Tortillas, Cebollas, Queso, y Arroz

Bueno,

I hope everyone is doing well! I am happy to say that Mexico no longer hates me, or rather I no longer have a pessimistic view of the country. I am no longer sick; however, I still cannot eat tortillas, onions, cheese, or rice. My host-mother said that I was still psychologically ill, but she's fine with that. Ha-ha! She said she understands why I can't bring myself to eat the above foods; therefore, she has been making other things for me. I had a dish with onions in it three days ago, and after two bites, I just about had to run to the restroom. So, yesterday she made a pasta dish with spaghetti, butter, and spices, and lentil soup. I had Subway for lunch, but ate the spaghetti dish and lentil soup for dinner. She told John and I, (in Spanish) "I wake up every morning and think, Oh Jesus, what I am going to cook these poor boys?" We told her not to worry, but she's constantly worrying about us eating enough.

The picture above is me at the supermarket after having found Turkey Bacon. I told my host-mother, Martha, the other day that I am in fact not a complete vegetarian, that I do eat a few meats. Explaining why I don't like certain cheeses and meats was quite a trip. It's hard enough to explain in English; for my Spanish explanation, I grabbed a dictionary and started saying what I did like to eat (as far as meats and cheeses) and the reasons why. I then told her about my love for Turkey Bacon. She had never heard of it nor had the two guys from Texas. They thought I was lying and that it was impossible. To prove them wrong, I went to the Mall, my only chance for yellow cheeses, soy-milk, tofu, whole grain bread, and last but not least, turkey bacon. Sure enough, they had it. After telling some of my friends about my adventure, I was surprised by how many people are not familiar with turkey bacon. (And they do have turkeys here in Mexico, something that surprised me.)

Well . . . enough about food. I do have a life down here besides food, believe it or not. Not much has happened since Sunday, but I do have big plans for the weekend. We are going to Mexico City on Friday and staying there until Sunday morning. Upon leaving Mexico City we are going to Teotihuacan, and ancient city with two pyramids. The city, at its height, had a population larger than any other city in the world at the time, including Rome. Quite amazing! I will take plenty of pictures.

I have updated my online photo album again. Now you can see parts of the house where I'm staying, the mummy museum, and other things. If you click on the title of this blog post, it will take you there. So, I have this really creepy thing on here where I can see data on whose visiting my blog. I can't see individual names or specific locations, but I can see cities where people are from and things like that. It's pretty cool, because for the most part, I know who is reading it; however, there are a few cities that have thrown me off. So, if you live in one of the following areas, if you would send me an email or post a comment, I would greatly appreciate. If not, then I'll just go crazy with curiosity. Ha-ha. Here they are:

Lima, OH
Westerville, OH
Circleville, OH
Medina, OH
Sandusky, OH
Henderson, MI
Fort Worth, TX
Flemington, NJ
Newburgh, IN
Distrito Federal, Mexico


Yeah, it's kind of creepy, but being able to see people checking it makes me know that I'm not writing this for the sake of just writing it.

Hope you have a great week and weekend. I will hopefully post again on Sunday night or Monday.

All my best,

Stephen "Esteban" Tyler Knauff