisa, even invited us
to her church. You can read
about that in my FTE report too.
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Two of the weeks I was there, I was the only person in my class.
One of those weeks, my teacher was Emilio Álvarez who has been a pastor,
missionary, Bible school professor, and church administrator. He
taught me about Spanish, but he also taught me about the church in Mexico
and about culture, gender roles, family, and values in Mexico. Read
a bit about him in my report too. |
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There were other opportunities as
well. We took classes in Mexican history, current events, cooking,
music, poverty in Mexico and social issues. There were also guest
lecturers.
Eleanor took a class in "backstrap weaving" (see picture at
left) and over a number of weeks wove her own belt.
We also went on a number of field trips sponsored by the school to such
places as Teotihuacan, Xochicalco,
Mexico City, the local
orphanage, Buena Vista, and the
national Ballet Folklorico
(folkloric dance).
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