The Pros & Cons of Life in Guadalajara

As I sit here sipping on my coffee refecting on the almost month we have been here I see that life here, just as anywhere else, is full of pros and cons. There are so many amaizng qualities about living here that make us just never want to leave. On the flip side there are things that convince us to only stay for our one year. I always like to hear bad news before good so let us begin with those few little cons.

The Cons of life here:

The biggest of the cons for me while we are living here is the insect life. The great majority of houses down here are built with not slanted roofs and with no window screens. The lack of slant in the roof allows for large puddles of water to form on the roof and other areas around the house after a rainstorm. These then become a cesspool of mosqito larva who then grow to become my personal tormentors. The lack of screens give them perfect accress into our home and to my warm blood filled veins. The heat here is high and the humidity makes you need to have the window open to have a cool breeze blow though the house. There is no avoiding the insect life that comes in with that breeze. Everytime I look at my (Tenaya's) legs I have at least three new bites. Currently as I write this I have 14 bites on my legs. Some are healing while others are fresh from the sting. We had to get a medicated creme from the pharmacy to help with this issue. We are asking our landlord to get us screens (mosquietos) and hopefuly with those in place we will live much more comfortably.

Another big con for us here is the air quality. Unlike in the states where smog checks are required and the laws insist that you check and maintain your vechicle in Mexico those laws are non-existent. Some would think that Los Angeles is bad (which it is in someways), but Guadalajara has it beat.

The language barier. This is going to be a struggle if you move anywhere in the world where you don't speek the national language. For me (Adam) I am learning A LOT everyday (I'm thinking of doing a whole post soon totally dedicated to language because there is a lot to be said about it). I am not fluent but I am at a general convrsational level. Tenaya knows some Spanish. But it is expecially hard for her because she wants to be able to make small talk with people. It's amazing how much you can miss making small talk.

Some Pros:

Everyone is so darn nice! "Nice" is a terrible descriptor word; to be clearer, almost every person who we have had at least a small conversation with has been pleasant, kind, generous, or simply down-right loving! We made some rice-crispy treats (which are basically unheard of down here) for our neighbors recently and this small event lead to us staying in someone's home for nearly two hours while they gave us friendly conversation, drink, food, and a a chance to play with their cute child. Another time we got our hair cut and the lady invited us to her birthday. And now, a man who we just met about four days ago is letting us borrow his car for a few days while he's gone. Lastly on this topic: 95% of of the people we converse with are very patient and kind with our less than perfect Spanish. This has to be one of the best places on the planet to learn Spanish.

It is very pretty here. It is similar to Los Angeles in the sense that nature is not far from the big city. We live on the north side of the city where there is still lots of open space and views of green hills and mountains. Also, what would be equivilant to a state park in the US is Bosque Primavera, a mountains region full of natural hot springs, pine trees, and greeness is just west of the city.

Getting to know new people. This includes Mexicans and other people at our school. We have become friends with other teachers at work. Some of them know the area really well and have shown us some fun and interesting places. There are teachers from the states, one from Ireland, England, and different parts of Mexico.

The many places we've yet to experience. This includes places like Teotihuacan, many charming pueblos (small towns) like Tequila and Magdelana, the not-so-far Puerto Vallarta, and many beautiful outdoor areas.

Public transporation is both a pro and a con for much of the same reasons it would be in the states. Cons: it's generally slower and less freedom to go where you please when you please. Pros: It's cheap, it goes everywhere you really need to go (work, stores, etc.), it's easy to figure out.

I'm sure there will more pros and cons that come our way. For now enjoy these pictures! You'll see our time at Lake Chapala, which is a HUGE nearby lake we went to with our landlady (she's very kind!); some slackling really close to our home; my beautiful wife doing some gardening; and some pictures of us in Bosque Primavera at Rio Caliente - that water is about 90 degrees loaded with natural minerals that really relax your muscles.

saludos,

Adam and Naya Nunez

#inspiration #buses #culture #bosquedeprimavera