I had been teaching French at Hightower Trail Middle School in Cobb County for seven years when I was asked to teach Spanish as well the following school year. I was understandably nervous, as I had taken some Spanish in college but felt that I was far from proficient - let alone prepared to teach the language. After much thought and consideration, I decided that it would not only serve our community better to offer more Spanish classes at our school, but that it would benefit me immensely to make it a personal goal to become a successful speaker of another language.
Over the course of school year 2006-2007, I took Spanish III and IV through Cobb County Staff Development at Sprayberry High School. The experience was wonderful, and I learned volumes of vocabulary along with difficult grammatical structures that I was not familiar with. But I still did not feel at ease with my fluency, with how quickly and efficiently I could tie phrases together to form complete thoughts... and my listening comprehension was not where I wanted it to be, either. As all foreign language teachers know, there is no substitute for a language immersion experience to "force" one's mind to function in another language!
With this in mind, I applied to the Study Abroad Program in Cuernavaca, Mexico, which is an incredible opportunity offered to counselors, teachers, and other faculty through the Cobb County School District International Welcome Center. These programs are "an educational mission to promote cultural awareness and language proficiency in the Cobb County School District." I was graciously accepted into the program, and after my amazing cultural and language experience in June 2007, let me just say - mission accomplished!
Cemanahuac & the City of Cuernavaca
I arrived at the institution that hosts the language program - Cemanahuac Educational Community - and was immediately impressed with their campus. Note on their sign the traditionally-styled image of a face with an up-turned curly line coming from its mouth - indicating the spoken word; song was indicated with a down-turned curly line - just one of many interesting facts we learned during the archaeological field trips that were advertised on a bulletin board nearby. As I waited for my host family to come pick me up, I wandered amid outdoor classrooms under thatched palm leaf roofs, lush tropical landscaping, a full-service kitchen and snack bar area, even a swimming pool! After taking an entrance exam and placing in Level III, I later found that class sizes are kept at ony 5-6 students... wow. While the content of the classes was challenging, it vastly improved my understanding of many difficult concepts. My personal Spanish lexicon expanded with every class session, where English was forbidden and everything - even trying to discuss how and when to use tenses of verbs - was in the target language!
We were led on an orientation walk around the city of Cuernavaca by two of the school's teachers after our first day of school. It was interesting to see historic Spanish colonial cathedrals and palaces nestled amid a modern, bustling Mexican city. We wandered around the "zocalo," (a word that refers to the central part of any large Mexican city), a colorful and vibrant district of shops, outdoor vendors, restaurants, bars... just about everything! The sounds of music, vendors advertising their wares, and people hanging out filled the air, along with the smells of traditional foods wafting from carts and cafés. I also took note of one of my favorite tropical landscaping elements that was ubiquitous in this town - the beautiful Bougainvillea, with streamers of pastel-colored flowers cascading in all directions; I saw colors of this plant here that I have never seen before - too bad it can't stand the cold of Marietta winters! With mango and palm trees lining the streets, and seemingly every tree in town bristling with colorful flowers, it's no wonder Cuernavaca is known as the "Land of Eternal Spring." After our tour, I decided to walk home instead of taking the bus, joined by Larry Hoover, who along with Georgia Naderi coordinates the Cobb County program in Cuernavaca. Larry and Georgia are beautifully fluent in Spanish, and both have a wealth of knowledge about Cuernavaca and many of the sites we visited during the program. In addition, they always made sure the members of our group were happy with their classes and family life, and also designed a special class for educators that met after our regular Cemanahuac sessions. Later in the program, we even had a chance to visit a local public school, where we learned about the Mexican education system and what it's like to be in a typical classroom.
Living with a Mexican Family
A wonderful aspect of the Cobb County Study Abroad Program is that participants stay in homes with Mexican families. This means that not only do you get to speak Spanish 90% of the time you are one campus, you can also work on your proficiency 100% of the time while you are at home if you so desire - make the most of your experience by always trying to speak Spanish, even if it seems like it takes forever to put your thoughts into words. This is the best way to develop proficiency in a language, and is known as immersion. I had the pleasure of becoming a part of the Román family during my stay, with mother Leticia treating all her guests as if they were her own children... at meals she was constantly asking if we had enough, could she get us anything... it was amazing. Also living in their home, which was actually a sort of compound consisting of many inter-connected domiciles, was daughter Samantha, her husband Jonathan, and son Hector. There were up to eight guests here, too - other Cobb educators and a few college students from Minnesota. It was not as if we were staying in a B & B, where we kept to ourselves and the family kept to their quarters. We were in constant interaction with the family throughout the afternoon and evening, Samantha and Hector sometimes even sitting down to help with homework! It was one of the best parts of my stay, and I will always remember their kindness and hospitality... if I am able to participate in the program again I will certainly request to stay with them.
Cemanahuac Field Trips
Cemanahuac offers many great field trips to archaeological sites, towns, markets, and more. Along with tuition, the Cobb County program also pays for its participants to take part in several of these full or half-day experiences. I was only there for two weeks, but I tried to make the most of it and attended three of the school's outings. Being a history, archaeology, and anthropology buff, I was thrilled to actually set foot in some of the most important sites in the history of human civilization and colonialism. I won't go into too much detail on the trips here, because I don't want to spoil any of the surprises that await future travelers. I will say that school anthropologist Charles Goff, who hosted us on the Teotihuacan visit, and anthropologist/historian Francisco Guerrero (actually Charles' brother-in-law) who hosted us at Taxco - were virtual walking libraries. Their talks during our tours taught me more about the history of Mexico - both ancient and modern - than I had ever known.
Teotihuacan
What can I say about this place? This is one of the most hallowed archaeological sites in the western hemisphere, and has both intrigued and frustrated scholars for decades. There are many theories about its rise and fall; it was already a ruin when the Aztecs came to power. We were treated to some demonstrations of local crafts and products (one of which was a valuable commodity in times past as a fabric dye - it actually put the "red" in the "Red Coats"), and even got to see a group from the state of Veracruz perform a complex and impressive dance ritual from the top of a towering pole... I'll let the pictures speak for themselves, and you will find so much more awaiting you at the Temples of the Sun and Moon, and the Avenue of the Dead.
Taxco
This city perched high in the mountains southwest of Cuernavaca has become famous for its deposits of silver. We learned that Taxco was always (and still is) a remote, hard-to-reach mountain town that was not frequented much by outsiders. That is, until the Spanish conquistador Cortez learned that they always paid their tributes and taxes in gold and silver. The rest, as they say, is history. The town boasts one of the most impressive colonial-era cathedrals in all of Mexico, because it is in virtually original condition; Taxco is so remote that it escaped years of scrapping altars to extract the gold leaf in order to pay for armies in times of war. The area is still producing silver, and it is quite a tourist attraction (every other shop is a "plateria"). Still, it offers an interesting history and a wonderful view of the surrounding mountains as you wander the steep streets, and several of us enjoyed a nice lunch from a roof-top pizzeria.
Tepoztlan
Tepoztlan is a smaller town in the mountains that surround Cuernavaca. The school takes students here on "market day," a great opportunity to shop for local wares to take home to families back in the states. I am always attracted most to the fresh produce and dry goods areas of markets, and I found several fruits and vegetables that I have never even seen before. Participants have a choice on the Tepoztlan trip - you can either spend all your time wandering the market, or climb the towering cliffs to a temple ruins perched high above the town. Well, with a chance to get into some good habitat and maybe see some cool birds on the way up, the choice for me was obvious. The climb takes about one and a half hours and is almost straight up the whole way, but the breath-taking view at the top made it worth it, and I did see some new birds as well. When Nick (my roommate) and I got back down, we still had enough time to get a well-deserved cold soda and wander many of the booths, as some of them were closing down for the afternoon.
Special Excursion to Mexico City
Through contacts and efforts made by Cemanahuac Educational Programs Coordinator Vivian Harvey, the Cobb County group was treated to a very unique and special experience in Mexico City. We actually had the opportunity to be hosted by the Mexican Government's Department of Education at the national government complex! They showed us several presentations about educational programs and other services organized and provided by their department for Mexicans living in the United States. They applauded our efforts to become more aware of the culture of the many immigrants in our community, and to better learn to speak Spanish to relate to them even more. Afterwards, we were treated to luxury box seats at the Ballet Folklórico just down the street. This incredible performance of traditional dances from around Mexico was enjoyed by everyone. We capped off this whirlwind day with a relaxing dinner at Café de Tacuba, serenaded by a Mariachi band. Everyone slept well on the bus ride back home, and this was actually my last field trip before heading home - what a wonderful send-off!
Independent Excursions
One experience that too many first-time international travelers miss out on is getting out to explore on your own! Cuernavaca is a large but relatively safe city and you should feel comfortable getting out and about during daylight hours; still, always be vigilant, and it's best to go with one or more friends. Cab rides between almost any two points in the city should not be more than 20-40 pesos ($2-4 US), so grab a friend and be adventurous - you'll be happy you did. Being the outdoors enthusiast that I am, I decided to see what the city had to offer in the realm of natural wonders. I was not disappointed!
Jardin Borda
This interesting botanical garden, not far from the "zocalo," is actually within walking distance of the school - although it is uphill most of the way. It is completely enclosed with high walls, so from the street you can't appreciate the sites awaiting you on the inside. There is a 30 peso fee to get in, and then you can make your way along trails through lush tropical plantings of both flowering and fruiting trees along with pretty fountains. There is also a small art gallery at the visitor's center where you enter the garden. There were a few cool birds around as well; I would have taken more pictures, but a monsoon rain was approaching and the light was difficult.
Parque Ecológico Chapultepec
This is a really cool park that is not to be missed if you think you might enjoy a walk through a lush, tropical jungle! The park is a protected area in the middle of the city, centered on a crystal-clear mountain spring which flows into a stream, meandering among huge native trees and plants down to a man-made lake. Gorgeous tropical flowers bloom around every corner, while the tangled roots of trees grip the steep valley walls for dear life. There are several outdoor animal exhibits to enjoy, and even a special building with snakes and reptiles. It is basically a combination of a botanical garden and a small zoo, and actually stays quite cool considering the afternoon heat.
Salto de San Antón
My host family accompanied me and a couple roommates to this quick but very impressive stop at a cavernous waterfall that drops more than 100 feet to a pool below. White-naped Swifts (birds) tumbled acrobatically through the air, landing directly on the wet rocks of the waterfall to socialize. I also took note of a plethora of epiphytic plants, which actually grow directly on the branches of other plants (such as trees) and draw there moisture from the mist of the waterfall. Unfortunately, like a lot of natural sites in Mexico, I found that it was polluted with trash tossed in by thoughtless passers-by. As we headed down several series of stairs to get a great view, I noticed some very interesting rock formations along the wall of the chasm... I remembered seeing a show on The Learning Channel mentioning this, it was a phenomena created by certain cooling conditions of basaltic magma and is very rare. Sure enough, on the way back out a helpful informational sign told us a little about the area, including its unique geological significance. Also neat about this visit is that the dead-end street which leads to the stairs is a plant nursery district, the streets lined with gorgeous flowering plants and cacti. Afterwards, we spent some time in a local market so the family could do some shopping while I gawked at all the cool produce and other products. Pure (real) vanilla extract is an abundant local product, and 6 oz. bottles can be had for about $1.50 US; the same amount back home would easily run about $15-20!
Birdwatching in the state of Morelos
(a full story with color photos on a separate webpage)
