Okay, I don't know how I can do the upside down question mark for my question title above, or add the accent mark above my n.
But I just got back from Mexico City last night. Wow! Wow! and Wow! I thought Philadelphia was big. I thought NYC was big. I felt pretty overwhelmed the first couple days we were there. So many people, traffic and buildings. While greener and more lush than I'd expected, it still is a lot to take in.
We be moving down there in a month and a half, but spend the holidays back on the west coast. We're keeping our 100 year old house in Philly, returning once our trip south of the border is done. I'll miss my house, my yard, our quaint, lovely neighborhood, our friends and neighbors. I'll miss spending warm summer nights sipping cocktails on my big, ol' porch, hoola hooping with Sarah and discovering new historical places on homeschool trips on the east coast. I'll miss hearing Matty's jokes with southern twang and swim parties late into the night with Joe and Ana. I'll miss laughing with our homeschool friends and the beautiful northeast landscape.
We are looking forward to a new adventure though. While big cities are really not my thing (and hey, let's face it, Mexico City is the biggest city in the world) I know this can be a fantastic time in our lives with the right attitude. My hubby is already fluent, but I am still a novice in the Spanish language. But I know with instruction and being immersed in it, I'll pick it up. I think it's a real gift we're giving our girls to learn Spanish and get to travel to areas we would probably never get to see. While places like Cancun or Cabo sound tropically delightful, what I'm really looking forward to is things such as Casa Azul, the pyramids of Tula and Teotihuacan, northern adobes, Museo National de Antropologia and the floating gardens of Xochimilco, to name just a few on my list. In the coming months we will have the opportunities to travel to Costa Rica and other parts of Central America.
If anyone out there knows of other good places to see, please drop me a line!
We found a nice apartment in a part of Mexico City called Lomas by Chapultepec Park (like a Central Park.) Security was a factor in choosing where we'd live and I wanted safety to walk the streets if we wanted to. While I haven't lived in an apartment since college and don't relish the idea, I have to say this apartment complex is just dandy for us. There's a "backyard" with a huge play structure and treehouse, a basketball court, manicured laws for hoola hooping, a paved rink for riding bikes or rollerskating, a gorgeous swimming pool, a top notch gym, a sauna and steam room, racquetball court, billiards room, a massage room for the weekend massage therpist, a play room for kids 4-12 with 2 young ladies on staff all day to do arts-crafts and play games, a dry cleaning drop-off/pick-up booth, a mini-mart in the basement...yeah, I really wouldn't have to go anywhere if I didn't want to...
the "backyard"
the pool, well, part of it, and a view of the complex. We're at the top; penthouse, baby!
a house not too far from our apartment
even in Mexico, on each corner, they're here...
Dave in Lincoln Park, by his office
Well, chicos y chicas, it's late, and I'm muy consado...
