3 King's Day...school...changes...

hmmm   am still wondering what to do, blogwise.   am not sure yet if I'll keep it up....
after being here a bit more than a week, things are seeming overwhelming...it's a lot to readjust to...
and a lot to learn to do without...(washing machine, tub....) things I love & take for granted.
must decide if the warm weather trade off is quite worth it.... I know at home I'd be probably in bed with an electric blanket... and or shoveling snow...   here, I'm sweating...and am washing by hand, like back in the day, like the year +  that we lived in Morocco...when I was young and didn't even own a washer anyway.... then, I just went up to the rooftop, scrubbed on the built-in concrete scrub board & hung the wash on clotheslines on the roof.   so, really, I'm back to that?    yes, I can go to the laudromat & pay for wash service;  or, I can just really go home and do it myself there.   Again, trade offs.  Maybe a washer is in the future...but not here and now...

Other things are getting to me, like the noise.  Maybe because it's busy here now, but it bothers me.
There seem to be way too many tourists...noise all around...I'm already sensitive to noise, and Mexico can be a noisy country...music, golf carts, even the sea is noisy!
I wish there were a noise ordinance here--I think it would be a plus for the area & ambiance.
Somehow, it seems intense on many fronts...and it's making me homesick...

Am redoing blog format. It was in Spanish, as a motivator. Plus, I set it up here in Mexico when I started it some long time ago, and it seemed the default plan, & I didn't bother to change it.
 Now there is Spanish all around me; yes, I need more lessons, but have learned what I could from the blog format; I do need more Spanish instruction at another level, & will need to seek it out.  Or, just be content where I'm at.  I can usually get by, but it is not at the level of  fluency I wish.

Sofi is in school here now...she will no doubt learn Spanish.  I fret about her, as I should...another worry.   I want us all to be 'global citizens.  It is work. Sumi brought her just after our arrival, and now she is with us. They had a lot of fun together here. She is doing great actually...better than I am!  She has an open mind & great flexibility and willingness to learn.
Yes, she can be by herself and work with her Leap Pad, so that is a good thing.  Still, it's a bit of stress for me to work things out on a daily basis with some limitations here...

The hammock was a big hit; feeding fish at Garrafon de Castilla was super fun for her....

It was Dia de Los Reyes, 3 Kings' Day on Jan 6th, so we bought a Rosca de Reyes (traditional cake for this occasion the the bakery), and then a nice neighbor lady brought one over for us...what a treat...and hers had cream cheese filling so it was much better.  Anyway, we had plenty to share with several neighbors...   Luckily, or 'un' she got the little plastic Jesus doll, meaning, I guess according to local custom, that she will have to host a dinner for all on Candlemas, Feb 2nd, the next religious holiday;  not sure of the significance, but there must be a connection.   hmmm   must fin out.... 

anyway, am sure we will not be assisiting her!  Maybe we'll just take her out to eat instead! 

Think I have heard stories of folks getting the little plastic Jesus in their bite of cake, and whisking it out of their mouth, unsuspecting & out of view, so as NOT to have to host the dinner for all on Candlemas...

But, I noticed in our 'rosca' there turned out to be several little Jesus dolls, maybe to 'spread' the hosting duties around, as it probably just is too much for one person nowadays.


So,  am just trying to get through every day, sometimes helping friends who are here, with problems that always arise....
It's a rare day without some problem to deal with here;  I compare it to camping out, and maybe I'm getting too old for this.

I'm hoping to rediscover the charm of this place... hopefully, it will still be here....