Thursday, June 01, 2006
Day three!
Today, Karen showed us a wonderful slide show of her 2001 trip to Oaxaca. It's gorgeous! (And, it reminds me a lot of Antigua, Guatemala. Very colorful and colonial. Full of beautiful tree-sized bougainvilleas.) We are going to have such a good time and learn so much! I found out that the Etruscans, not the Romans, are the ones who invented the arch. The Romans are the ones who brought arches to the rest of the world, including Spain, and the Spaniards brought arches over to Mexico. (Karen showed us examples of incredible columns/arches in one of the convents in Oaxaca. The arches reminded me of the mind-blowing Roman Aqueduct in Segovia, Spain, and I showed the students photos from Palo Alto's 2004 trip there: http://www.accd.edu/pac/communic/Denise/spain.htm We're going again next summer (2007)!
I also learned that the urge to create is common to all people of the globe. I guess I always knew that, but the slides we saw illustrated the point beautifully. It was interesting to see the work of the people of the Oaxacan region, and be reminded of art in other regions of the world, like China, Japan, and India. The stone carvings and pyramids at Mitla and Monte Alban, the black pottery, the colorful carved wooden animals, the whimsical "ladies of the night" statuettes...they all speak to the powerful urge humans have to create and leave something lasting behind. (And, to have fun while they are creating!) That's why I enjoy quilting: choosing the fabrics, narrowing down the design, hand-piecing the squares/triangles, and embellishing the top with beads and embroidery. It's fun! And, the work is something I can pass down to my daughter...just like my mother and my grandmothers passed their creations down to me.
We also saw a PowerPoint presentation by Stan Morgan, a San Antonian who collects folk art from Oaxaca, and I'm beginning to worry about exceeding our weight limit on the plane. (There's too much wonderful art that we're going to want to bring back home!) We're going to get to see Stan's collection in person next week, so stay tuned.
I read an article in the Express-News this morning before getting to campus, and it reported that a company is looking for research participants to try out "a skin patch that dispenses vaccine for a common diarrhea bug" (Melissa Ludwig, SA E-N, "Students, others traveling abroad sought for drug trials," 6/1/06, p. 3B). The company's website is www.trekstudy.com, and they are offering up to $900 to wear the patch. I hope our students qualify!!! (Unfortunately, I don't. I've traveled outside of the U.S. within the past year.) Think of all the folk art that money could buy! :)
We also talked about what to pack (comfortable shoes for lots of walking, layers of clothing for cooler nights, a notarized birth certificate, snacks--like granola bars/power bars, a digital camera, a watch that keeps time, etc.) We talked about what clothes to wear in Mexico. Modesty was the key word. No belly-showing tops. No short shorts. We don't want to stand out while we are there. (We already will because we are taller, but we don't want to REALLY stand out.)
Tomorrow, we're going to visit and help out at the San Antonio Food Bank. We gave the students a stack of handouts to read ahead of time. We had a brief conversation about poverty here in San Antonio, and one student, Mel, talked about her experiences of working in an elementary school on the West Side of San Antonio. For homework, the students are responsible for adding to their blogs and for completing the readings.
We got our photos back from Leonard for our international student ID cards. He did us right! (Thanks again, Leonard!) I also checked out the van we're going to use this week and next from the ACCD van pool. It's a monster that seats 12. We might decide to highjack it and head out for Oaxaca early. (Just kidding! A 30+ hour drive through the mountains in Mexico is not my idea of fun.)
I also learned that the urge to create is common to all people of the globe. I guess I always knew that, but the slides we saw illustrated the point beautifully. It was interesting to see the work of the people of the Oaxacan region, and be reminded of art in other regions of the world, like China, Japan, and India. The stone carvings and pyramids at Mitla and Monte Alban, the black pottery, the colorful carved wooden animals, the whimsical "ladies of the night" statuettes...they all speak to the powerful urge humans have to create and leave something lasting behind. (And, to have fun while they are creating!) That's why I enjoy quilting: choosing the fabrics, narrowing down the design, hand-piecing the squares/triangles, and embellishing the top with beads and embroidery. It's fun! And, the work is something I can pass down to my daughter...just like my mother and my grandmothers passed their creations down to me.
We also saw a PowerPoint presentation by Stan Morgan, a San Antonian who collects folk art from Oaxaca, and I'm beginning to worry about exceeding our weight limit on the plane. (There's too much wonderful art that we're going to want to bring back home!) We're going to get to see Stan's collection in person next week, so stay tuned.
I read an article in the Express-News this morning before getting to campus, and it reported that a company is looking for research participants to try out "a skin patch that dispenses vaccine for a common diarrhea bug" (Melissa Ludwig, SA E-N, "Students, others traveling abroad sought for drug trials," 6/1/06, p. 3B). The company's website is www.trekstudy.com, and they are offering up to $900 to wear the patch. I hope our students qualify!!! (Unfortunately, I don't. I've traveled outside of the U.S. within the past year.) Think of all the folk art that money could buy! :)
We also talked about what to pack (comfortable shoes for lots of walking, layers of clothing for cooler nights, a notarized birth certificate, snacks--like granola bars/power bars, a digital camera, a watch that keeps time, etc.) We talked about what clothes to wear in Mexico. Modesty was the key word. No belly-showing tops. No short shorts. We don't want to stand out while we are there. (We already will because we are taller, but we don't want to REALLY stand out.)
Tomorrow, we're going to visit and help out at the San Antonio Food Bank. We gave the students a stack of handouts to read ahead of time. We had a brief conversation about poverty here in San Antonio, and one student, Mel, talked about her experiences of working in an elementary school on the West Side of San Antonio. For homework, the students are responsible for adding to their blogs and for completing the readings.
We got our photos back from Leonard for our international student ID cards. He did us right! (Thanks again, Leonard!) I also checked out the van we're going to use this week and next from the ACCD van pool. It's a monster that seats 12. We might decide to highjack it and head out for Oaxaca early. (Just kidding! A 30+ hour drive through the mountains in Mexico is not my idea of fun.)
