San Cristobal

San Cristobal! What a beautiful spot! Its locale reminds me very much of Quincy. It´s in a valley surrounded by nountains. We´re at 6,000 feet but obviously much closer to the equator. So the weather is warm to hot during the day, up to 80 degrees F., and then cools down considerably at night. The air is marvelously clear. Although there are probably 100,000 people in the "greater metropolitan area," it has the feel of a small town. I´m in the historical city center. The newer houses, etc., are located quite a distance away. It seems like I can walk anywhere and everywhere.
The house I´m staying in is only a 15 minute walk from the school and half a dozen blocks away from the central plaza. Nevertheless, it feels more removed. Part of the reason is the design of the one story house. There´s an inconspicuous door in the wall that runs the length of the street. You enter into a large courtyard, maybe 50 feet square. A covered walkway runs around the courtyard and you can enter about 8 to 10 large rooms from the walkway. My room is huge, about 20 feet square. Of course, there´s no central heating, and the floor is tile, so you wake up quickly once you get out of bed and put your feet on the floor.
The father works in Mexico City and flies home for holidays and the occasional weekend. The mother and the maid take care of the house and provide meals to me and the other 2 students. There are 2 teenage daughters, and another young lady renter who is like a member of the family and who works in a local bank. There is one bathroom for everyone.
The house is very nice and is definitely an upper class place by Latin American standards. The only drawback, from my gringo point of view, is the shower. The hot water tank looks like it can´t hold more than a few gallons. Whatever the quantity, it means I have about 60 seconds of hot water. Like almost everyone else in Latin America, I rinse, turn off the water, shampoo/soap myself, turn the water back on and hope I get all the shampoo and soap off before the water turns cold. Of course, the temp. in the bathroom is the same as outside. For some reason, I find myself only taking showers in the mid-afternoon.
The senora of the house makes outstanding meals! I´ve had some terrific food here, although it´s hard to describe; e.g., string beans wrapped up in an egg and corn flour batter (not unlike chile rellenos). Delicious! Simple potatoes cooked in herbs and spices that I´ve never experienced before that was YUMMY. Today I go to a cooking class at the school to learn (hopefully successfully) how to make chicken mole.
Breakfast is served at 8. School is from 9 to 12:30. "Lunch" (it´s the main meal of the day) is served at 3; and dinner is at 8.
The town is colonial in design, with cobblestone streets, and neat little stores everywhere. The highlight of the place is the friendliness of the people. In the morning on my stroll to school, everyone greets me with "Buenos Dias." Because so many of the people are indigenous (Mayan descent), they are short. At my exalted heighth of 5 foot 7, it is wonderful to look people directly in the eye without getting a crick in my neck. Talk to you later!