MEXICO SUMMER 2010  

Global Awareness Through Experience: 

My Mexico Experience, May 2010 

By Nikki Fanta

Wed. 5/19/10 

After spending 8 hours traveling from La Crosse to Chicago to Dallas and finally arriving in Mexico City, we are all exhausted but excited to begin our Mexican journey.  We met Sister Marie, a Franciscan sister from Viterbo, and our tour guide Jaime, also a Viterbo graduate, at the airport.  They will remain with us for the first ten days of our trip, sharing their expertise and knowledge about the country they love.  As soon as we left the airport, an overwhelming stench—a combination of sewer, pollution, and thousands of sweaty bodies—reached our noses.  I was glad the scent didn’t last very long as we traveled across town to the Anglican Center, our place of residence for the next few days.  The traffic here is insane!  Vehicles zoom in and out and up and down in every possible direction!  We got involved in a bit of a traffic jam on the way to the Anglican Center, and I felt as if we were about to crash several times.  There are very few stop signs or traffic signals, and cars just drive wherever they need to go with little consideration for pedestrians or other vehicles.  They don’t like you to flush toilet paper down the toilet here, which takes a lot of getting used to.  You also have to brush your teeth with bottled water to avoid contamination.  In America, we take for granted simple things like clean water. I’m so glad I live in a country where I don’t have to worry about things like that.  I’m so happy to be in Mexico, but I’m overwhelmed by the 24 million people and 300 million vehicles!  I’m sure this will be the start of a great adventure… Continue