Denise's Oaxaca Service-Learning Blog

Me da asco!

2007-03-19T19:43:00.000-05:00

A baker's dozen of photos

2007-03-19T18:34:00.000-05:00

Top 10--make that 20!--reasons to love Oaxaca

2007-03-19T15:25:00.000-05:00

20. Children playing with balloons in front of the cathedral
19. Giant tamale and a Sol for 16 pesos (You will find the tamale lady in the doorway of the Panificadora La Luna on Independencia at 7:30 p.m. My mouth is watering just typing this.)
18. Mission tile throughout the city
17. Internet connectivity (e-mail and blogging readily available for 10 pesos/hour)
16. Grasshoppers (chapulines), although two were enough. (Mila had a whole bag.)
15. Sophia, the Dutch/Canadian who was staying in our hotel. She's been travelling to Oaxaca for 20 years, and she gave us some great tips: La Escondida for one. She's been going blind for 10 years now, but that doesn't seem to slow her down. When I told her we were leaving the next morning, she said, "I've enjoyed your presence." Definitely one of the nicest compliments I've ever received.
14. Watching the world stroll by in the zocalo
13. The Banks of Karen and Mariana...forget Banamex!
12. La Escondida Restaurant's Buffet (Don't miss it! Get there at 2 p.m.)
11. The giant Tule tree
10. The churches...at least one on every corner...and the faith of Oaxaca's citizens
9. Centro de Cultura de Santo Domingo (As Blair said, "Spectacular.")
8. Breakfast at Marco Polo...truly, you'll never find better huevos rancheros.
7. The staff at Hotel/Posada La Casa de La Tia...Zoila, Edith and Alberto...you are THE BEST.
6. Limonada (limeade) at Los Cuiles on Abasolo, which also has free Internet and tasty bolillos (sandwiches). However, cuidado with the salads. Half way through, Mel noticed that her lettuce was moving and discovered three green worms enjoying the fare. Blair said that at least that shows the lettuce was organic. That didn't seem to help her any.
5. Paletas at Paleteria Michoacan, especially coco (coconut)
4. Artisans (weavers, potters, clay sculpters, tin cutters, painters, wood carvers...you name it, this region's got them!)
3. Walking, walking, walking...Oaxaca is definitely a pedestrian friendly town
2. Jacaranda trees, whose purple flowers are a glorious sight to behold
1. The group I was with: Karen, Mariana, Mary, Daniel, Gail, Mel, Melissa, Mila and Blair. I'd travel with you any time!

Last day!

2007-03-19T09:00:00.000-05:00

Karen, Mariana and I went over to Marco Polo for our last breakfast. (Blair had bought pastries the night before from the panificadora Bamby for himself.) I took a picture of my huevos rancheros and bottomless coffee cup. Sigh. Parting was such sweet sorrow.

Eloy picked us up at the hotel at 9 a.m. for a drive over to Ocotlan. We wove through the mountains and passed a large image of Our Lady of Guadalupe made from colored rocks on the side of a hill. When we got to Ocotlan, we toured the church, which had been restored with funds from the Mexican painter Rodolfo Morales, a native of the village. The ceilings were gorgeous. Then, we walked through the gigantic market that takes place there every Friday. Mel was looking for some lucha libre (wrestling) characters for her and Abel's nephews, and she found some. A bag of six was 15 pesos, capes included! She bought three. Alas, she was not able to find a lucha libre mask for Abel. The search continues. We walked through the market, over a street, and back down a street that ended up being the fowl area. Tons of baby chicks, larger hens, roosters and turkeys were available for purchase. We didn't know how we'd pack those, so we left them behind.

We met up with the group back at our starting point so we could walk over to Rodolfo Morales' home together. Morales passed away in 2001, but his caretaker let us in for a walk around. Two dogs, a tiny chihuahua and a shaggy white terrier mix, greeted us at the door. The architecture of the artist's home is similiar to that of our hotel, which was also a home before its transformation. A large central courtyard filled with plants and birds gives visitors a lovely oasis away from the dust, gas fumes and noise of the city.

From Morales' home, we went back to our van to drive over to the Aguilar sisters' homes/workshops. Our first stop was Josefina's home. She was hard at work on a female clay sculpture that was about three feet tall. It was amazing to watch her at work. She kneels/sits on her legs all day long. On tables surrounding her work area were brightly colored figures of Frida, The Virgin of Guadalupe and prostitues. Quite a mix! We bought a purple cross with red hearts on it. I think everyone walked away with at least one item. Mary and Dan bought a precious female figure covered with all sorts of animals: pig, sheep, rooster, etc. Next door, Josefina's sister Guillermina has a workshop. She wasn't there, but family members were. We purchased a tiny calla lilly cross and a tiny mermaid. Next door to Guillermina, sister Irene has a workshop. I liked her giant nativity scene, but it was much too big to bring home. Across the street, the fourth and final sister, Concepcion, has as shop. Her figures' faces seemed to have the most pleasant smiles of the four. All the sisters' work was similar, yet they had their own distinct look.

Eloy wanted to take us to one more stop before heading back to Oaxaca. (We told him that we only wanted a half-day tour so that we could have some time to roam around Oaxaca some more.) He took us to San Tomas, a weaver's village and the place he'd like to retire. This village, unlike Teotilan, is the home of weavers who use backstrap looms. Two were at work in the tiny marketplace. Gail bought a beautiful belt for her husband.

We got back to Oaxaca around lunchtime, and I went to Los Cuiles to pick up "to go" sandwiches (queso, black bean, avocado) for me and Blair. We ate them in the back courtyard and polished off coco (coconut) paletas for dessert. Heaven! After a rest, Blair, Karen, Mariana and I walked over to the artisans' market, not far from the Benito Juarez Market. On the way there, we stopped in the Guelagetza Chocolate Factory. They featured a nativity made out of chocolate! Blair bought 200 grams of coco beans. You can peel off its shell, sort of like a peanut shell, and pop it into your mouth. Bitter, but you can definitely taste the chocolate. At the artisans' market, booths were filled with all of the typical Oaxacan fare: rugs, clothing, alebrijes (the painted wooden figures), tin mirrors, etc. As I said earlier, Oaxaca is a power shopping town. Beautiful items at extraordinarily reasonable prices. Good thing we brought an empty suitcase along.

The countdown to tamales (frijol, rajas, mole, dulce and chipil with salsa) was officially on. After spending some time packing, we showed up at exactly 7:30 p.m. with quite a group: Karen, Mariana, Gail, Mary, Daniel, Mel, Blair and me. (For those visiting Oaxaca, do not miss these tamales! You can find the tamale lady in the doorway of the Panificadora La Luna on Independencia, on the left-hand side going away from the zocalo, beyond the Pemex station.) A dash into the c-store next door for beverages completed our mission. We headed back to the hotel and set up two tables in the center of the back courtyard to enjoy our feast. Mariana kept saying, "These are the best!" I have to agree. Definitely a high point of our trip.

The week went by way too fast. The cab driver met us at the hotel at 5:30 a.m. Saturday, and off we went to the airport, loaded up with fond memories and goodies galore. I must say that this visit was everything we'd hoped for. I'd like to thank the Alamo Community College District's Office of International Education for making this return visit possible. I know that Oaxaca will always have a special place in our hearts. Muchisimas gracias!

¿Cuanto fue el daño?

2007-03-15T18:06:00.000-05:00

Blair got up early to go with two guys he met at our hotel who do missionary work here in Oaxaca. They´re from Oregon and helping to build a school for a village outside of the city. The school had dirt floors, and they poured concrete floors. Men and women from the village are helping with the project. The guys said you can do more good with a couple of hundred bucks here than you can in the U.S. They´ve been coming here for about 20 years. I believe their group is called Mission Oaxaca.

This morning, I heard the door to the room next to ours shaking. I thought one of the kids who was staying there was having trouble opening the door. However, one of the guys came out to see if someone was trying to get in. The shaking was caused by a little earthquake. I was laying in bed didn´t feel anything, but Mila, whose room is on the second floor, said she could feel the trembling. More drama!

Karen, Mariana and I had breakfast at Marco Polo (of course), but I did branch out. I had fruit, yogurt and granola instead of my normal huevos rancheros. We made plans to eat at a Mexican buffet for lunch, and I wanted to pace myself. Good thing I did. The lunch at La Escondida, which is in a village on the outskirts of Oaxaca, was endless. Food for as far as the eye could see. Nine types of moles, about 20 different salads and side dishes, soups (a yummy green pozole), bar-b-q, sausages, and a dessert table for days. (The arroz con leche was especially delicious.) Mary, Daniel, Gail, Mariana, Karen, Blair and I ate and drank jarras de limonada until we nearly popped. The taxi ride home was hair raising. I´m always happy to survive those trips.

On the way out, I spied another gorgeous rug from Teotitlan de la Valle, and the woman said it was 450 pesos, approximately $45. I wanted to buy it, but Blair said that we´d already bought one...for more than twice that amount. As we climbed into the taxi, the woman asked me how much I would give for the rug. I said 450 pesos, but we´d already bought one. She said she´d give it to me for 300 pesos. I asked Blair for the money, but he balked. Karen was sitting next to me, and I asked her for the money, which she generously gave me. (The Bank of Karen´s customer service is second to none.) The rug is absolutely stunning, and I know I would have regretted not getting it for the rest of my life. I´ll post a picture of it later. The colors are sublime.

Before we left for La Escondida, Karen, Mariana and I managed to hit a few more shops. Karen and Mariana both got a gorgeous pair of shoes at a store called Las Raices on Garcia Vigil. From there, we went up to ARIPO, the government-run casa de artesanias, and found even more goodies. (Mariana walked away with a beautiful bedspread.) I then took Karen and Mariana to a shop near Santa Domingo that sells incredible earrings made from bottle caps with images of Frida, La Virgen de Guadalupe and more. We all got at least one pair. We then went down the street Cinco de Mayo to the shop where Karen bought a beautiful calla lilly top. Oaxaca is definitely a power-shopping town. (I´m happy Blair was with the guys. He said that he´s shopped out.)

When we got back to our hotel after La Escondida, we noticed that there seemed to be a lot of police activity/build up. We wanted to go to a church near the Governor´s Palace* that has a portrait of the Virgin Mary and Jesus made out of feathers. On the way there, I asked a police officer (state or federal, I don´t know) what was going on. He said there was going to be some sort of demonstration in the zocalo at 5 p.m. He didn´t know what for. We decided to make sure we weren´t around for that. We had enough experience with the police our last trip to last us a lifetime.

*I forgot to write in yesterday´s entry that we went into the Governor´s Palace to see the giant mural that details the history of Oaxaca. Impressive. Benito Juarez and his wife were given the place of prominence in the center.

Tomorrow, we will go with Eloy to visit the sisters who create figures out of clay. We´re also going to a big market. After our huge meal this afternoon, I doubt we´ll eat dinner tonight. It´s so hard to believe that our week in Oaxaca is almost up. It´s flown by. Asi es la vida.

Oaxaca, a walking city

2007-03-14T21:51:00.000-05:00

It´s almost 9 p.m., my legs are tired, and our dinner is about to be served. We´re back at the same place we had lunch, Los Cuiles, because the tamale lady didn´t show up. Sigh. However, Los Cuiles is a good place and they have free Internet, so I can´t complain.

Blair, Karen, Mariana and I had breakfast with Barbara, the owner of our hotel, at Marco Polo...of course. It was nice to finally meet her after months of e-mailing back and forth. Barbara is originally from Buffalo, New York, but after a visit to Cuernavaca, Mexico, 30 years ago, she decided she´d found her home in Mexico.

Karen took us to the Rufino Tamayo Museum after breakfast. Tamayo, a famous Mexican artist, collected a treasure trove of pre-Hispanic art, and it was a joy to see it displayed so beautifully in his former home, which he gave to the city along with his art. Definitely worth the visit.

We walked over to the Nuestra Senora de Soledad Basilica afterward, and it´s impressive. Shops at the nearby plaza sold religious items, and we all bought some bracelets. From there, we meandered through shop after shop...Blair says he´s done enough shopping...and finally ended up at a mescal store that Jill recommended, La Union. We bought some mescal that was bottled in a small glass Coke bottle for 15 pesos, a bargain! More stores, then over to a dance performance, which was running late. Blair said, Ï´ve got a date with a tamale, so we left to race over to the tamale lady. She never showed. Sigh.

Oaxaca, which is pronounced wah-hah-kah, is definitely a walking town, I´m really beginning to love it, and I can see why Mariana and Karen have returned so often. Our students are really enjoying themselves, too.

Tomorrow, lunch at a restaurant called La Escondida, which is famous for its moles.

Still no money!

2007-03-13T21:14:00.000-05:00

We went back to Marco Polo for breakfast. Delicious as usual. Blair had pancakes, and I had huevos rancheros. Mariana joined us mid-way. Karen was still snoozing. We told Mariana we were fortifying ourselves before heading back to Banamex.

Blair said that he felt optimistic about us getting our transfer. He thought that the banks would have posted the transaction during the night, and the money would be waiting for us. It was not to be. Our buddy at the bank took our information again, and he had us sit in the lobby. After about 15 minutes, he called us up to the counter and said the money hadn't arrived. I asked him if it was possible to call their headquarters (casa central) in Mexico City to see why. He gave us a blank stare, like "Why would you want to do that?" After more punching in numbers on his computer, one of the bank tellers opened up an address book she had in a drawer and gave him a number. They finally called Mexico City, but they had to call about five different numbers to find out who to talk to. Finally, he was given some sort of code to punch in, and the teller said, "Ya esta. (There it is.)" I wanted to kiss her. She printed out the screen that showed the wire transfer had occurred. However, the message "under investigation" appeared by Blair's name and Frost National Bank. The head teller called back to Mexico City, and they said that they were going to send the money back to San Antonio. I asked him why. He said, "Falta la clave (It didn't have a code.)" I wanted to cry. He asked us if we had family members who could wire us money through Western Union. We shook his hand, thanked him for his trouble, left the bank and went back to the hotel. Karen was there, and we told her what had happened and that we were going to e-mail Frost Bank to tell them what had happened. Karen, now known as the Bank of Karen, gave us more money to stay afloat. We are fortunate to have friends here who can bail us out. If worse came to worst, we could do a cash advance on our credit card, but no telling what that interest rate would be. Anyway, we decided we'd spent enough time chasing money and it was time to get to know Oaxaca.

One of our first stops was the Cafe La Nueva Babel, one that Jill, the filmmaker, recommended. Cool place. Lots of art in support of the teachers' movement. We'll definitely go back for lunch and dinner. They have either live music or poetry readings each night. From there, we walked over to the Mercado de Artesanias, a shop with a wide variety of local pottery, tin, weaving, etc. My favorite piece was a Mama pig with six baby pigs (three on each side) enjoying her milk. I'm so happy we visited the villages where the artworks are made. I have a much greater appreciation after seeing the variety at Stan's home and in the villages. We found out that the Mercado is hosting traditional dances there each night at 6:30, so we'll be going back.

We stumbled into a lunchplace called La Tentacion on Matamoros, #101. For 35 pesos, approximately $3, we had black bean soup, pork ribs, salad, corn tortillas, orange juice and jello. Good and filling. (And perfect for our budget!) On Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, they have a live band (salsa, merengue, etc.) in their club next door that starts at 10 p.m. From there, we walked over to El Centro Cultural de Santo Domingo. (On the way, I took a picture of a frame shop that had Benito Juarez and Marilyn Monroe prominently displayed.) As Blair said, the Centro Cultural is spectacular. It reminded us of El Museo de Las Americas in Madrid, only better. The building itself is worth the price of admission (45 pesos). The views from the many window are gorgeous. Each room is filled with a certain period of Oaxaca's (and Mexico's) history. Do NOT miss this place if you are in town. As we were leaving the Centro, an anti-Bush demonstration was beginning to take place. He's in Mexico visiting with the new president here. Signs with "Bush: No bienvenidos!" and such were being hung on buildings. Although I share their sentiment, I've had my fill of Oaxacan demonstrations (see June 14's entry), so we moved on.

After several hours of walking non-stop, we were pooped, so we walked over to another of Jill's recommendations. This place is called Las Cuiles, and it's on Abasolo. Melissa and Mila happened to be there, enjoying the free wireless. Blair and I ordered coffee. The best yet. Cool mission tile floors and great art. We'll definitely be going back. From there, we walked back to the hotel. Just as we got in, it started pouring rain for quite a while. We decided to skip the regional dance until tomorrow night. Mary and Dan arrived wet but happy. They'd run into Eloy and hired him to take them around for the day. Gail joined them. After the rain lightened up a bit, Blair and I walked to a bakery down Independencia, away from the zocalo, called Panificadora La Luna. Huge selection. Very delicious. Much better than the bakery around the corner from the hotel. Very reasonable prices. We stood outside the bakery and ate our pasteries. Good thing. Just as we were leaving, a woman arrived with two big containers of homemade tamales. Blair got rajas (peppers), I got frijol (black bean), and we split a dulce (sweet). All for 18 pesos! We've found our dinner spot for the next three nights!

All in all, a great day, despite our banking travails. Tomorrow, we'll be exploring and uncovering the treasures of Oaxaca even more.

Touring Oaxacan banks

2007-03-12T19:10:00.000-05:00

We got up early to eat breakfast at Marco Polo, the restaurant across the street from our hotel. It was as delicious as we remembered. Best of all, they refill your coffee. I had huevos rancheros with tasty chilaquiles con salsa verde on the side. Ana Maria got to the hotel at 8:40 a.m. to shuttle everyone to the DIF (orphanage) in three taxis. Karen, Blair and I told them that we would meet them later. Karen needed to tie down some loose ends on her Turkey study abroad, and Blair and I needed to head over to the bank to retrieve our ATM card.

We got to the bank when the doors opened at 9 a.m., and we were asked to take a seat. At 9:30 a.m., we were given the card back. Yipee! The teller said she thought it had been retained because that bank (Scotiabank) did not take Pulse (called Plus here) cards. She said that another bank BBVA took Pulse/Plus cards. So we trekked over to BBVA. Their ATM machines showed the Pulse/Plus logo. Hooray! We slipped the card in, and a "card retained" message appeared. Sigh! We went inside, and a woman directed us to a young man who would be able to retrieve the card for us. Sure enough, he walked to the back of the machine, popped it open, and gave the card to us. He noticed that the plastic was peeling from the card, so he said that was what was causing the problem. He directed us to another bank, HSBC, that could swipe the card at the counter inside. So, we trekked over to that bank. When we got there and stood in two lines, they said that the only cards they swiped at the counter were credit cards, not ATM cards.

They directed us to Banamex, yet another bank. We went there and explained the situation. They said that if we used their machines and the card was eaten, they would not be able to give it back. We decided to go back to BBVA, peel the plastic layer off of the front of the card and try again. So, we trekked back to BBVA. We told our friend what we intended to do. He agreed. We tried. The card was consumed again. The message at that point said that our bank had cancelled the card. We asked if it was possible to have money wired from our bank to his. He pulled out a list of banks that BBVA does business with in the U.S. Frost Bank was not on it. He recommended we go to Banamex.

So, we trekked back over to Banamex. We told the woman at the door that we wanted to have money transferred from our bank to theirs, and she wrote down the street address of their branch. (It is on the corner of Porfirio Diaz and Morelos.) We went back to our hotel to check our e-mail to see if Frost had responded to our earlier pleas for help. We did get a phone number to call. (Neither one of the 1-800 numbers worked, of course.) Luckily, Karen has a cell phone, so we called Frost Bank and explained our situation. They said that we had to get approval from that bank to be able to wire money to them, since we do not have an account with them. They said yes, and Blair had to answer a million questions from Frost for security purposes.

At that point, we jumped in a taxi to visit the orphanage. Unfortunately, our group had already departed, but we were given a mini-tour by the medical doctor in charge of the children. It made me happy to see that the soccer ball I had brought along was already being put to good use. The doctor also said they were happy to get the basketball hoop and basketballs I brought along, which were donations from an older troop in our Girl Scout Service Unit. Donations of clothes, tennis shoes and stuffed animals from our group and my daughter's Girl Scout troop were warmly received. We were also able to tour the metalworks shop. The kids cut tin into intricate shapes (fish, mermaids, hummingbirds, butterflies) and paint it. I bought a hummingbird, one of the only painted items left. (Karen bought an unpainted butterfly.) Turns out that our group cleaned the place out. Gail bought a gorgeous, large butterfly painted with bright colors.

On our way back to the hotel, we got a call from Frost Bank saying that the transfer had been made. We asked the taxi driver to take us there instead of the hotel. We raced in, ready to walk away flush with cash. It didn't happen. The gentleman at the window asked us to come back before the bank closed at 4 p.m. We did after lunch and a stroll through Oaxaca's Benito Juarez Market. When we went back to the bank, same story. Not there yet. He explained that the money first went from our bank in San Antonio to the headquarters in Mexico City. He said we should try back again tomorrow morning. We will.

Frost warned us that if the bank didn't know us, they'd send the money back. This bank knows us. I don't think there's any danger of that. I just hope that the money finds its way to the correct Banamex branch. After our day's experience with Oaxaca's banking institutions, we highly recommend BBVA. Stay away from Scotiabank and HSBC. Banamex is still up in the air.

Tonight, we're just going to take it easy and get to bed early. Our Oaxacan drama continues.

Day two of trip two!

2007-03-11T21:24:00.000-05:00

Another fabulous day! Our guide, Eloy, picked us up at nueve en punto (9 on the dot) to gallavant across the countryside once again. His 10-passenger van is just right for our group.

Our first stop was the gigantic Tule tree, an enormous Mexican cypress that´s more than 2,000 years old. Truly a sight to behold. Eloy said it´s not the tallest tree in the world (although it´s pretty darn tall), but it is the widest. A precious boy named Pancho pointed out many different shapes that the tree´s bark has sculpted itself into: an elephant, a lion, an eagle, an anteater, etc. Each time he pointed out the figure by using a small mirror to reflect light onto the area, he´d ask: ¨Can you see?¨ in a sing-song voice. It´s going to be our trip catchphrase.

From Tule, surely the cleanest town in Mexico, we went to Teotitlan del Valle, a.k.a. Place of the Gods. Teotitlan is a communal village of weavers. The entire town weaves, and they take care of each other. Instead of waiting on the government to build a health clinic for them, they built their own. We were given a very informative demonstration of spinning wool, coloring it with all-natural dyes made from chochineal (bright red), marigolds (yellow/gold), zapote (dark), among other flowers and plants, before weaving the brightly colored yarns on various looms. Karen got the ¨mark of cochineal¨ placed onto the palm of her hand, so naturally she bought a red rug. Blair and I bought a small rug that we´re going to use as a wall hanging. It´s a representation of the sky and mountains around Teotitlan, and the colors and design is beautiful.

From Teotitlan, we went to Tlacolula. The town´s church, La Virgen de la Asuncion, has an amazing Baroque side chapel. Gold everywhere. I was moved by the faith of one woman who used a gladiola´s long stem to make the sign of the cross on Jesus´feet before laying the flower down and asking that her prayers be answered. We spent an hour in the market afterwards, and I felt like I was back in Guatemala. Very indigenous population represented. Lots of chickens and turkeys for sale, along with beautiful fruits and vegetables. Plenty of items for tourists, too, like more of the fanciful hand-painted animals.

We had lunch at Restaurant Donaji, not far from Tlacolula. Donaji was recently hired by a family in Norco, California, to cook for their Golden Wedding Anniversary and their granddaughter´s quinceanera. They flew her out, and I understand why. Delicious food. Most everyone got mole. Blair and I got quesadillas on homemade corn tortillas that we saw made. A mescal distillery is a short walk from the restaurant, and we were able to see the full process of making mescal, tequila´s kissing cousin. Quite a process, and quite a drink! They gave us multiple samples, and passion fruit-flavored was our favorite.

After the mescal adventure, we went to Mitla, another ancient town, that features intricate stone fretwork on its walls. I think the geometric designs, which resemble those in Greece, would make great quilt designs. I´m going to get a book on them when I return to San Antonio and see if I can turn them into a quilt.

We ended our tour with a stop at Yagul, Eloy´s favorite archeological site. It is gorgeous. We hiked up the mountain--with Melissa wondering aloud why we stopped at the mescal factory before we climbed the mountain, not after--to soak in a beautiful view of the surrounding region and the ancient city below. I spotted another ball court, similar to one we saw at Monte Alban. I guess future generations will uncover the AT&T Center in San Antonio.

Blair and I finished up the day at our now favorite restaurant, Comida Oxaquena. We both had wonderful tacos al pastor and Blair had a bowl of borracho-like beans. We topped it all off with a coconut paleta that we ate while we sat in the zocalo and watched the world stroll by.

Tomorrow: back to the bank to retrieve our ATM card then a visit to the orphanage. Stay tuned!

Back in Oaxaca!

2007-03-10T19:44:00.000-06:00

We arrived in Oaxaca last night, and it´s good to be back! We´re staying at our same hotel, La Casa de La Tia, just two blocks from the zocalo (main square). Oaxaca looks much different without the teachers´ makeshift tents, and it´s nice to have a clear view of the buildings and not to have to duck. Ana Maria, our Oaxaca coordinator, met us at the hotel. After we stored our things in our rooms, we went for a walk downtown to find something to eat. The filmmaker of Granito de Arena, which documents the teachers´ struggle, said that we shouldn´t eat at the restaurants lining the zocalo, because their owners aided in the repression. We headed over to the market. By then it was pretty late, though, and not much was open. We decided to break into smaller groups and fend for ourselves. Blair and I stumbled upon Mila, Mel, Melissa and Gail at a restaurant not far from our hotel, and they said it was their favorite place to eat this past June. Blair and I had tacos al pastor. Ricos! By then, it was time to hit the sack, but we decided to pulse out some cash before going to bed.

Here´s where the story gets interesting. We went to one bank with five ATMs, and the first ATM said out of service. We figured that because we were asking for $200 and it was late, that machine was out of money. We went to the next. Same message. And the next. Same message. Five machines later, we gave up and thought we´d just try again in the morning. Well, Blair did try this morning, and the maching kept our card! In a panic, we sent an e-mail to our bank, telling them what had happened. Meanwhile, we were supposed to take off with our group at 9 a.m. for our tour to Monte Alban and its surrounding villages. The group told us to go to the bank that ate our card, because maybe we could get it back. If we didn´t go, they might destroy it. We were the first in line when the bank opened at 10 a.m. One of the tellers listened to our story and said that we wouldn´t be able to get the card back until Monday morning at 9 a.m. I asked if we could have an e-mail address of someone at the bank so our bank could be in contact with them. She sent us to one of the branch managers. After hearing our story, she said that our card would be cut up. No exceptions. That´s what they did with all cards that weren´t from their bank. After a more-than-slight panic, the branch manager spoke to someone else who told her that we coud get the card back on Monday. So, we´ll be there at 9 a.m. with bells on. Meanwhile, we´re living off the kindness of our fellow travelers. Plus, what would a trip to Oaxaca be without a little drama? (I´ll take no money over tear gas any day.)

We got back to the hotel by 10:30 a.m. and took off for Monte Alban. Our guide, Eloy, knows a lot about this amazing archeological site, begun in 500 B.C. The Zapotec natives planed the top of the mountain and used the rock to build a rather impressive city. Blair and I climbed to the top of two of the pyramids, and the view was spectacular. You could really see the valley of Oaxaca, which is in the shape of a Y. After Monte Alban, we went to a village, San Antonio Arrazola, that´s famous for its whimsical carved wooden animals and figures. We met several of the artists and loaded up. From there, we had lunch (at 4 p.m.!) in a nice open-air restaurant, La Capilla, situated in the middle of nowhere. Eloy then took us to Cuilipan´s outdoor cathedral built by the Dominican friars. Gorgeous views of the mountains through the Romanesque arches. Finally, we went to the city, San Bartolo de Coyotepec, that is known for its black pottery, and we were given a demonstration by the grandson of Doña Rosa. He whipped out a water pitcher in less than 30 minutes. More shopping, then back to the hotel. Now, we´re down the street at an Internet Cafe.

Stay tuned...and say prayers that we get our ATM card back on Monday!

Check out Melissa's presentation!

2006-07-25T18:57:00.000-05:00

Service-Learning Student Melissa Rodriguez crafted a presentation of our work and experiences in San Antonio this summer. Check it out!

http://melissaoaxaca.blogspot.com/2006/07/multimedia-presentation-one-final.html

Tomorrow (Wednesday, July 26), we're going to meet with Ana Maria, our contact in Oaxaca, at the Blue Star Brewing Company. She's in town, and we're going to get a first-person account of what's going on down there. Doesn't look good. In fact, a return trip in August has been postponed. We're hoping for Spring Break 2007. Stay tuned!

Final articles posted!

2006-07-06T17:06:00.000-05:00

Check out the final articles of the service-learning gang! Here's the URL in case the above hyperlink doesn't work for you:

http://www.accd.edu/pac/communic/Denise/2006_student_articles_index.htm

I'm pleased with the work the students accomplished, and I hope you are, too. Last week was spent writing, peer editing, revising, peer editing some more, revising some more, and creating Webpages using Dreamweaver software. The folks in the Innovation Lab at SAC were very kind to lend us their space and their expertise last Friday, June 30. (Special thanks to Dr. Charlotte Wolf for collaborating with us!) I think the students gained a greater appreciation for what it takes to be a journalist while reporting and writing these articles. The journalistic cornerstones of fairness and accuracy, which started the session, were hammered home until the end. Good work, team!

The drama in Mexico continues, and I am still certain that we made the right decision to return home. We're not happy that our study abroad experience was cut short. WAY short. (We basically had two days in Oaxaca, and one of those days we spent being tear gassed.) The District's International Education Office has promised us a return trip, but we're hesitant to purchase airline tickets until we know that the coast is clear. As of today, July 6, the coast doesn't look very clear. In fact, it looks quite volatile with the uncertain presidential election. So, stay tuned! When we do return to Oaxaca---and we will!---we'll continue to blog about our experiences. We hope you will join us in cyberspace!

Day 18!

2006-06-22T13:19:00.000-05:00

Continuing with the theme of poverty and teachers, we traveled to Lanier High School today, thanks to Mel, one of our fabulous students. Her father, Orlando Lizcano, has taught at Lanier, a high school deep in the West Side of San Antonio, for 19 years. He is the chair of Career Technology Instruction, which includes automotive, building trades, criminal justice, and 12 other programs.

Imagine our delight when we walked into a classroom spread with tacos and juice and coffee and chocolate treats! I was also impressed that a sign over the chalkboard read, "Let the choices you make today be choices you can live with tomorrow." Ain't it the truth, though! That's why I love the Harry Potter series of books. Harry is constantly faced with tough choices, yet he always chooses the right path. As a parent, I think it's important for kids to understand that you've got to think things through, and you've got to be serene (at peace) with the choices you make.

Mr. Lizcano is a graduate of Burbank High School. He said that he grew up in a poor family, and he was 17 before he learned that beans were beans. (He ate them regularly, but in various disguises.) The students of Lanier also come from lower socio-economic levels. Almost 99 percent are Hispanic, disadvantaged and at-risk. Five federally funded housing properties surround the school.

Mr. Lizcano said that for the 15 programs he is in charge of, he receives only $11,000 to run them from the local school district and $5,000 to run them from a federal grant. In other words, $16,000 for 15 programs. Not enough. Plus, the money is restricted. He can't buy what he needs for the programs to thrive. (To his credit, he started an automotive "booster club" to help meet his program's needs. If band can, why can't automotive?! Power to him.)

Part of the problem, Mr. Lizcano believes, is that career technology instruction has always taken a backseat to academic instruction, which doesn't really make sense because students learn a trade they can fall back on if the academic route doesn't work out. Plus, they will earn them more than minimum wage.

Mr. Lizcano also said that money is wasted at the district-level on frivilous things that have nothing to do with education, like staff development, rather than things you need to be successful in the classroom, like software, furniture, equipment, creating a pleasant learning environment.

Besides economic problems affecting the students, Mr. Lizcano said that many students have emotional problems. "It's a rollover situation. Problems my kids are having in their families they bring to school. They care, and they worry." (I like that Mr. Lizcano called them "my kids". You could tell that he treated his students like family.)

Tamara Ford, a criminal justice teacher at Burbank and former police officer, said that there are a lot more social and psychological issues at Lanier than you'd see at a school with a higher socio-economic class. "Our kids come with a lot of baggage," she said. Many of the students have one or more parents in prison. Ms. Ford works with the students to teach them how to set goals. She said that she sets high expectations and makes high demands of her students. It sounds like they rise to the expectation.

Mike Lizcano, building trade teacher, is a 1992 graduate of Lanier. He is now in charge of the program he came through. He said that you have to get to know each student. One exercise he does at the beginning of the school year is for the students to think back to their earliest memories, both positive and negative, and to write them down. He also encourages round table discussions to help the students work through their problems. One of the major issues that comes up is molestation, and there is a social worker on campus who's able to work with the students.

Mike talked about how caring the students are. Some of his students found out that one of their own was living in the SAMM Shelter for homeless individuals and families. The students brought in clothes and food to help out. (This reminded me of the story of the widow who gave more than she could afford.)

All in all, our visit to Sidney Lanier High School was enlightening. Mr. Lizcano said that even though things at Lanier aren't great for his teachers, he knows that they are a lot better than they are down in Oaxaca. The Lanier students are fortunate to have such caring, tell-it-like-it-is individuals in their lives, and I very much appreciate that they shared their experiences with us.

From Lanier, we walked over to the American Indians in Texas-Spanish Colonial Missions headquarters on El Paso street, down from Our Lady of Guadalupe Church. The AIT-SCM provide a wealth of programs for at-risk youth between the ages of 12 and 21. They work in the schools (SAISD now and they'll pick up Harlandale next year), and in various centers, like the Good Samaritan Center, and in after-school programs. Their curriculum includes:
*Rites of Passage (youth character development through a series of 10 sessions)
*Fatherhood Campaign (early parenthood concerns)
*Cara y Corazon (assists young fathers and adult men to develop positive relationship skills with their children and families)
*Healing the Wounded Spirit (mental health counseling and support groups for victims of violence)

Diana Morales shared their programs with us, and she told us about one of their graduates who at 13 was into drugs and running the streets. He recently graduated from high school and got a Ford Foundation scholarship to attend San Antonio College.

Ms. Morales said that she saw a great need for better education. Without an education, kids turn to crime to earn a living. The AIT-SCM programs give kids a window to a better life. Thank goodness these programs exist.

Tomorrow, our students are to spend time immersion reporting. Granted, a day isn't a lot of time to delve into a subject, but it's a start. On Monday, students are to bring in a print out of their 750-word draft. We'll exchange papers and offer constructive feedback. We hope to have their stories posted on the Internet by the end of the week. Stay tuned!

Day 17!

2006-06-21T12:53:00.000-05:00

We met at the motor pool at 8:30 a.m. to head over to San Fernando Cathedral, founded in 1731 by Canary Islanders who settled in San Antonio. Spain's king, Philip V, wanted 400 families from the islands, which Spain had controlled since 1460, to sail across the Atlantic to settle the region. He got 15 families by promising them livestock, land, and a better way of life. (Evidently, the Canary Islands were a poor place, inhabited by wild dogs.) The Spanish king wanted to settle the San Antonio region so that France wouldn't get any ideas about encroaching into New Spain's territory.

The families, approximately 55 people total, set sail and got as far as Havana, Cuba, and then Veracruz, Mexico. (Veracruz is the state directly on top of the state of Oaxaca. It's a long way from San Antonio!) From there, they began the trek to San Antonio, fighting tropical fevers, cactus-covered land, and hostile Indians along the way. They made it, and established San Fernando, the oldest cathedral sanctuary in the nation.

A 1828 fire destroyed the church. In 1872, its dome fell in, and in 1921, flood water got as high as the Stations of the Cross. Despite all of these setbacks, the cathedral, which is newly renovated, remained strong. As you enter, your eyes are drawn to the 15,000 24K gold leaf sheets that adorn a multi-tiered retablo that features Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Christ on the cross dominates the center. A baptismal font, that dates back to the 1760s, is in the back of the church. Gail, one of the students, said that her husband was baptised in the font.

One of my favorite experiences was getting close to the Pieta, a statue of Mary holding her dead son after he'd been taken down from the cross. Darlene Regalbuto, our wonderful tour guide, had us walk by slowly, keeping our eyes on Mary's eyes. Besides the pain and anguish you see on Mary's face, I swear you see tears in her eyes. It was a powerful experience, and I encourage you to visit the Cathedral.

From there, we walked down to the Spanish Governor's Palace, which was the home of the Spanish authorities. (And later, it was Santa Anna's headquarters!) Our guide said that the Spaniards negotiated with the native Americans in the Governor's Palace, and the name of our state, Texas, came from those meetings. The garden was my favorite place, except for the hanging trees, which put a damper on a lovely, peaceful setting. (Criminals were hung from huge oak trees in the back.) For a country that's so new (1776) in the grand scheme of things, it's nice to have pieces of history that pre-date the U.S. Constitution right here in our hometown.

Tomorrow, we meet back at the white van at 8:40 a.m. We'll head to Lanier High School and then to the American Indians in Texas-Spanish Colonial Missions headquarters. Students are to catch up on their blogging, complete Karen's prompt for the day, and narrow down their final project topic. Friday will be an on-site reporting day, where students will go back to the places that have interested them the most to do more first-person reporting for their final projects. A draft of their final project is due Monday, June 26.

Karen and I met with Mark Hagen of the District's International Studies Office yesterday to bring him up to speed on our Oaxacan adventure. We brought the newspaper of June 15 for him to see, as well as our personal stories. We told him that we'd like to return to Oaxaca in August after the presidential election when things should have settled down. He understands our disappointment in having to leave early, and he is going to see what he can do. Please keep your fingers crossed!

Day 16!

2006-06-20T13:11:00.000-05:00

It was back onto the white van for six of the students, Karen and myself. Two students were meeting us at Mission Espada, and two students were at doctors' appointments. (One has a cough she hasn't been able to shake since the tear gassing, and the other is an asthmatic who's been having trouble since June 14, too.)

I hadn't been to Mission Espada since my brother and his wife were married there back in December of 1990. Too long! It's such a privilege to have such wonders right here in our own city that I shouldn't take them for granted.

I found out that 1,033 Native Americans were baptised at Mission Espada from 1716 to 1773. The Franciscan friars were at the missions during the Colonial period, and they returned in 1967. (One of the friars must like cats, because Espada has numerous fat, happy cats roaming around. In fact, a sign inside the chapel asks that you keep the door closed to keep the dust and the cats out.)

You can see the Moorish influence of the Spaniards in the arched doorway at Mission Espada. In fact, I was reminded of similar doorways I'd seen in Toledo, Spain. Mary, one of the students who grew up near Mission Espada, said the doorway's arch had been assembled incorrectly. That's the story she'd been told. However, it really looks Moorish to me. We'll have to find out!

I noticed that some people were in a building near the mission, and I walked in to see what was going on. Turns out, they were assembling boxes of food for poor families in the neighborhood. They are members of the parish's St. Vincent de Paul Society, and they buy 20 boxes of food from the San Antonio Food Bank once a month. (Remember, the Food Bank sells the boxes at 15 cents per pound.) Six men from the parish go get the boxes of food, and eight women assemble the boxes.

The boxes weren't as full as the ones we'd packed earlier this month. The woman in charge told me that they reassemble the 20 boxes to make 60. She said, "We're a poor parish. We can't afford to give them a whole box." That concerned me, because we were told a box was supposed to feed a family of four for a week. She explained that they help a lot of single people and couples...and that this box is supposed to help get them through the end of the month until their next set of food stamps come in. I felt better after I heard that. People in need were scheduled to show up at 5 p.m. to get their boxes. Once again, I'm impressed by the generosity and caring of the folks in San Antonio.

Next, we traveled to Mission Concepcion. Such a beauty! Educational materials stated that the mission was a village, fort, school, farm and ranch besides being a church. The Coahuiltecans were the native people who were converted by the Spanish missionaries. (The Kiowas, Comanches and Apaches opted out.) The Coahuiltecans practiced a religion that was close to nature, and they were nomadic hunters and gatherers. After colonization, they converted to Christianity and farming, which gave their community a stable food supply. I look forward to our meeting with the American Indians in Texas-Spanish Colonial Missions group on Thursday to learn more about their current conditions.

The students are to continue narrowing down their final project topic, answer the prompt that Karen handed out, catch up on their "Creative Nonfiction" reading, and BLOG! Tomorrow we meet at the white van at 8:30 a.m. to head to San Fernando Cathedral and the Spanish Governor's Palace.

Day 15!

2006-06-19T13:01:00.000-05:00

Karen and I met last Friday (June 16) to come up with a "Plan B" for this week of classes. (Remember, we were supposed to be in Oaxaca, not San Antonio, this week!) I think we came up with a good plan that covers both humanities and news reporting/writing.

Today, we met back at SAC on the seventh floor of the Moody Learning Center. (Thanks for letting us have our "nest" back!) Karen discussed the nine common characteristics of civilization (agricultural production, government/law, religion, written language/literature, art/architecture, buildings, metallurgy, trade with other groups, and conflict with other groups), and we were able to see that the Zapotec and Mixtec cultures fit the bill. Karen also spoke of the Four C's: contact, conflict, confluence, and conquest, and the three G's: gold, God, and glory. I recommended that the students see two films on their own: "The Mission" (1986 Oscar-winner that features Jeremy Irons and Robert De Niro) and "The Robe" (1991 Canadian film). Though it's been awhile since I've seen them, I remember that they are very thought-provoking and powerful.

Next, we watched "This is what democracy looks like," a film about the 1999 World Trade Organization protests in Seattle, Washington. Having just experienced being tear gassed by the state police of Oaxaca, I wanted our students to know that this action is not limited to Mexico's state police. In 1999, the police of Seattle tear gassed citizens who were peacefully protesting the presence of the World Trade Organization by chanting slogans like, "People before profits!" and raising signs like, "Close the global wage gap!" Besides being tear gassed, a large number of protestors were jailed. Interviews with protestors reminded viewers that the U.S. Constitution guarantees citizens the right to assemble and the right of speech, both of which were denied in Seattle.

Fortuitously enough, Jill Freidberg, one of the "This is what democracy looks like" filmmakers, recently spent three years in Oaxaca covering the teachers' movement. I found an interview with her on DemocracyNow! about the events of June 14. (It was one of the few news outlets that had any news of Oaxaca!) I met Jill when I served on a documentary film festival panel several years back, and I invited her to Palo Alto to screen her film. I couldn't believe that "my" Jill was now working on a film about the teachers' movement in the state of Oaxaca. I e-mailed her right away, and found out that her film, "Granito de Arena" (Grain of Sand)is complete, and I requested a copy. I hope that it arrives before the end of the summer session! Regardless, we'll have a screening at Palo Alto College this fall.

Tomorrow, we head to Mission Espada and Mission Concepcion. The students are to catch up with their "The Art of Creative Nonfiction" (Chapters 1, 2, 9, 8, 12, 10 and 3) reading, continue their blogs, and begin narrowing down the topic they'd like to explore for their 750-word final project.

Check out El Imparcial's megamarcha coverage!

2006-06-18T09:30:00.000-05:00

I still haven't heard from Ana Maria, but El Imparcial, a Oaxaca newspaper, reports that the megamarcha did take place. More than 200,000 people marched, and they're calling for a fourth megamarcha with 500,000 people. Downtown businesses (hotels and restaurants) have closed. (Once again, I'm happy we made the decision that we did.)

Here's a link to El Imparcial, a Oaxaca newspaper: TEXT

You'll see an image of yesterday's paper in the upper right corner that features a photo of the megamarcha.

Video of June 14!

2006-06-17T19:06:00.000-05:00

A big thank you to Melissa for discovering youtube.com so we can upload video to our blogs. (I love my students!!)

Here's a video that Blair took from the roof of La Casa de La Tia, our hotel on the street Cinco de Mayo:

I'm still processing the events of June 14. Here's what I've come up with so far:
1. I'm very sad that we came home, but I'm certain we made the right decision. I haven't heard from Ana Maria today, and that makes me nervous. As soon as I do hear from her, I'll post her comments.
2. Mescal is NOT a good eye rinse. (Ask Brendan.)
3. The friendship bracelets I gave everyone when we landed in Oaxaca have become "tear gas survivor" bracelets.
4. I will never look at a metal pipe in the same way. I saw some today in Hemisfair Park when we were on our way to my nephew's play at the Magik Children's Theatre, and all I could think about was the men we saw on the streets of Oaxaca who were arming themselves with the metal pipes that had been used to hold up their makeshift tents.
5. The Pope Paul VI quote, "If you want peace, work for justice," rings true.
6. The Digital Age we are living in is pretty darn amazing. I think it's almost miraculous that we can upload videos and photos for the world to see...and write blogs for the world to read.
7. I am very proud of my students, my colleague (Karen), and my family. We handled a tough situation in a very level-headed way. The events of June 14 are something we'll never forget, and we'll continue to ponder their significance and consider possible solutions.

Photos of June 14 and report from Oaxaca!

2006-06-16T09:45:00.000-05:00

I just got an e-mail from Ana Maria, our contact from El Instituto Tecnologica de Oaxaca, and she wrote, "Aqui las cosas no han mejorado y mañana por la tarde tendremos una megamarcha con mas de 200 mil personas." (Here things have not gotten better and tomorrow (Friday...today) afternoon we will have a mega-march with more than 200,000 people.)

I'm posting photos for you to see. (All of the photos, except the first one, have been posted in a smaller size. I wanted you to be able to enlarge the first one of the poster to read the teachers' concerns.)

The first photo was taken by me on July 13 of a poster that was near our hotel entrance on the street Cinco de Mayo. The rest of the photos were taken by my husband, Blair, on June 14. The second photo is looking down at the street from our roof. You'll see Giselle and Jewelette with towels at the ready. The third photo is of the tear gas clouds with Camille hanging over the rooftop taking photos. The fourth is of a helicopter. (A state police helicopter dropped tear gas. Tear gas cannisters were also thrown by the state police into the teachers on the street.) The fifth is of our group getting ready to leave La Casa de La Tia to head for Posada El Cid, and the sixth is of our daughter with "tear gas" eyes several hours after we'd come into contact with the gas.

Day 13!

2006-06-15T13:56:00.000-05:00

We're safely back in San Antonio, tired and sad, but we think returning home was the right decision. Our transport to the airport picked us up at 5:30 a.m., so we're all very tired. We bought a local newspaper on our way out of the hotel, and the images of the conflict were shocking. It felt surreal to think we were in the big middle of it. (Granted, we weren't on the streets, but we had a bird's eye view of the streets where the conflict was taking place. And, tear gas knows no boundary.)

After we rest, we'll post more of our impressions and thoughts. Right now, we're just thankful to be home. I, for one, hope that the situation improves quickly; however, our sources in Oaxaca said that a big march is planned for tomorrow (Friday), and teachers from different parts of Mexico are streaming into the capital to support their colleagues. I pray that the citizens of Mexico, both teachers and state police, stay safe.

Day 12!

2006-06-14T16:54:00.000-05:00

I was just about to slip into the shower this morning at 6:45 a.m. when I heard loud knocking on our hotel door. I opened it, and Giselle, one of the students, said, "The police are bombing the teachers with tear gas." She had a wild look in her eyes, and they were tearing. I told Blair what she said and grabbed my list of students and their room numbers to alert them of the situation. I told them to stay in their rooms until things calmed down. The students whose rooms were on the top floor knew that something was going on already. They had their windows open, and the tear gas had come into their rooms.

My eyes were watering and stinging from being out in the front and back courtyards. The gentleman who was in charge of the reception desk overnight told me to wet a towel and keep it over my nose and eyes. I went back upstairs, and many of the students had gathered on the top of the hotel to watch what was going on. The makeshift tents the teachers had built had been destroyed. We saw the state police dressed in dark uniforms with billy clubs and face shields. We saw the teachers on the streets, corraled together. We saw helicopters, state police and media, flying overhead. (The police helicopter was dropping tear gas.) Our students were busy taking digital photos and video. A camera crew from Bolivia was also in our hotel, and they recommended that we stop taking pictures and video...that it was a provocation. At that moment, I realized we were not in America, and we needed to be extra careful. I was afraid the police would come and confiscate our cameras, so I told the students to get off the roof. Meanwhile, we already had plenty of photos and video of the situation.

The receptionist was very accomodating and opened the owner's office, which had a computer with Internet access, so we could mail out our photos. (I figured if they were going to take our cameras, we could at least e-mail the photos for safekeeping.) We sent Bob Rivard, managing editor of the San Antonio Express-News, 16 digital photos. We did not send any video because it took too long to download.

Meanwhile, the owner of the hotel, Alberto Perez Mariscal, arrived with breakfast: fruit, cereal, bread, ham, cheese, and milk. And, there was plenty of coffee. It was very nice of him, because we could not leave the hotel. Tear gas continued to fill the hotel's courtyards and seep into the rooms. Alberto spoke with the sub-secretary of tourism for the state of Oaxaca, Jorge Adrian Gutierrez Martinez, who also owns a hotel 10 blocks away from the center of town. Alberto recommended that we move to Alberto's hotel, because all of the businesses, including restaurants, were closed downtown, and it didn't look like things were blowing over. If we stayed at La Casa de La Tia, we would basically be trapped in the hotel. So, we packed up, leaving the things we'd brought for the orphanage behind, and headed to Jorge's hotel, Posada El Cid.

I must say that it was a little nerve-wracking--okay, very nerve-wracking--to be out in the open, because there were still helicopters flying overhead. (We all carried a towel to place over our nose and mouth, if more tear gas was dropped.) And, there were still teachers and state police in the streets. Everyone kept their cool, though, and we proceeded to walk the 10 blocks. When we left La Casa de La Tia, I remarked that it sort of felt like the final scene in "The Sound of Music" where Maria and the Captain are fleeing Austria with their family in tow.

You could see that there had been fighting. Rocks, which had been thrown, were strewn on the streets. Planters had been tipped over. We saw two buses that had their windows broken out and their tires slashed. As we proceeded down the streets, I noticed a couple of teachers with machetes and metal pipes moving in the direction opposite from us. I was glad that we were leaving downtown, because it appeared that things were only going to get more violent. As we neared a park, we saw teachers parading down the street, chanting. It doesn't seem like they are backing down, and word on the street is that teachers from other Mexican states, especially Guerrero and Chiapas, are coming in to offer their support.

We made it to Jorge's hotel, which is very nice, and we had a pow-wow to discuss which areas were safe to walk around in. He told us about nearby restaurants and cybercafes. We left the hotel to grab a bite to eat and write in our blogs. We're meeting tonight at 7 p.m. with our Oaxaca contact, Ana Maria de la Luz Rodriguez Jimenez, to talk about our options.

We're all safe, though, and I'm very proud of our group. No one lost their heads, and we acted quickly. This is probably the first study abroad that the ACCD had sponsored where students were tear gassed. We'll definitely have stories to share when we get back. Meanwhile, we want to learn just what the real story is. Is the state government not meeting the teachers' and students' needs? Or, are the teachers demanding too much? We'll try to find out.

Day 11!

2006-06-13T17:02:00.000-05:00

Today is the feast day of St. Anthony, the patron saint of San Antonio. (Single men and women ought to get to a church, drop 13 coins in the poor box, and ask St. Anthony to find their "lost" partner. St. Anthony will get to work on finding your soul mate! Worked for me, but that´s another story.)

My husband and I started the day at a restaurant across the street from our hotel. (Aedan wanted to sleep in.) Marco Polo serves a delicious breakfast--I had huevos rancheros and Blair had pancakes--for 33 pesos, which includes a bottomless cup of coffee. We picked up a "pie de queso" (pie of cheese...cheescake) to bring back for Aedan at a bakery around the corner.

Ana Maria met us at 10 a.m., and we walked several blocks to jump on a bus to her college, El Instituto Tecnologica de Oaxaca. Salvador Ramos Salazar welcomed us to their campus, which has a park-like feel to it. Lots of trees and benches. Very green. He said there are 4,500 students at the campus, and it offers six engineering degrees and two administration degrees. He said that for the past two years, ITO has come home with the first-place prize in engineering against all 140 tecnologicas in Mexico. He also said that three women represented the school. (Viva las mujeres!) The enrollment of the college is 60 percent women and 40 percent male. (Ana Maria, our local contact who´s been with the college for 30 years, is a civil engineer.) Their college is much like the colleges in the Alamo Community College District in that our classes are smaller--They average between 32 and 33 students per classroom--and their tuition is reasonable ($400 per year). ITO does not have open admissions like our colleges, however. Each year, about 2,000 apply, but only half of those are accepted. They don´t have the space or the necessary faculty.

From there, we went to a classroom, where Dr. Pedro Maldonado spoke about the poor of the State of Oaxaca. He received his doctorate in Economics from a university in Cuba. According to Dr. Ramos, Mexico is falling in international economic standing. For a long time, they were in tenth place. However, with Mexico losing jobs and manufacturing to China and India, they are now in fourteenth place. Guerrero, Oaxaca and Chiapas, the three southern states of Mexico, are the poorest in the nation.

In the United States, a family of four living on $20,000 a year is considered impoverished. In Mexico, a family of four living on $2,920 a year is considered impoverished. I thought the following statistics (state of Oaxaca/national) were very interesting: illiterate (22%/10%), kids aged 6-14 who don´t attend school (18%/14%), water in home (65%/88%), indoor plumbing (44%/77%), doctor per 10,000 citizens (10/14), nurses per 10,000 citizens (13/20), infant mortality per 1,000 births (35/14), life expectancy (71/73), migration...number of citizens per 1,000 who leave (18/6), poor population (85%/72%), and rural population (56%/25%).

Dr. Maldonado spelled out eight factors that are necessary for Oaxaca to grow economically:

1. Better lines of communication
2. Quality education (better human development)
3. Better conditions for business in Mexico
4. Reduce paperwork for those who want to start a business in Mexico
5. Empower workers with skills and training
6. Train administrators to make wise decisions
7. Provide low interest rates
8. Form social networks (redes) and business networks

Three values are necessary for this structural reform to occur:
1. Trust
2. Reciprocity
3. Unity

Dr. Maldonado said that education is key, and we got into a conversation over the striking teachers. It turns out that it´s good that we visited ITO today, because the college is closing tomorrow. The professors will join the teachers of this state to protest their working conditions. If the sign that I saw on the street yesterday was correct, teachers make $5,200 a year ($100 a week). This might be on the high side, because I´m not sure if they´re on a 12-month or a 9-month contract. I´ll have to do some reporting and find out! Stay tuned.

We went over to the college´s cafeteria after the talk, and it was packed with students watching the World Cup on a big screen TV. I loved hearing the moans on missed scores and the jubilation on winning scores. This morning during breakfast, they had the TV on a sort of Today Show-like program, and the reporter was interviewing Mexicans who´d make the trek to Germany. (Large mugs of frosty beer were prominently featured.) You can tell there´s a lot of national pride when it comes to futbol (soccer). Some commercial that played was nothing but clips of Mexican fans painted with their team´s colors, singing along to the national anthem, and glorying in their team´s success. I´m not a fan of organized sport of any kind (Sorry, Spurs!), so it´s interesting to try to relate to those who live/die by soccer. (Gail said that England pulled the passports of 3,500 known soccer hooligans so they couldn´t travel to Germany! I can´t see myself getting so worked up about a team.)

After our visit to ITO, Ana Maria got us back on the city bus to the zocalo. We broke up and headed out for lunch. Blair, Aedan and I ended up having another delicious meal (It´s a good thing we´re doing a lot of walking!) on the zocalo. Blair had one of Oaxaca´s famous chicken moles, and I had pollo emapanizado (breadcrumb-crusted chicken). Aedan had black bean tacos. Then we treated her to a Starbucks-like mocha frappachino that cost 26 pesos for sitting through the morning´s lengthy lectures without complaint. While she was drinking it, I thought that there are not many in the state of Oaxaca who would spend that kind of money on something so frivilous. Not when their day´s wages are 40 pesos. I don´t think we´ll be buying any more frappachinos.

Day 10!

2006-06-12T19:14:00.000-05:00

We made it! The 4:30 a.m. wakeup call came awfully early, but we got to the San Antonio International Airport at the designated time, 5:30 a.m., thanks to Ferdy, our sweet friend from our church. (Thanks, Ferdy!! We owe you!) Our flight took off at 7:10 a.m., and I was a little afraid we were going to miss it. We were doing an O.J. (running through the airport) to get on the plane. Checking on 14 people and all of our luggage plus a long line at Homeland Security called for our inner track star to materialize. We made it, though, and the 36-minute flight to Houston was uneventful.

Moving 14 people through Houston´s airport was a challenge, but we made it there, too. The promised carts weren´t waiting for us, and we went to the yellow flashing light, not the blue flashing light, like the Continental employee told us, but we made it to the monorail, trekked over to the international terminal and got on board the plane with 12 minutes to spare. We even had time for a potty break!

The flight to Oaxaca was on a small, 3-seat-across plane. Once we got up in the clouds, I could relax. And, the clouds were beautiful. It was Mel´s first time on a plane, so it was fun watching her "kid-in-the-candy-store" reaction. She was remarkably tranquil for her first time flying. The mountains scraped the white, fluffy clouds, and I was very thankful we were in the air and not on the roads. Snake-like paths criss-crossed the peaks. I got car sick just thinking about it.

We got into two mini-vans at the airport and took off for La Casa de La Tia, our hotel, located in the heart of downtown Oaxaca. We´re only a couple of blocks from the zocalo, the central square of the city. Ana Maria, our contact, met us at the hotel and took us to a nearby restaurant. The meal was delicious. For 40 pesos (about $4), we had soup, vegetables, a main dish, salad, dessert and coffee. And, the food was delicious. We also had an exotic fruit drink, guanabana, I believe is its name. Yummy. The food was "tipico" of Oaxaca. My main dish was rajas con queso. Mild chilis layered on cheese with zuchinni and corn on top. We´ll be going back! Ana Maria is very nice, and she had a new and improved schedule for us. We´re definitely going to be on the run while we´re here!

From there, we went to exchange money to pay for our hotel, which is lovely. Gorgeous bouganvilleas adorn the front courtyard. Aedan loves that she´s got a private upstairs loft that you get to via a spiral stairway.

Back on the streets, we noticed that makeshift tents lined downtown. At first, we thought it was people selling goods in a market. However, we soon found out it´s teachers protesting their wages--one sign we read said they earn $100 a week--and their lack of schoolroom support--no desks, no chairs, no books, no computers, etc. The presidential election in Mexico is in July, so they´re trying to get their voices heard. Democracy in action! I´m curious to see how it turns out.

We walked over to the Cathedral after we exchanged money ($1 equals 11.25 pesos), and it´s stunning. Ana Maria said that it had been worked on this past year, so that´s why it looked extra beautiful. By then, our lack of sleep was catching up with us, and we decided to head back to the hotel to rest up for tomorrow´s adventures. I´ve snuck away to find a cibercafe (cybercafe) so friends and family and loyal readers will know we made it okay. (The cibercafes charge 8 pesos an hour...less than $1 an hour...for access.) From what I´ve seen, this is going to be a great two weeks!

Day nine!

2006-06-09T17:22:00.000-05:00

I'm pooped! We prepared and served a meal at the St. Vincent de Paul kitchen, which is housed at the SAMM Shelter. It's something I've always wanted to do, and the experience lived up to my expectation.

We got to the dining facility around 10 a.m., and we left around 2 p.m. We were busy--and on our feet--the entire time we were there. The kitchen relies on volunteers to help prepare the meals, and they rely on volunteers to stock their pantry. I thought it was interesting that they buy some of their supplies from the San Antonio Food Bank, which charges 15 cents per pound of food. (Maybe some of the boxes we stocked last Friday ended up there?! Probably not, though, because Sylvia Najera, the dining room manager, said that they like industrial-sized cans of food rather than the smaller, family-sized cans. When you're feeding 173 people, which we did today, you need bulk.)

Before going to the St. Vincent de Paul kitchen, we gathered in the classroom at SAC and I went over the exercises the students had turned in. They are really beginning to get the hang of this new style of writing. Gail's lead for her inverted pyramid story was voted the best in the class. Go Gail! I explained to the students that you start out in the valley, but the more you write...the more you practice...you slowly climb to the peak. You triumph! I am really looking forward to their final projects. No one needs to know what they'll be writing about right now because we're still in the research/reporting phase. After a week in Oaxaca, however, I want them to nail down their subject matter so they can focus on getting the information they need before we head back home. They'll write their stories once we get back to San Antonio on June 26.

Karen then gave a mini lesson on what to bring to Oaxaca and how to pack. The key: less is more. (No giant bottles of shampoo!) We're meeting at the San Antonio International Airport at 5:30 a.m. Monday morning. (Our flight leaves at 7.) From there, we'll head to Houston, and from Houston we fly direct to Oaxaca. It's hard to believe that we're almost there!

At the St. Vincent de Paul Dining Facility, Sylvia gave us a rundown on our duties. She broke us into groups, and we put on lovely hair nets and a yellow apron and got to work. I cut up three big bags of potatoes with the help of another volunteer, who wasn't part of our group, and Mel. The other volunteer said she'd been coming to help for years. I asked her why, and she said that she got bored during the day. She owns a bar, on Texas at Zarzamora, and works nights. (Bud Light is her best seller, and she makes $80 to $100 a week on recycling aluminum cans. Good for her for recycling and for making that extra money!) I found out that Mel is quite a cook--I'm not--and she can wield a knife. (No injuries, I'm happy to report. I was using a huge, sharp knife, and I came home with all of my fingers.)

We started serving the meal at 12:30 p.m., and I was stationed at the salad bin. I scooped up salad with my right, gloved hand, and I used tongs to pick up tomato slices with my left, gloved hand. (Good brain exercise!) I was surprised at the number of guests who said yes to salad, and I was blown away by the number of guests who requested tomatoes. (It's only recently that I've started eating tomatoes. My husband makes a wonderful salsa made with Roma tomatoes, serrano peppers and salt. Last summer, I had a tomato breakthrough: pico de gallo (tomatoes, onions, and jalapeno peppers diced very small). Now I'm CRAZY about it. The more lime and cilantro the better! Add some guacamole and chips, and you're talking heaven. Sliced tomatoes or whole tomatoes are still off my list, though. George Carlin, the comedian, does a whole skit on tomatoes: "They're not DONE, man!", and I have to agree. It's a texture, goo thing. People have told me that homegrown, garden tomatoes would change that for me, but I haven't been brave enough to try yet.)

The folks who came for the meal were a mix: old, young (but only two stroller-aged children), physically challenged, white, brown, black, male, and female. They all were very polite and seemed very appreciative. One female, who seemed a little unstable, told the man behind her to keep his hands to himself, but that was the only drama and it was brief.

The kitchen serves three meals a day. I can't imagine cooking for that many people that many times a day, seven days a week. The employees who work there are definitely polishing their halos. Angelica, one of the full-time employees--there are only four who are employed by the Archdiocese of San Antonio--said she knows she could make more money somewhere else, but she said that she feels needed there. "It hurts me to think about going somewhere else," she said. Last week, she put in 63 hours, but I told her that's too much. She needs to spend time with her kids, and she needs to go to college. (Palo Alto, or any of the ACCD schools, is/are waiting for you Angelica!)

She also said that one day last week they didn't have a crew of volunteers in to help, and they served 300 people by themselves. She couldn't figure out where the guests were all coming from. Their meal average is normally 200 guests who come from the SAMM Shelter, which is located in the same building, and anyone else who comes in for a meal. Today, we served chipped beef, potatoes, bread, salad, sliced tomatoes, pico de gallo, dessert, and a drink. I don't believe anyone went away hungry, and many people came back for seconds...especially those sliced tomatoes. (Maybe I should reconsider?!)

All in all, it was a very good experience, and I'd like to go back to help again. One of the things I did after I finished cutting the potatoes was wipe down some walls and columns that had been splashed with food. Mel and I also played a duet of "Heart and Soul" on a raggedy piano. I hadn't thought about it until now, but it was an appropriate tune. "Heart and Soul" is what the St. Vincent de Paul Dining Room is all about. For any of you who'd like to help out, here's their wish list:

Sugar
PAM cooking/baking spray
Plastic gloves (large and medium)
Paper towels
Mayonnaise
55-gallon trash bags
Bleach
8-ounce foam cups
Coffee
Plain sandwich bags
Dish soap
Napkins

And don't forget that volunteering your time is an option! (It's only from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. You'll come home pooped, but content.)

Day eight!

2006-06-08T15:38:00.000-05:00

Wow, wow and wow! When I met Stan Morgan by chance in Cosas, a folk art gallery on Broadway near Cambridge Elementary, I had no idea what a bonus our meeting would have for our Oaxaca Service-Learning program. Stan fell in love with Oaxaca about 15 years ago, and he travels there three or four times a year now that he's retired. (ACCD connection: He taught English at SAC for about 18 years.) Divine intervention strikes again! (As my father always used to say, "There are no accidents.")

After touring Stan's unbelievable home, you immediately realize that he never comes home empty-handed. I have never seen such a fabulous collection...and it is displayed to perfection. Truly, Stan's home and his folk art should be featured in a glossy magazine or a "coffee table" book! When we walked over his threshold, my jaw hit my chest. I didn't know where to look first. You are bombarded by color, and I love color. Every hue of the rainbow is represented. What a happy home!

Stan's collection is wide-ranging. He's got carved wooden figures from Arrazola, muted ceramics from Atzompa, whimsical clay figures---my favorites: a nun and a prostitute---from Ocotlan by the Aguilar sisters, multi-colored rugs, and on and on. Truly, too much to absorb in just one visit. (I've already invited myself back!) I was pained to discover that he recently gave away 15 nativities--a weakness of mine--but it gives me hope of finding one for my collection while I'm there.

I was also pleased to go over our schedule in Oaxaca with Stan, and he's given it his seal of approval! He also gave us restaurant suggestions (and restaurants to stay away from!), along with the best place to drink margaritas and the best places to shop (plus places to mention his name so we'll get 10 percent off). Yes! We'll be blogging about all of these experiences while we're in Oaxaca (using cibercafes...a.k.a. cybercafes), so stay tuned!

Stan also shared his photo album with us, and it looks like I'll be heading to Oaxaca some December 23 during the Radish Festival! The local citizens spend the entire day creating sculptures out of radishes. My favorite one was a crab. It reminded me of the gourd at the San Antonio Museum of Art that had been transformed into a crane. The artist found "'mutant" radishes that looked clawlike and took it from there. Amazing, amazing.

At the end of our two-hour visit, I asked the students to express one thing they'd learned. Everyone brought away something different it seems---read all about it on the student (contributor) blogs featured on the upper left of this page, but the one common denominator was our appreciation of Stan's generosity in opening his lovely home to our group. Without a doubt, he'll be with us in spirit on our trip. And, I can't wait to share photos and what we bring back when we return!

Days six and seven!

2006-06-07T20:58:00.000-05:00

On Tuesday, 6/6/06 (So much for doomsday predictions!), we met at the San Antonio Museum of Art to explore its Latin American collection and expose the students to some of what they'll see in Oaxaca. SAMA is one of my favorite places in our beautiful city. I've traveled quite a bit and have visited a truckload of museums, and I think our museum stacks up. (It and the McNay are definite jewels in our city's crown.) We have reason to be proud. The museum's Latin American collection is especially noteworthy. (Thank you Nelson Rockefeller and the Rockefeller family!)

The collection is subdivided into four sections: Pre-Columbian, Folk, Colonial and Modern Art. Karen had us "draw straws" to focus our attention on one section. I drew Modern, which ties with Folk as my favorite sections. Brendan also drew Modern, so we ambled up to the Modern section to choose our two favorite works in the collection. (Only two?!?) After much mental anguish, I settled on Diego Rivera's four watercolor, gouache and watercolor and ink on paper paintings/drawings titled "Mujer con pato" (Woman with duck), "Mujer cargando niño" (Woman carrying child), "Mujer cargando canasta" (Woman carrying basket), and "Leñero" (Wood Seller). The thing I like about Diego Rivera (1886-1957) is that he told the stories of Mexico's common people. He was, in a sense, a journalist. (Not a celebrity journalist, though! He didn't glorify the wealthy or the prominent. Instead, he glorified the average person.) He made the "invisible" visible.

I also chose "Les Aventures des Cannibales Modernistes" (The Adventures of the Modernist Cannibals) by Enrique Chagoya (b. 1953), who was born in Mexico City but emigrated to the U.S. in 1970. He re-interpreted the codices, the painted books of Mexico's indigenous pre-Columbian people. But, he used today's cartoon characters, like Superman, and inserted them into pre-Columbian settings, pyramids and all. This work of his pulls you in and makes you look at it. Each panel tells a different (and strange!) story.

We then gathered back in the pre-Columbian area, and Jewelette, Gail and Mila highlighted their favorite pieces. In the Folk Art area, Liz, Melissa and Alex covered their favorites. Then we went up to Modern. I shared my favorites, and Brendan shared his. Then, my husband and I had to race home to make sure we were there when our daughter was dropped off. (She'd been invited to go swimming with a friend.) I'm sorry we missed the Colonial section, and I'm looking forward to reading about it in the blogs. (I've been to that area many times, but I'm curious to see what the students chose as their favorites.) The museum, on Jones Avenue off of Broadway, is free from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. on Tuesdays. I encourage you to go and find your favorites in their collection!

Today, 6/7/06, we went to the Avance Carmen P. Cortez Family Center at 1103 S. San Jacinto off of Guadalupe on San Antonio's West Side. Avance's mission is to unlock "America's potential by strengthening families in at-risk communities through the most effective parent education and support program." Avance means "to advance" in Spanish, and this non-profit organization helps the children and the parents of children it serves to do just that.

This center, which serves eight housing properties (formerly known as housing projects) on the West Side, just graduated 92 parents and 148 children from a 9-month parenting program. While the parents are learning how to parent, the kids, ages 4 weeks to 36 months, are learning how to be kids in a loving, educational setting. The center is eight years old, and it has a good vibe: bright, airy, clean, colorful, and happy. Several of the employees we spoke to have worked with Avance for many, many years. The love they have for their job and the pride they have for what they have accomplished and are accomplishing came through in our tour of the facility.

One employee, who had worked for another child care facility for 22 years and has worked at Avance for the past three, said, "I learned we have more love, more care, for children. We get close up with each other. We get to know the parents. We get to know them very well. We make sure each child is loved and cared for."

Anna Aguilar, a child care specialist, walked us through each of the four classrooms: young infant (4 weeks through 6 months), infant (6 months-12 months), young toddler (12 months-23 months), and toddler (24 months-36 months). I was impressed that books were prominently featured in each classroom, even the young infants' classroom. I told the class that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children under the age of two not watch any television at all. Kids need to be exploring, playing, and interacting with other kids and adults. That's how they learn.

Ms. Sara, one of the child development associates, was an Avance baby herself. I asked her what was one thing she'd want people who'd never been to Avance to know, and she said, "There are opportunities. You just have to grasp them. You'll feel better about yourself. You'll have more respect."

Increased self-respect and increased self-esteem seemed to be two key elements that graduates of the Avance program attain, according to a video that we were shown that featured graduates' testimonials. Avance was started in 1973, and its legacy of helping familes become self-sufficient continues. Door-to-door recruiting is employed to reach hard-to-reach families--those with low education levels, who are isolated and don't have a lot of resources. The center provides transportation, parenting classes, and childcare for free. Also, the parents who attend classes realize they are not alone and they bond with the other parents, expanding their social circle.

Another Avance baby is Hector Ledesma, a TV sports journalist on Channel 29, KABB. He graduated from Central Catholic High School and Syracuse University.

According to Yesenia Gonzalez, crime, poverty, illiteracy, abuse and neglect set children up for failure. Dr. Gloria Rodriguez, the founder and president of Avance, started the program to give parents the necessary tools to achieve greater goals. There are now 42 family centers that help parents (mothers and fathers) create a better future for themselves and their children. Once the graduates complete the parenting classes, they are encouraged to continue their education (GED classes, ESL classes, literacy classes, college classes, etc.) Avance also partners with 15 to 20 agencies to help break the cycle of poverty.

"We don't give up on them. We keep working with them," said Ms. Gonzalez. "It's wonderful to see how much they've grown."

I thought it was wonderful to learn about this amazing oasis. I'd heard of Avance for years, primarily through their "star" visits (Hillary Clinton--who featured Avance in her "It takes a village to raise a child" book, Prince Charles, Barbara Bush, Jimmy and Roslyn Carter), but I'd never visited nor did I really know what their program accomplished. I was very impressed, and I hope that Palo Alto College can partner with Avance to offer classes there (Media Literacy, along with Math, Reading, Writing, and ESL--English as a Second Language).

If anyone (or any company!) has a chunk of change they'd like to donate, the children's playground could really use a shade pavillion. (It's too hot for the kids to play on the playground except for in the mornings.) Ms. Anna said she looked into the cost, and she thought it would be about $6,000. The center's phone number is (210) 223-3667, and I'm certain they'd love to hear from you! (If $6,000 is out of your range, there are other ways you may help: mentoring, teaching, volunteering with the kids, etc.)

Day five!

2006-06-05T18:24:00.000-05:00

Today was a "take care of bidness" day. After going over the "Rank the Facts" exercise and "What makes something newsworthy exercise?"--the students did a great job on both--we headed over to the University of the Incarnate Word's International Center to register for international student I.D. cards. Then, we traveled to Palo Alto College to pick up the students' scholarship checks (A big thank you to the ACCD Foundation for their support!!), buy textbooks in the college's bookstore, and have current Palo Alto College I.D. cards made in the Palomino Center. The students also met Lamar Duarte, the director of Financial Aid, and Rachel Montejano, the director of Admissions & Records, who both helped get everyone on track for this summer adventure. (Another round of thanks!!)

Then the students made their way over to the Writing Lab in the Applied Sciences Building to type up their lead exercise that was due today. (They had written the leads by hand, but I need them typed, using double spacing. My eyes are bad enough as it is!) The assignment was to write four 19-20 word leads (35 words max) with provided information. The bonus of doing this assignment at Palo Alto rather than SAC is that Palo Alto doesn't charge for printing. (SAC charges 10 cents a page.) Thanks Thomas (Murguia, director of the center)! We jumped back in the van (still the 11-seater..we're hoping for the 12-seater by Wednesday), and headed back to SAC. Karen passed out a packing list. Very thorough!

Karen and I met after class to go over the proposed schedule Ana Maria, our contact in Oaxaca, sent via e-mail this weekend. We are definitely going to be on the go while we're there! Ana Maria wasn't clear what our service-learning activities will be while we are in Mexico, she just wrote "service learning", so I sent a follow-up e-mail for clarification. She does know that we're studying poverty this session, and a couple of the "charlas" (talks) she has arranged cover this theme, like "Social Assistance Programs in Oaxaca," "The Regional Economy," and "Indigenous People of Oaxaca". It would be nice to know ahead of time where we'll be "rolling up our sleeves" while we're there. I heard that there's an orphanage in Oaxaca, and I'd like to do some work there, if possible. (And, I'd like to bring a gift of books, art supplies, clothes/shoes, etc.) I'll post a full schedule for you to see once it's been worked out.

I also asked Ana Maria about computers in Oaxaca. We are going to continue our blogs while we are there, so we need access. I imagine we'll use Internet cafes, but maybe Ana Maria's school has a lab we can use?

One student brought to my attention that the airport in Oaxaca was closed last Friday because of a education workers' protest. I hope things are resolved by next Monday! The road from Mexico City to Oaxaca is long (nine hours, according to the bus station manager) and windy.

Tomorrow, we meet at the San Antonio Museum of Art at 4 p.m. to see its Latin American collection. I think the students will be impressed with what our city has to offer, and I think they'll gain a greater appreciation for what they will see while we're in Oaxaca. It's hard to believe that we'll be winging our way there a week from today!

Day four!

2006-06-02T16:29:00.000-05:00

We assembled in the classroom on the seventh floor of the Moody Learning Center before walking over to the ACCD's Motor Pool to jump into our mega van. Turns out it's not as mega as we need. The van they gave us safely holds 11 people, which worked for today because Melissa was at her son's karate tournament in El Paso. Two brand-new vans the ACCD just ordered, which seat 12, are scheduled to go back to the Austin dealer to have their AC systems worked on next week. I'm going to check with the motor pool chief on Monday morning to see if they can hold off sending them for service one more week. I really don't want us to have to take two separate vans to our site visits: less camaraderie, more expensive (cost of gas), more air pollution.

But enough about technical/logistical difficulties! Our visit to the San Antonio Food Bank was a success. The preparatory readings we did armed us with a substantial amount of information about poverty:

•More than 36 million Americans experience hunger each month. (Of those, more than 13 million are children and 4 million are seniors.)
•One in five people in the San Antonio region lives in poverty.
•One in four children lives in poverty and experiences hunger every day.
•Bexar County has one of the highest rates of family eligibility for Food Stamps, but it has one of the lowest rates of participation.
•Texas has the fourth highest rate of actual hunger in the nation.
•Texas has more children living in poverty than anywhere else in the United States.
•Only eight out of 100 eligible Texas children participate in the USDA Summer Feeding Program. In San Antonio, only seven out of 100 participate. (The seven bullet points above came from www.safoodbank.org/facts_about_hunger.html)
•Texas is the most food insecure state in the nation. (www.ers.usda.gov/Publications/err11/)
•Texas ranks 48 out of 50 in income equality (50 being the most unequal) and 30 percent of Texas' workers earn poverty-level wages (www.nccp.org)
•150,000 South Texans needed emergency food supplies at some point in 2005 (Ron Wilson, "Food bank survey puts a face on hunger in S.A., E-N, 2/24/06, p. 3B)
•54,000 citizens had to choose between food and medicine (Wilson)
•A study found that "hunger is a central element in the cylce of poverty that includes inadequate health care, lower educational achievement, fewer employment opportunities and poor quality housing." (Wilson)
•The gap between the richest and the poorest in Texas is the second largest, after New York. (Tracy Idell Hamilton, "In income, Texans live in a state of disparity," E-N, 1/27/06, p. 1A)
•The poorest 20 percent earn $25,000 or less, and a third of those (32,000 families) earn less than $10,000. (Hamilton)

By the way, read "Angela's Ashes" by Frank McCourt if you want to understand what it's like to go to bed hungry at night. It's a powerful book.

We headed down Interstate 35 toward Austin and took 410 to W.W. White Road. The San Antonio Food Bank is located at 4311 Director at Grubb (off of W.W. White). Blake Bishop, the Food Bank's Volunteer Coordinator, greeted us at the front door, and he took us inside to a meeting room. Blake is a gifted volunteer coordinator and teacher, and it's obvious that he loves what he does. He told us that the Food Bank serves approximately 25,000 people per week in a 16-county region. They serve kids, seniors, and families in need. The Food Bank is also actively recruiting citizens who qualify to sign up for food stamps. Because the application is long, in-depth, and intrusive (requires a thumb print)...and since it can be a bear to fill out for those with literacy issues, the Food Bank facilitates its completion.

I was impressed to learn that the Food Bank, a 501c organization, spends only 2 cents of every dollar donated on administrative costs. Most reputable non-profit organizations aim for 15 cents of every dollar spent on administration, so the Food Bank is definitely getting a bigger bang on its donated bucks. I also found it interesting that the Food Bank prefers monetary donations over canned good donations. The reason? They can buy more with your donation than you can. I told the students that the same goes for Elf Louise. My daughter's Brownie troop wrapped presents, and we learned that monetary donations are best. We pay retail prices, but Elf Louise can buy twice (or more!) as many gifts wholesale with the same amount of money. Blake explained that the employees at the Food Bank aren't rich, but that they're "rich in heart".

The recent letter carriers' food drive on May 13 raked in 250,000 pounds of food. (Annually, the San Antonio Food Bank takes in 27 million pounds of food and distributes 25 million pounds.) So, our job was to sort through the items the letter carriers collected and make 50- to 65-pound boxes of food that could feed a family of four for a week. (The Food Bank keeps a database of agencies that provide help. When an individual or family calls in, they are asked for their zip code and they are directed to the nearest center.) Blake said protein is in short supply, and he said that the Food Bank has a list of their nine most-needed items on their website: http://www.safoodbank.org/most_needed_items.html (Remember, though, money is best. They can then buy what they need.)

The first step was to make sure that the item had a label on it. Then, you put your thumbs on each side of the can to see if it pops. If it does, you toss it. (Botulism isn't something we want to give people!) Finally, you place the cans in a stout box that once housed bananas. It was fun deciding what to put in. How many cans of tomato sauce? How about tuna? (Is it chicken?) What about cake mix and icing? I tried to make sure the boxes I filled had a nice range of items: protein, vegetables, fruit, and pasta/rice. I asked Blake if the Food Bank does any educational fliers to include with the boxes of food, like "Here's how to make a healthy meal using the new food pyramid." He said they do some of that, but they could do more. He noted earlier that San Antonio is known for its high rate of obesity, heart disease and diabetes. I think it's a good idea to educate citizens on how to eat right every chance we get. (I have my students sign up for a Nutrition course to fulfill one of their science graduation requirements.) I also mentioned that some congressman got into trouble for saying that America was the only country he knew where poor people are fat. Blake said it's because poor people are not making good nutritional choices. They're going for the quick fix. Belly fillers (carbs) that aren't nutritious.

I enjoyed seeing our students pitch in and help. By the end, we looked like we were old pros. I think that many of us will go back to give more of our time to help sort and pack. I also thought it was interesting to work near inmates from the Dominguez Prison. Interesting, but also a little creepy. It made me wonder why they were in prison. It also made me happy that they were able to get out and contribute to the greater good of society. Blake said that working at the Food Bank gave the inmates dignity and marketable job skills. I also think it gives them positive role models. Choices they made in their lives were obviously poor ones. Maybe their experience at the Food Bank will inspire them to make better choices in the future? I hope so. Palo Alto College actually offers college courses at the prison. I've never thought about teaching there, mainly because I'm a woman and it's an all-male facility, but maybe I'll reconsider.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed our time at the San Antonio Food Bank. I was touched by the visible generosity of the citizens of San Antonio and the surrounding region. A quarter of a million pounds of food is a lot of love.

Day three!

2006-06-01T15:17:00.000-05:00

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.)

Day two!

2006-05-31T17:08:00.000-05:00

I think we've got this blogging down! All of the students are up and running, and now we're all connected to each other's blogs. I brought Karen (who's remarkably awake after her flights home from China) up to speed, and she'll be posting soon. She also got to meet all of the adventurers and learn a little bit about who they are and what they want to take away from this learning experience.

At 9:30, we went downstairs in the Moody Learning Center to Leonard Ziegler, SAC's staff photographer, who graciously agreed to take photos of all of us for our international ID cards. (Bonus: the photos can also be used on our blogs.) Thanks, Leonard!! And, thanks to Gil Castillo, in SAC's Student Activities, for setting up the photo session!

When we got back to the classroom, we reviewed the assigned readings. Everyone seemed to like both the Golberg pieces and the Clark chapter. This is a sharp class! They understand the importance of journalism, and they are beginning to understand what it takes to craft journalism that matters. I look forward to reading/viewing/listening to their final projects. I told the class that I was open to them working in whichever medium they feel most comfortable (print, video or audio). I'm curious to see who does what!

We also completed the BEVI, an online beliefs, events and values inventory that's been adopted by the American Council on Education's FIPSE (Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education) Grant as one component of assessing students' international education. An electronic portfolio (ePortfolio) of the students' coursework (not just from these classes, but from all of their internationalized classes) will also be assessed. Students who complete the gateway course (HUMA 1302: World Cultures and Global Issues), two core courses (like Art Appreciation, any foreign language course, etc.) and one component course (like COMM 2311: News Reporting and Writing) will earn the International Studies Certificate, which goes on their transcript and is announced during graduation. The BEVI is a long, but interesting, inventory, and it makes you wonder just why you are who you are. What has had the biggest impact on making you the person you are? Your family? Your education? Personal experiences, like travel? Your faith? Your friends? The mass media? All of the above? More of one than the others?

Brendan, one of the students, said, "The end of the BEVI was sort of anticlimatic." I have to agree! It's pages and pages (21 pages, to be exact) of questions that you strongly agree, agree, disagree or strongly disagree with...and after plowing through them, it'd be nice to have some bells and whistles (fireworks?!) to signal the end. (Even better, a coupon to Borders for a cup of coffee or some dark chocolate treat.)

Tomorrow, the students are to turn in a "Rank the Facts" exercise and post to their blogs. Besides learning what makes something newsworthy, they're also learning how to prioritize information they've gathered. It's good to pretend that you're on the phone with someone. With the information that you have, what would you tell that person first? That's a pretty good indication that should be your lead (your opening paragraph). Leads are never longer than 35 words (unless you're NYTimes' columnist Maureen Dowd), and studies have shown that it's better to write a lead that's 19 to 20 words for reader comprehension.

Onward!

First day of class!

2006-05-30T11:36:00.000-05:00

This is the third year that the Alamo Community College District has sponsored a Service-Learning program to Oaxaca, Mexico, for students from Palo Alto College, San Antonio College, St. Philip's College and Northwest Vista College. Ten students are enrolled in the summer session, and they are Jewelette, Alex, Giselle, Mary, Brendan, Melissa, Mila, Liz, Mel and Gail. You'll get to know each of them through their blogs.

I am teaching COMM 2311: News Reporting and Writing I and COMM 2315: News Reporting and Writing II and my colleague, Karen Marcotte, is teaching HUMA 1302: World Cultures and Global Issues during this five-week summer session. We're spending the first two weeks in San Antonio, followed by two weeks in Oaxaca, and the final week back in San Antonio. During the session, we are going to take a look at poverty--here in San Antonio and down in Mexico--and its effects. What are its causes? Who is affected? What programs (governmental and charitable) are in place to deal with poverty? The courses, structured as a single learning community, have a service-learning emphasis. According to the National Service-Learning Clearninghouse website, "Service-learning is a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility and strengthen communities." While we're in San Antonio, we'll visit and work at the San Antonio Food Bank, the SAMM Shelter and Avance, and we'll have similar experiences while we are in Mexico.

Today was our first day of class, and I'm afraid I overwhelmed the students with a truckload of information and handouts! (In summer school, you're cramming 15 weeks of learning into five.) I can tell this is a great group, though, and they're going to do just fine. We read "A Rat in My Soup" by Peter Hessler (The New Yorker, July 24, 2000) about a reporter in China who visits two restaurants whose house specialty is rats, and we talked about what makes a story great.

The list the students came up with includes thorough reporting, great description, dialogue (not just a pulled-out quote or two), scenes that make the reader feel like s/he is there, a catchy title/headline, interesting facts/information, use of the active voice, an engaging lead, and humor. I talked about the two non-negotiables of journalism: fairness and accuracy. Reporters must be fair, and reporters must be accurate. We talked about how journalism's/journalists' credibility is destroyed when these non-negotiables aren't followed. (Jayson Blair, the New York Times' reporter who plagiarized the San Antonio Express-News' reporter, Macarena Hernandez, came up.) We also talked about what makes a story newsworthy: impact, proximity, timeliness, prominence, novelty, conflict, information, cooperation/consensus, and common experience.

The students are to read "Don't Tell, but Show" and "Be Specific" from Natalie Goldberg's "Writing Down the Bones" (1986) book, and "Chapter 10: The Craft of Writing Great Stories" by Roy Peter Clark of the Poynter Institute by tomorrow and post their first blog entry. We're off and running!