A New Place in Oaxaca

Hello friends!  Today was a really great day, I hope it was for you as well.  First, it was my second day of Spanish language school at the Institute of Oaxacan Culture.  I’m really digging my class, I’m in the absolute beginner class but it’s a good spot for me as I prefer as a student to be a little ahead of the curve than behind.  We’re doing a lot of vocabulary and basics which I already have, but it’s given me lots of time listening to a native speaker talk so that I can improve my listening comprehension skills.  Not that I’m not learning things besides that, I’m picking up new vocabulary and tightening up details I have a tendency to skip over when learning on my own.  Our teacher is great, very approachable and the other students in the class are super nice and they are from all over the world, the US, Canada, Japan and Scotland.  I do three hours of basic class and one hour of conversation training each day.  I have classes for the next four weeks so I’m hoping to make some good progress.

Today was moving day for me, as I was leaving my last place one of the other guests and I got talking and he mentioned this festival he goes to, maybe I’d heard of it, Burning Man.  I smiled and  let him know I’ve been on the playa eight times, we had a great conversation, he’s a great guy and let me know that there is a burner community here in Oaxaca.  He also turned me on to two burners who are producing their own brand of mezcal, their names are Gem and Bolt and the link will take you to their website.  Great product, cool website and I really dig the spiritual nature that they infuse in what they do.  Turns out there’s a burgeoning burner community in Oaxaca and I’m happy to have gotten hooked into it.

So I moved into my new place, my last place was great but it was on the basic side.  I’m now in an apartment that is all mine, in the central district of Oaxaca so a little closer to sites, the zocalo etc… It also meant tonight two things, a really hot shower and being able to cook in a kitchen I’m not sharing with anyone.  The apartment is great and I checked-in with the mother of the woman who owns it, who although I said I spoke a little Spanish, waived me off, said my Spanish was great and then started talking at the speed of a coked up New Yorker.  I was impressed I followed her as well as I did but I’m sure I missed something important like don’t open that closet there’s a nine foot python inside.  The apartment also has a great wifi connection so I’m really happy to be here for the next month.

I celebrated my move in with a pasta dinner, a coke and my old favorite white chocolate covered Oreos for desert.  Even bigger as I lament the diminishing amounts of protein in my diet, I bought a dozen eggs so I can have eggs for breakfast.  I’m more excited for that than you can imagine.  I’ve spent so much time in places like Spain, Portugal and Mexico, places that tend toward bread, pastries, juice and fruit for breakfast that it will be a joy to have a couple of eggs each morning for the next week and even better to get back to my standard egg beater, veggie omelets in the morning.

Well my friends, a great but long day, I hope you’re smiling and had a happy day as well. ~ Rev Kane