Diez Dias en San Cris

I'm taking advantage of this rare internet connection in the new apartment to bring news to the outside world.  This morning, the group that was here for ten days left.  What an intense program!  But it was intensely rewarding.  I made some new friends, and I'm glad I'll get to see them in the fall.  I've learned a lot here in Chiapas so far, and I've been here less than two weeks.  I've been to places I never thought I would ever get to see, and that many others don't get to see.  If you are thinking about doing this program next summer, I think you should sign on without hesitation.

The setback for me was getting sick, which happened around Sunday and is still lingering a little.  I'm on the up-and-up, though.  The four of us here for an extended stay moved into an apartment this morning, which we found yesterday.  We were told it had internet.  We were not told you only get one bar of internet and you only get it when you are in the living area.  Boo!  So I can't sit on my bed and Skype or check email or aimlessly browse the internet.  This makes me angry, even if my anger betrays an ugly addiction to internet.  Don't judge me!  I miss my family and Cliff, and internet is the only way to talk to them. 

Other than these problems, most things here are pretty awesome.  It's hard to describe San Cristobal.  It's really, really laid back.  The streets run for the most part north to south and east to west, but there are exceptions.  There are two main roads which run perpendicular to each other called "andadores" or "walkways," where there are no cars allowed.  The sidewalks are very, very narrow, at some points about a foot across, at the most two.  The streets and sidewalks are cobblestone, and "slippery when wet" is a huge understatement.

The intersections are confusing.  There are red lights that flash the word "uno," meaning only one car at a time.  In theory, this means that the traffic coming from two streets in the intersection (only two streets because most are one-way) weave together.  In practice, it's more complicated.  I've seen three or four cars go before someone from the other street goes, and if someone honks, it seems to give them a pass right through.  And pedestrians are on their own, even though technically they have the right of way.  We kind of weave, too.  But on the andadores there are people walking very slowly, just meandering around talking to people and going into shops and bars.  There is definitely a backpacker vibe here, but not everywhere. 

The buildings are super old and colonial style, but there are businesses in them.  It's a strange juxtaposition of the old and the new.  There are indigenous women walking around in traditional dress selling woven belts or popcorn, and there are Europeans with unruly kids and unruly hair, and there are people dressed modernly going to work or trying to hand you a flyer for a party at a bar later. 

Well, hopefully you have some mental image of San Cris, and hopefully I will supplement that later.  All for now; Natalie (roommate) hears some people downstairs so we are going to investigate. 

P.S. This a Burger King.

Doppleganger Alert

I found this picture next to a NY Times article I read online.  All the other pictures of her don't look like me exactly, but this one kind of freaks me out.

M.P. Dunleavey.

Me.

Weird, huh?

Batteries suck

My Criminal Law exam is tomorrow morning at 9am.  At 1pm, I will pick up my take home Contracts exam.  Naturally, I came to Julie's house to study for tomorrow.  Around 9pm, I was ready to go home, but when I tried to start my car, the battery was dead.  I went to 7-11 (obviously Julie lives in a nice neighborhood; they have 7-11s) and bought jumper cables.  Ryan and I charged my car for around a half an hour to no avail.  The battery is completely dead.  So, I'm staying the night at Julie's.  I have no idea what tomorrow is going to look like, but hopefully the problem is just the battery.

The cherry on top?  I fell asleep studying on the couch last night, so I didn't charge my phone.  It's also dead.

I hate batteries.  At least I have my computer charger! 

Finding the silver lining-ly,

Rochelle

I need a sedative

I leave for Mexico in one week. The past few days have been highly stressful and emotional. Being gone this summer means missing my brother’s graduation, three weddings (one of which I was supposed to be in), about ten birthdays including mine and Cliff’s, my three year anniversary with Cliff, and everything that comes with a summer at home. I’m giving up a lot to do this internship. I have a one-way ticket to Cancun and a bus ticket to San Cristobal for four days later. I don’t know where I’m living, but there are people down there already looking out for a nice place for me to stay near the center where I’ll be working.

So the plan is to post in this journal, Skype, Facebook, and email to keep in touch with everyone. To some, especially my family, this is a crazy decision. I see it as a risk worth taking. I will be working with the director of a women’s center near the center of San Cristobal. I will be safe, and I won’t be alone. Our coordinator told me that this particular center loves to have interns from DePaul, and they take their interns under their wing, making sure they are socially involved with the people who work there. I’m really excited about what’s to come, even though I’m terribly sad to leave.

I just want those who doubt my decision to consider why I’m going. The work that I will be doing in Mexico is exactly the kind of work I want to do as a career. It’s the reason I sank myself in debt to come to law school. It’s the part of law school that I was most excited about: travelling while I still can, meeting people who work at and run NGOs, helping people in need where possible, and experiencing first-hand the costs and rewards of public service. This summer, I hope, will keep me motivated to get through the grueling banality of law school (although I hear it gets better from here on out) and give me the strength to resist selling my soul to corporate law for lots of money (and it is lots of money).

On a related note, my property final yesterday went alright, but there was a disproportionate amount of questions about trademark and copyright law, which I think was unfair, and the entire exam was very poorly written. I do wish I had given myself more time for the essay portion, but I think the extra time spent on the multiple choice will pay off. My criminal law exam is on Friday. Yowza!
Now arriving at Chicago Union Station.

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For a little study break:  Cram Jam

It Don't Matter If You're Blackacre or Whiteacre...

I hate both!  Property is almost over.  I've been cramming for most of the past week, and I still feel like I haven't mastered it the way I wanted to.  I will say I have a much more organized system that last semester's patented "Try to Re-Read Everything and When You Can't, Start Crying" method. 

Speaking of losing your mind, have you ever witnessed the precise moment when a person goes from being eccentric to full out loony?  Last night, a few of us were sitting in the front room of my parents' house, and my sister looked up from her Mac with this kooky look in her eyes.  She said, "Oh my gosh.  I am on Facebook on my computer while I'm on Facebook on my phone."  And she held up her iPhone to show us.  We stared wide-eyed, then just shook our heads.  iBeast- 1, Nikki- 0.

For Nicole, and everyone else with and iGadget: iGeneration Tribute

If you see something, say something

Yesterday, Julie (lawschool friend) and Ryan (her boyfriend) came over to our house so that Julie and I could study and Cliff and Ryan could do whatever.  Ryan and Cliff decided around 6pm to go to R +J's apartment in the city to let their dog out, so they could stay out later and go to a party at another friend's house.  Julie and I stayed and studied more and planned to meet them at the party later. 

Then we got a call about two hours later from the boys.  They were parked on 90/94 outbound near 91st.  Odd time and place for gridlock, we thought, so Julie and I looked it up.  NewsRadio 780 was reporting that the lane closures were due to a "haz mat situation."  Their website showed a little accident icon in the spot on the highway where the boys were, and when you hovered over it, it displayed the message: INCIDENT ALERT ALL LANES SHUT DOWN MEDIUM SEVERITY LEVEL. 

Well, turns out it should have read EFFING CRAZY SEVERITY LEVEL.  This was no over-turned tanker truck.  In fact, there was nothing overturned at all.  There was no accident.  There was, however, a "suspicious package" found on the Red Line at 95th, so law enforcement shut down all lanes of traffic for more than an hour, and eventually started herding the cars off via on-ramps. 

Poor guys.  Ryan had to listen to most of the game in the car, and Cliff peed in a pop bottle.  So when we got to the party, I wasn't too mad at Cliff when he showed me that he bought one of these:

http://crystalheadvodka.com/index.php?age=true