My first week in Mexico has been great. I am now feeling pretty comfortable and settled in here. Sometimes I even catch myself thinking in spanish at the end of the day. The city is really nice, and quite different from Eugene. The city has a very colonial feel to it, with cobblestone streets and lots of beautiful churches. The sidewalks are also really skinny here, and it is often not possible for two people to walk side by side.

This is a view at one of the main plazas in town. As you can see, the buildings are also much more colorful than in Eugene. Walking around, you see lots of reds, pinks and yellows. Also, some of the streets are made of red stones. I learned that this is because they come from a quarry near the city in which all the stones are red.

My spanish is going quite well. I talk with my host-mom everyday in spanish for a couple of hours, which is really good practice. Most of the other Oregon students don´t want to speak in spanish, but I made a few Mexican friends that I am able to speak spanish with. This was one of my goals before coming, and I have already done well with it. Before coming, I told myself that I wouldn´t just hang out with the other Oregon students; I wanted to meet Mexican friends and step outside of my comfort zone a bit. All in all, it has been a great week!