This morning I woke up before Irma and got out the door early for some Jesus time. I’ve had short quiet times the last few days, but today I wanted a few hours to just sit alone and think, process, and drink juice. One of my favorite things about Mexico is their juice. On almost every block, you can find someone selling fresh squeezed fruit and vegetable juices. Some stands will even add cereal, granola, yogurt, etc. You walk up and see what fruits they have, tell them what combination you want, or choose from their suggestions. Yesterday, I wanted oranges and strawberries, so I got a liter for $1.70. This morning, I felt like oranges and strawberries again, but with bananas. Another liter for $1.70. Amazing! Then this afternoon, I got just plain orange juice. I watched the juice man squeeze 8 oranges into the little baggie that they serve the juice in. It cost 80 cents. I’m not sure why it was so much cheaper, but it may have had something to do with the fact that in the bucket of “pre-squeezed” juice, several bees had met their fate and had to be avoided when dipping in for refills.
After my quiet time at Bon’s, I went exploring. I was supposed to meet some of the girls at the bus stop in the market at 1:00 to go to Tepoztlan, so I figured I’d head in that direction. I asked a sweet old man how to get to the market and out of his toothless mouth came unintelligible directions along with a lot of spit. His gestures where enough to get me on my way, though. Arriving at the market, I felt very stupid. Three stories of tightly packed booths, bags and t shirts hanging in the air, music blaring, and children darting in and out of mobs of adults lay before me. I wasn’t quite sure how to get in let alone how I might find my way out. I plunged in. It is at times such as these that I thank God for making me head and shoulders taller that 80% of all Mexicans. Both my height and a few more stops for directions got me deep into the heart of the market, the food section to be exact, where big woks bubbled up mysterious pieces of meat. And of course, there is the juice man, too. The market is almost more than the senses can take for more than 10 minutes. I began to long for fresh air and to leave the smell of raw meat behind. The ice cream man pointed me down another long corridor made of carts and human vending machines. Coming up to breathe, I saw the buses and began to search for the one to Tepoztlan.
In typical Mexican style, out 1:00 outing to Tepoztlan started by catching the 2:00 bus. Half an hour later, we found ourselves walking down perfect cobblestone streets in a perfect Spanish town. Tepoztlan is made up of seven barrios surrounded by seven mountains. In the middle sits the town square with a rustic monastery nestled in the north corner.
On our way to the center, we stopped by the famous neveria, or snow shop, where they sell literally hundreds of flavors of ice cream. Mexican ice cream cannot be compared to any ice cream in the US, though. I have never tasted anything so light, but creamy and refreshing at the same time. It's completely natural as well, so you don't feel so guilty. : ) For $1.50, we got 3 flavors in a big waffle cone. Now, you'd think that with 100+ flavors to choose from, it would have taken me forever to decide, but such was not the case. When you look closely at the menu and see that you choices include beet, celery, corn, lettuce, and avocado flavored ice cream, it becomes easy to eliminate many of the chioces. : ) Also, for you flavoring pleasure, there is powdered and liquid red hot chili which many people add to even the fruity flavored ice creams.
Now, in Mexico, everything is different, including the concept of public restrooms. My experience with public restrooms this trip has not been very good, seeing as I started the trip out by walking into the men’s room at the Mexico City airport. In Tepoztlan, like most other places, two women sit outside the door to the bathroom selling toilet paper. You pay 1 peso (10 cents) to get in if you bring your own toilet paper and 3 pesos if you didn’t. Then again, if you know ahead of time that you’re going to need more than they give you, you negotiate your price so as to get the quantity of TP that you need and proceed to walk sheepishly past all the other people in line who now know in more detail what you came to do. At this particular restroom, I paid my 3 pesos and got about 40 squares of toilet paper and a receipt!!! I wonder if they take returns if you don’t use it all?? Up the stairs I was happy to find real porcelain waiting for me. After you do your thing, you make eye contact with whoever is in line to get your stall to let them know not to go in yet. Then you move quickly to a 50 gallon drum of water at one end of the room and haul back a bucket of water to flush your toilet. If you’re lucky, there’s soap for you to wash your hands with. I considered myself half lucky, as there was a bag of laundry detergent that everyone was using at the sink. : )
Bathroom adventures behind me, I joined the others in the market for lunch (at 5:00). We had amazingly delicious quesadillas, tacos, and the like, followed by coffee in a nearby coffee bar. Then we wandered around the city looking at the tourist stuff. I didn’t buy anything, although there was beautiful stuff everywhere we looked. Tepoztlan is famous in Mexico for its witches and history of superstition, sacrifices, etc. There is definitely a spiritual heaviness there that is almost distracting.
For that reason, Irma and her friend Isra have begun a Bible study on Wednesday nights. They drive the 1 hour round trip to bring truth and light to people who want if, but are hesitant to let go of their traditions and superstitions. I was expecting that for the amount of sacrifice on the part of Irma and Isra, there would be a significant amount of people in the group. Imagine my surprise when we arrived and Don Francisco and Dona Margarita’s house, only to be met by a young Christian med student Javi. The six of us were the extent of the Bible study. We discussed ways in which our faith is tested, how John 10 talks about unbelief. The whole time, I was very aware of an elaborate altar to Mary looking down on us from the wall. We talked about idols and superstitions they have here, such as putting a wine glass on your kitchen table, filled with pebbles and with a coin underneath to bring protection. A deer’s eye on a red string around a baby’s wrist will protect him from common colds and mal de ojo, a curse that is left on a baby if a stranger looks at him without touching him. Somehow, though, these people don’t consider altars to their saints as unbiblical. Irma and Isra’s patience and love amazes me. Their dedication to this one couple’s spiritual growth is inspiring to say the least and evident in the way I saw Don Francisco and Dona Margarita entering into conversation. After our study of John 10, Dona Margarita got out the atol she had made for us earlier in the day along with different types of fresh breads. I don’t know what atol is made of, but it’s always been one of my favorite drinks. We sat around their kitchen table, talking, laughing, and watching their Wednesday night telenovela, “Fuego en la Sangre”. It seemed to be to be such a good picture of Jesus. His acceptance.
After my quiet time at Bon’s, I went exploring. I was supposed to meet some of the girls at the bus stop in the market at 1:00 to go to Tepoztlan, so I figured I’d head in that direction. I asked a sweet old man how to get to the market and out of his toothless mouth came unintelligible directions along with a lot of spit. His gestures where enough to get me on my way, though. Arriving at the market, I felt very stupid. Three stories of tightly packed booths, bags and t shirts hanging in the air, music blaring, and children darting in and out of mobs of adults lay before me. I wasn’t quite sure how to get in let alone how I might find my way out. I plunged in. It is at times such as these that I thank God for making me head and shoulders taller that 80% of all Mexicans. Both my height and a few more stops for directions got me deep into the heart of the market, the food section to be exact, where big woks bubbled up mysterious pieces of meat. And of course, there is the juice man, too. The market is almost more than the senses can take for more than 10 minutes. I began to long for fresh air and to leave the smell of raw meat behind. The ice cream man pointed me down another long corridor made of carts and human vending machines. Coming up to breathe, I saw the buses and began to search for the one to Tepoztlan.
In typical Mexican style, out 1:00 outing to Tepoztlan started by catching the 2:00 bus. Half an hour later, we found ourselves walking down perfect cobblestone streets in a perfect Spanish town. Tepoztlan is made up of seven barrios surrounded by seven mountains. In the middle sits the town square with a rustic monastery nestled in the north corner.
On our way to the center, we stopped by the famous neveria, or snow shop, where they sell literally hundreds of flavors of ice cream. Mexican ice cream cannot be compared to any ice cream in the US, though. I have never tasted anything so light, but creamy and refreshing at the same time. It's completely natural as well, so you don't feel so guilty. : ) For $1.50, we got 3 flavors in a big waffle cone. Now, you'd think that with 100+ flavors to choose from, it would have taken me forever to decide, but such was not the case. When you look closely at the menu and see that you choices include beet, celery, corn, lettuce, and avocado flavored ice cream, it becomes easy to eliminate many of the chioces. : ) Also, for you flavoring pleasure, there is powdered and liquid red hot chili which many people add to even the fruity flavored ice creams.
Now, in Mexico, everything is different, including the concept of public restrooms. My experience with public restrooms this trip has not been very good, seeing as I started the trip out by walking into the men’s room at the Mexico City airport. In Tepoztlan, like most other places, two women sit outside the door to the bathroom selling toilet paper. You pay 1 peso (10 cents) to get in if you bring your own toilet paper and 3 pesos if you didn’t. Then again, if you know ahead of time that you’re going to need more than they give you, you negotiate your price so as to get the quantity of TP that you need and proceed to walk sheepishly past all the other people in line who now know in more detail what you came to do. At this particular restroom, I paid my 3 pesos and got about 40 squares of toilet paper and a receipt!!! I wonder if they take returns if you don’t use it all?? Up the stairs I was happy to find real porcelain waiting for me. After you do your thing, you make eye contact with whoever is in line to get your stall to let them know not to go in yet. Then you move quickly to a 50 gallon drum of water at one end of the room and haul back a bucket of water to flush your toilet. If you’re lucky, there’s soap for you to wash your hands with. I considered myself half lucky, as there was a bag of laundry detergent that everyone was using at the sink. : )
Bathroom adventures behind me, I joined the others in the market for lunch (at 5:00). We had amazingly delicious quesadillas, tacos, and the like, followed by coffee in a nearby coffee bar. Then we wandered around the city looking at the tourist stuff. I didn’t buy anything, although there was beautiful stuff everywhere we looked. Tepoztlan is famous in Mexico for its witches and history of superstition, sacrifices, etc. There is definitely a spiritual heaviness there that is almost distracting.
For that reason, Irma and her friend Isra have begun a Bible study on Wednesday nights. They drive the 1 hour round trip to bring truth and light to people who want if, but are hesitant to let go of their traditions and superstitions. I was expecting that for the amount of sacrifice on the part of Irma and Isra, there would be a significant amount of people in the group. Imagine my surprise when we arrived and Don Francisco and Dona Margarita’s house, only to be met by a young Christian med student Javi. The six of us were the extent of the Bible study. We discussed ways in which our faith is tested, how John 10 talks about unbelief. The whole time, I was very aware of an elaborate altar to Mary looking down on us from the wall. We talked about idols and superstitions they have here, such as putting a wine glass on your kitchen table, filled with pebbles and with a coin underneath to bring protection. A deer’s eye on a red string around a baby’s wrist will protect him from common colds and mal de ojo, a curse that is left on a baby if a stranger looks at him without touching him. Somehow, though, these people don’t consider altars to their saints as unbiblical. Irma and Isra’s patience and love amazes me. Their dedication to this one couple’s spiritual growth is inspiring to say the least and evident in the way I saw Don Francisco and Dona Margarita entering into conversation. After our study of John 10, Dona Margarita got out the atol she had made for us earlier in the day along with different types of fresh breads. I don’t know what atol is made of, but it’s always been one of my favorite drinks. We sat around their kitchen table, talking, laughing, and watching their Wednesday night telenovela, “Fuego en la Sangre”. It seemed to be to be such a good picture of Jesus. His acceptance.
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