Major thanks to those who have written comments and tweeted. I am gently reassured that real live people, apart from me and others on the trip, are reading it. Thanks too for the tweets - I'm @Helen_B_B if you're into all that.
We have had another action-packed day here at Our Cabaña, in sweltering heat. Each day, a patrol takes responsibility for Colours, whereby the World Flag is raised. My patrol consists of all the people I am sharing a dorm with - there are 9 of us in the dorm, most of whom claim that they don't snore. Our dorm is called Tulipanes, which means hibiscus in Spanish, apparently.
One of the dorm members, Maureen, has a small bear called Baxter, who keeps mysteriously disappearing. Today he was located on top of the lockers, out of the reach of Maureen, as most places are. A dramatic rescue attempt ensued, whereby a human pyramid was created, enabling his immediate release (and a few broken bones that we won't mention here). Later in the day, Baxter was found sun-bathing by the pool, wearing his sombrero. He has disappeared again. No-one can possibly imagine how he keeps ending up in such a dynamic range of places.
We had a fantastic morning today, with the Guias de Mexico, who live locally in Cuernavaca. They came along and we enjoyed songs, team games, and badge swapping. Our team, imaginatively called 'Quatros Guias Y Amigos' came first, thanks to a superb combination of stealth, stamina and team-work, (apart from the disastrous three-legged race, which resulted in an unfortunate pile of legs). We had a great time with the Guias, laughing and chatting, in Spanish, with various degrees of proficiency.
After lunch, we headed to downtown Cuernavaca for the afternoon. I have drunk about 24 litres of water today. It is sweltering here and you have to keep hydrating to avoid passing out.
We had an informative tour of the beautiful Cathedral in Cuernavaca; it is a huge space, but strangely without pillars. There was an enormous font by the door. I like that font, but I prefer Trebuchet.
I spent some quality time on roof terraces, munching ice-cream, and thinking.
This evening, we enjoyed a session called 'Imagine More', where we were thinking about what Guiding gives to us, how it helps us to develop as individuals and leaders. WAGGGS is now looking forward to the next one-hundred years of Guiding, having celebrated the Centenary recently. We thought about what we will be doing in Guiding, in the next 5 years and were encouraged to write a little pledge about how we were going to take the learning from this session forward.
I am so keen to get more people involved in international Guiding. The opportunities which Guiding provides to girls and young women are incredible, and I really want Leaders to encourage their girls to apply for these opportunities as they are life-changing. If you are a Leader, find out who your local International Adviser is. E-mail her and ask her about the opportunities which are available to girls in your County and beyond. Ask her about what opportunities are available to you as an Adult Leader (if that's what you are). If there aren't any opportunities currently, create some! Sign yourself up for the next Travelling Abroad Training, go along, and find out more! If you are aged 18 - 35, get yourself into the Global Opportunities Pool.
If you are not able to take your unit abroad, then bring the world to your unit. Use international resources to educate your girls about WAGGGS and the wider world. Encourage girls to work on the various interest badges which relate to the world.
Am signing out now, as we're losing an hour's sleep tonight, apparently, then leading Colours in the morning, which I will tell you all about tomorrow. Night night.
Saturday, 6 April 2013
Friday, 5 April 2013
Definitely Maybe Friday?
Today we spent the day in Taxco. It sounds quite like Tesco, but is not remotely similar. Although having said that, the taxis zooming up and down the road are quite dicey, a bit like supermarket trolleys in Tesco, with maniacs at the helm. But there are no similarities apart from that.
After Colours, breakfast and making packed lunches, we boarded the bus and headed to a silver shop, where we learnt all about how to identify real silver. It sounds different when you hit it. We had the opportunity to buy some. Most of us sold a kidney to pay for this trip, so we don't have a lot of money left to buy silver. You only need one kidney really. Although I did buy a pair of very small earrings, for my very small ears.
Strolling through the winding streets of Taxco was like stepping back in time. The taxis are all VW Beetles, which look like little bugs. They tear up the streets like angry winding ants, but with skilful manoeuvres. There are also minibuses aplenty, not quite up to TFL standards. Helen Candy (one of three Helens on this trip - yes, three; call any of us Helen or Jill and you have 20% chance of being right) went in a bus and tells me the greatest risk was in being flung out of the side door, because there wasn't one.
I spent a great deal of time on roof terraces chatting and watching the world go by. I love roof terraces and have sat on them across the world. I also purchased a geniune Mexican thimble, to add to my collection. I started collecting thimbles at the tender age of 7 when my mother suggested that I purhcase one at Beatrix Potter's house because that's where I happened to be. She suggested I start a collection, which I did and now have more than 500 which document my entire life. But they don't sell them in Burkina Faso, which was disappointing.
Many of the group took the cable car at Montetaxco, then for the best views, they wandered into the neighbouring hotel, across the roof terrace, and took up positions by the pool to take the best photographs across the vista.
I can't believe I have neglected to tell you all about our dorm trip at 6.30am to see the volcano. Led by our trusty Region Chief, we marched in our pyjamas to the campfire circle, but it was a bit hazy. One of my favourite vegetarians, Hilary, turned up, looking confused. We didn't see the volcano, but we had a lot of fun trying to find it.
This evening I ran a comedy improvisation workshop for whoever wanted to join in. We had many laughs playing impro games. If you don't know much about comedy impro, think 'Who's Line Is It Anyway?', think 'Comedy Store Players'. In fact, why not go to the Comedy Store one Wednesday or Sunday night to see the best impro in London - the Comedy Store Players - they are superb.
I am interested to know if anyone is reading this. If you are doing so, and you like it, please write nice comments. If you don't like it, please don't write anything.
Night night!
After Colours, breakfast and making packed lunches, we boarded the bus and headed to a silver shop, where we learnt all about how to identify real silver. It sounds different when you hit it. We had the opportunity to buy some. Most of us sold a kidney to pay for this trip, so we don't have a lot of money left to buy silver. You only need one kidney really. Although I did buy a pair of very small earrings, for my very small ears.
Strolling through the winding streets of Taxco was like stepping back in time. The taxis are all VW Beetles, which look like little bugs. They tear up the streets like angry winding ants, but with skilful manoeuvres. There are also minibuses aplenty, not quite up to TFL standards. Helen Candy (one of three Helens on this trip - yes, three; call any of us Helen or Jill and you have 20% chance of being right) went in a bus and tells me the greatest risk was in being flung out of the side door, because there wasn't one.
I spent a great deal of time on roof terraces chatting and watching the world go by. I love roof terraces and have sat on them across the world. I also purchased a geniune Mexican thimble, to add to my collection. I started collecting thimbles at the tender age of 7 when my mother suggested that I purhcase one at Beatrix Potter's house because that's where I happened to be. She suggested I start a collection, which I did and now have more than 500 which document my entire life. But they don't sell them in Burkina Faso, which was disappointing.
Many of the group took the cable car at Montetaxco, then for the best views, they wandered into the neighbouring hotel, across the roof terrace, and took up positions by the pool to take the best photographs across the vista.
I can't believe I have neglected to tell you all about our dorm trip at 6.30am to see the volcano. Led by our trusty Region Chief, we marched in our pyjamas to the campfire circle, but it was a bit hazy. One of my favourite vegetarians, Hilary, turned up, looking confused. We didn't see the volcano, but we had a lot of fun trying to find it.
This evening I ran a comedy improvisation workshop for whoever wanted to join in. We had many laughs playing impro games. If you don't know much about comedy impro, think 'Who's Line Is It Anyway?', think 'Comedy Store Players'. In fact, why not go to the Comedy Store one Wednesday or Sunday night to see the best impro in London - the Comedy Store Players - they are superb.
I am interested to know if anyone is reading this. If you are doing so, and you like it, please write nice comments. If you don't like it, please don't write anything.
Night night!
Part 2 of yesterday’s blog
Hope you watched that video.
Let’s just consider those statistics again. According to the UN Women’s estimations, 6
out of 10 girls and women globally will be subject to violence or abuse in
their lifetime. 6 in 10, that is 3 in 5,
more than half. More than half!
The next statistic – 60 million girls are sexually assaulted
on their way to school each year.
60 million. That’s the population of the UK.
How many girls worldwide are child brides, married before
the age of 18? More than 60 million.
The opening discussion yesterday was about how society
managed to get to this point. Or has
society always been at this point, it has just not been talked about? There is
endless scope for discussion on this topic, on the violence within society
which seems to have been accepted as the norm within many societies, often due
to the patriarchal nature of communities, and subordinate position of
women. Forced marriage, FGM,
honour-based violence; it is everywhere, but only seems to come to the
attention of the masses when there is one, high-profile case. Yet women and girls worldwide are being
affected by violence EVERY DAY.
There has been a lot of coverage in the media recently about
FGM, thanks to the hard work of organisations like FORWARD (who I used to work
for), 28 Too Many and amazing individuals such as my colleague at Guy’s,
Comfort Momoh MBE, but to many, FGM is still an unknown concept which people
don’t realise is being organised in the UK.
If you don’t know what it is, look here.
This is a societal issue, of which more people need to be made
aware. It is estimated that 140 million girls and women have experienced FGM across the word. 140 million.
But there are many other types of violence: emotional, financial, sexual, physical, and this is happening across the world, all the time. Increasingly, rape is used as a weapon of war. It is widely acknowledged that in a warzone, it is more dangerous to be a woman, than to be a soldier. Think about that for a minute.
But it's not just happening in warzones. Violence against women and girls is happening all over the world. WAGGGS is calling on its 10 million members to sign up to
the Stop the Violence campaign, to make their voices heard. Add your voice here today. If you are involved with Guiding, raise awareness of this within your unit. There is an army of In4mers (peer educators) to help you with this - they are trained to deliver sessions about issues such as violence against women. Get in touch with your District Commissioner or Senior Section Adviser, and they can let you know who your local In4mers are.
Thursday, 4 April 2013
Thursday - I am not a vegetarian. But Hilary is.
I know this because she has told me 117 times. As we are staying at a World Centre, we were required to send in our health forms ahead of time, as any Leader in Girlguiding (that's Leader, not Guider, read this poem if you are confused about Guiding terminology), would know. (If you enjoyed that poem, feel free to look here and here for many more. I dutifully collected the forms, in their sealed envelopes, and they reached Mexico, according to the trusty Royal Mail online tracker. Unfortunately, we do not know where in Mexico.
The day began in the morning, where I spent some quality time under a tree, reading something called a 'book'. I do not do this very often, so it was quite a novelty. I last read a book in 1998. I did a Masters degree once, part-time over two years; it took me the first year to read the reading list.
After my tree time, we enjoyed a hearty breakfast before embarking on a busy day of activities. Firstly, we had a moving Opening Ceremony, where the staff joined us for the raising of the World Flag. We all recited our Promise as the World Flag was raised. Maureen and Eileen presented Mapi, the World Centre Manager, with a gift from their Trefoil Guild (I'm not sure which Guild it is, and if I write once it's bound to be the other, so I won't write either).
Then it was time for the group photo, and we all looked extremely smart in our team polo shirts. Mine had funny marks on it due to the deodorant explosion recently, which has now been dealt with, thanks to a washing machine. We posed on the steps, in strict height order, before enjoying some snaps embracing the concept of discovering and growing.
The first session of the day was called 'Discover the World Centres'. If you are a Leader reading this, drop everything and start planning to bring a group to one of the World Centres. They are located in the UK, Mexico, India and Switzerland. There is also a Fifth World Centre pilot which is taking place in Africa. It is crucial that we show our members what they are part of. Contact your friendly local International Adviser and she will tell you all about how to go about taking a group abroad. There is a shiny new training programme (which replaced the GAINING training), called the Travelling Abroad Training Programme, which is now operating throughout the UK. To take a group abroad, you need to have the relevant licence, then 'have or be working towards the Travelling Abroad module'. Tell your units and get planning!
Let me just tell you a bit about eating arrangements here. We all eat together in a big Dining Room, where a staff member (or Zoë, who is a trainee staff member), sits at the head of the table and is the 'server'. The person to the left of the server is the 'hopper', and they are the only person who is allowed to move during the meal. So they go to the kitchen to collect the food when appropriate. This is a very simple but effective way of sharing a meal togther; it embeds a sense of community, something central to Guiding at every level.
The 'Trading Post' opened and, after much deliberation, I purchased a rather nice gilet; not very useful in 28 degree Mexican heat, but useful on the way to Brownies on a cold Monday evening in Chislehurst.
Various members of the group frollicked in the swimming pool, playing ball games, just like little Brownies, which was lovely.
Ok I'm going to get a bit serious now.
We did a session called 'Stop the Violence', which is the WAGGGS initiative to end violence against women and girls across the world. The statistics associated with this are staggering. Watch this video. I have to go now as the computer room is about to close, but I will continue this later....
The day began in the morning, where I spent some quality time under a tree, reading something called a 'book'. I do not do this very often, so it was quite a novelty. I last read a book in 1998. I did a Masters degree once, part-time over two years; it took me the first year to read the reading list.
After my tree time, we enjoyed a hearty breakfast before embarking on a busy day of activities. Firstly, we had a moving Opening Ceremony, where the staff joined us for the raising of the World Flag. We all recited our Promise as the World Flag was raised. Maureen and Eileen presented Mapi, the World Centre Manager, with a gift from their Trefoil Guild (I'm not sure which Guild it is, and if I write once it's bound to be the other, so I won't write either).
Then it was time for the group photo, and we all looked extremely smart in our team polo shirts. Mine had funny marks on it due to the deodorant explosion recently, which has now been dealt with, thanks to a washing machine. We posed on the steps, in strict height order, before enjoying some snaps embracing the concept of discovering and growing.
The first session of the day was called 'Discover the World Centres'. If you are a Leader reading this, drop everything and start planning to bring a group to one of the World Centres. They are located in the UK, Mexico, India and Switzerland. There is also a Fifth World Centre pilot which is taking place in Africa. It is crucial that we show our members what they are part of. Contact your friendly local International Adviser and she will tell you all about how to go about taking a group abroad. There is a shiny new training programme (which replaced the GAINING training), called the Travelling Abroad Training Programme, which is now operating throughout the UK. To take a group abroad, you need to have the relevant licence, then 'have or be working towards the Travelling Abroad module'. Tell your units and get planning!
Let me just tell you a bit about eating arrangements here. We all eat together in a big Dining Room, where a staff member (or Zoë, who is a trainee staff member), sits at the head of the table and is the 'server'. The person to the left of the server is the 'hopper', and they are the only person who is allowed to move during the meal. So they go to the kitchen to collect the food when appropriate. This is a very simple but effective way of sharing a meal togther; it embeds a sense of community, something central to Guiding at every level.
The 'Trading Post' opened and, after much deliberation, I purchased a rather nice gilet; not very useful in 28 degree Mexican heat, but useful on the way to Brownies on a cold Monday evening in Chislehurst.
Various members of the group frollicked in the swimming pool, playing ball games, just like little Brownies, which was lovely.
Ok I'm going to get a bit serious now.
We did a session called 'Stop the Violence', which is the WAGGGS initiative to end violence against women and girls across the world. The statistics associated with this are staggering. Watch this video. I have to go now as the computer room is about to close, but I will continue this later....
Wednesday, 3 April 2013
Welcome to Our Cabaña!
Today, we have moved seamlessly from one world to another, from the touristic delights of Mexico City to the unique world of international Guiding. I am sitting in the grounds of Our Cabaña, listening to the chirruping of local cicadas and the distance hum of traffic outside the compound.
This place is beautiful. It is little paradise in Mexico, away from the hubbub of the world outside. I received a tweet before I came here, saying this place is 'stunning' and I now see why. It is a haven, a Guiding home, and if you have a unit, I would highly recommend bringing your Guides or Senior Section here. Plan a trip, go on! Bring your unit here and show your unit what international Guiding is all about.
We checked out of the hotel and headed for Cuernavaca, which means 'horn cow', Gill tells me, and she knows everything about Spanish, because she took me on my first major international experience to the World Scout Jamboree in Chile in 1998, which incidentally, changed my life. I didn't say a lot before that event, now I just can't stop talking.
Anyway, back to what I am meant to be writing about. We arrived at Our Cabaña and received a warm welcome from the international staff. I met Abigail, who I have been e-mailing for the last year or so, with details about our group - health forms, programme options, room-sharing etc. It was like meeting a long-lost friend once again.
Let me tell me you about Our Cabaña. It is one of the four World Centres of WAGGGS, where our ten million members from across the world can come and stay. We are here on a 'pick n mix' programme, where we are enjoying a programme of activities which we chose, as a group.
Today was a day of learning about Our Cabaña, orientating ourselves with the site - it is about 5 acres, but feels much larger. It consists of a series of dorms, functional rooms, such as a craft room, a dining hall where we share our meals together, programme office, swimming pool, tennis court, volley ball court, trading post, accommodation for staff and a series of cute gardens, such as the Garden of Dreams which hosts the sundial, and the Garden of Frogs. There is a cat here who I have named Popocatépetl (see yesterday's blog), who wanders around the site.
We spent a chunk of the day enjoying Mexican cultural activities, run by the fantastic volunteers who are on placement here. They included acting out Mexican independence, using bongo drums, a horse, and a spectacular performance from Margaret, who passionately declared Mexican independence, whilst I played the bongo drums; making a Mexican flag; helping to decorate a giant piñata which will be used later in the programme; we also played Mexican bingo, where we learnt lots of useful Mexican words; and made delicious guacamole, which I am definitely going to make when I get home, although I'm not sure the avocadoes in Morrison's will be quite as fresh as the locally-grown ones here.
In the evening, we enjoyed some team building games with group members and volunteers. The whole day has been punctuated by comedy improvisation games. I took this up fairly recently and have been mildly obsessed with it as it is fantastic for encouraging people to think on their feet, adapt their ideas, be flexible, listen, and it is also, often, hilarious. We have been playing 'Proverb Generator', 'Three Talking Heads' (anyone who has been to the Comedy Store on a Wed or Sun night will be familiar with this) This afternoon, we had the world's leading expert on orienteering for armadillos. Impressive eh?
Well, I shall sign out there and will write more very soon. Hasta luego!
This place is beautiful. It is little paradise in Mexico, away from the hubbub of the world outside. I received a tweet before I came here, saying this place is 'stunning' and I now see why. It is a haven, a Guiding home, and if you have a unit, I would highly recommend bringing your Guides or Senior Section here. Plan a trip, go on! Bring your unit here and show your unit what international Guiding is all about.
We checked out of the hotel and headed for Cuernavaca, which means 'horn cow', Gill tells me, and she knows everything about Spanish, because she took me on my first major international experience to the World Scout Jamboree in Chile in 1998, which incidentally, changed my life. I didn't say a lot before that event, now I just can't stop talking.
Anyway, back to what I am meant to be writing about. We arrived at Our Cabaña and received a warm welcome from the international staff. I met Abigail, who I have been e-mailing for the last year or so, with details about our group - health forms, programme options, room-sharing etc. It was like meeting a long-lost friend once again.
Let me tell me you about Our Cabaña. It is one of the four World Centres of WAGGGS, where our ten million members from across the world can come and stay. We are here on a 'pick n mix' programme, where we are enjoying a programme of activities which we chose, as a group.
Today was a day of learning about Our Cabaña, orientating ourselves with the site - it is about 5 acres, but feels much larger. It consists of a series of dorms, functional rooms, such as a craft room, a dining hall where we share our meals together, programme office, swimming pool, tennis court, volley ball court, trading post, accommodation for staff and a series of cute gardens, such as the Garden of Dreams which hosts the sundial, and the Garden of Frogs. There is a cat here who I have named Popocatépetl (see yesterday's blog), who wanders around the site.
We spent a chunk of the day enjoying Mexican cultural activities, run by the fantastic volunteers who are on placement here. They included acting out Mexican independence, using bongo drums, a horse, and a spectacular performance from Margaret, who passionately declared Mexican independence, whilst I played the bongo drums; making a Mexican flag; helping to decorate a giant piñata which will be used later in the programme; we also played Mexican bingo, where we learnt lots of useful Mexican words; and made delicious guacamole, which I am definitely going to make when I get home, although I'm not sure the avocadoes in Morrison's will be quite as fresh as the locally-grown ones here.
In the evening, we enjoyed some team building games with group members and volunteers. The whole day has been punctuated by comedy improvisation games. I took this up fairly recently and have been mildly obsessed with it as it is fantastic for encouraging people to think on their feet, adapt their ideas, be flexible, listen, and it is also, often, hilarious. We have been playing 'Proverb Generator', 'Three Talking Heads' (anyone who has been to the Comedy Store on a Wed or Sun night will be familiar with this) This afternoon, we had the world's leading expert on orienteering for armadillos. Impressive eh?
Well, I shall sign out there and will write more very soon. Hasta luego!
Tuesday, 2 April 2013
Moctezuma's multi-storey car-park
Greetings to you from Mexico City once again.
I awoke this morning, extremely disconcerted by a vivid dream where we were all dragooned into joining a dodgy cult here in Mexico. Methinks the altitude, coupled with meeting a large crowd of Germans in the immigration queue yesterday, who were going to an event which they 'couldn't really explain', (i.e. a cult gathering) manifested into a peculiar dream. I made sure I told the group to avoid any potential invitations to join cults and it has been ok so far, as far as I know.
After breakfast, where there was an abundance of refried beans, which a certain group member has become rather partial to, we gathered and headed off on a fascinating walking tour of the frantic, busy, buzzing metropolis that is Mexico City. We are staying right in the centre, surrounded by blaring taxi horns, men winding howling accordions in various states of disrepair, police cars with lights flashing and sirens shrieking, but trapped in with the rest of the traffic going nowhere fast, yet there is a certain vibrant feeling to the City, which I like.
Our trusty guide Violetta took us for an informative tour, taking in the Zocalo, the Main Square, which is the third largest square in the world, after Tiananmen Square in China and Red Square in Russia, all of which are very large squares. There was an enormous Mexican flag in the middle of the Zocalo; I thought our new Guide flag was large, but it doesn't compare to the one we saw today. Zoë tells me that they also have very large flags in Azerbaijan.
We also saw various places associated with Moctezuma, the Aztec king, including excavations ofthe Templo Mayor, the ancient Aztec temple, and the multi-storey car-park where Moctezuma used to leave his car.
We moved on to the spectacular Metropolitan Cathedral, visiting the Metro station which Moctezuma used to use to travel to the Cathedral to worship. The Metro station looked uncannily like Old Street station, so I felt quite at home.
I do find places of religious significance fascinating; this Cathedral was full of worshippers, tourists, and various services occurred whilst people wandered through. Violetta told us about the lack of official relations between the Vatican and Mexico until fairly recently, when the Pope (two Popes ago) came to visit. Relations were then cemented, schools became officially Catholic, rather than just Catholic, and everyone was happy. Not sure when the latest Pope will visit, but it's not that far from Argentina, so maybe he'll pop in when he pops home to visit his friends.
The tour came to an end and we went our separate ways. A group of us headed to the tallest building in Mexico City, which we dutifully climbed, well, with the help of a speedy lift which took us the first 42 floors. The views were spectacular as the City is very flat because of earthquakes. We could see the volcanoes in the distance. I saw my favourite volcano, Popocatépetl. It's active, but it hasn't erupted since... <googles> oh, March 7th.... 2013. Ok so that was quite recently. A month ago in fact. Right. In case you're wondering how to pronouce it, it's 'popper-catta-petal', which would be a good name for a cat in case you are thinking of buying one.
We went for a drink in a spectacular indoor courtyard bar, which had perfurmery at the front, an x-box shop at the back, and an overexcited lady playing with a plastic singing bird in the loo. Yes, really.
Post-siesta, we headed back to the square, to find my favourite type of place to eat - a roof terrace. We had superb views over the square and surrounds, and we sipped Corona above the hustle and bustle and car horns of the city. I ordered a Green Mole, an intriguing blend of beef, pumpkin seeds and various other things. I'm not sure what they were, but that's what being abroad is all about!
Signing out now. We are off to Our Cabaña in the morning! Hasta luego!
I awoke this morning, extremely disconcerted by a vivid dream where we were all dragooned into joining a dodgy cult here in Mexico. Methinks the altitude, coupled with meeting a large crowd of Germans in the immigration queue yesterday, who were going to an event which they 'couldn't really explain', (i.e. a cult gathering) manifested into a peculiar dream. I made sure I told the group to avoid any potential invitations to join cults and it has been ok so far, as far as I know.
After breakfast, where there was an abundance of refried beans, which a certain group member has become rather partial to, we gathered and headed off on a fascinating walking tour of the frantic, busy, buzzing metropolis that is Mexico City. We are staying right in the centre, surrounded by blaring taxi horns, men winding howling accordions in various states of disrepair, police cars with lights flashing and sirens shrieking, but trapped in with the rest of the traffic going nowhere fast, yet there is a certain vibrant feeling to the City, which I like.
Our trusty guide Violetta took us for an informative tour, taking in the Zocalo, the Main Square, which is the third largest square in the world, after Tiananmen Square in China and Red Square in Russia, all of which are very large squares. There was an enormous Mexican flag in the middle of the Zocalo; I thought our new Guide flag was large, but it doesn't compare to the one we saw today. Zoë tells me that they also have very large flags in Azerbaijan.
We also saw various places associated with Moctezuma, the Aztec king, including excavations ofthe Templo Mayor, the ancient Aztec temple, and the multi-storey car-park where Moctezuma used to leave his car.
We moved on to the spectacular Metropolitan Cathedral, visiting the Metro station which Moctezuma used to use to travel to the Cathedral to worship. The Metro station looked uncannily like Old Street station, so I felt quite at home.
I do find places of religious significance fascinating; this Cathedral was full of worshippers, tourists, and various services occurred whilst people wandered through. Violetta told us about the lack of official relations between the Vatican and Mexico until fairly recently, when the Pope (two Popes ago) came to visit. Relations were then cemented, schools became officially Catholic, rather than just Catholic, and everyone was happy. Not sure when the latest Pope will visit, but it's not that far from Argentina, so maybe he'll pop in when he pops home to visit his friends.
The tour came to an end and we went our separate ways. A group of us headed to the tallest building in Mexico City, which we dutifully climbed, well, with the help of a speedy lift which took us the first 42 floors. The views were spectacular as the City is very flat because of earthquakes. We could see the volcanoes in the distance. I saw my favourite volcano, Popocatépetl. It's active, but it hasn't erupted since... <googles> oh, March 7th.... 2013. Ok so that was quite recently. A month ago in fact. Right. In case you're wondering how to pronouce it, it's 'popper-catta-petal', which would be a good name for a cat in case you are thinking of buying one.
We went for a drink in a spectacular indoor courtyard bar, which had perfurmery at the front, an x-box shop at the back, and an overexcited lady playing with a plastic singing bird in the loo. Yes, really.
Post-siesta, we headed back to the square, to find my favourite type of place to eat - a roof terrace. We had superb views over the square and surrounds, and we sipped Corona above the hustle and bustle and car horns of the city. I ordered a Green Mole, an intriguing blend of beef, pumpkin seeds and various other things. I'm not sure what they were, but that's what being abroad is all about!
Signing out now. We are off to Our Cabaña in the morning! Hasta luego!
Monday, 1 April 2013
Safely arrived!
Flying is so curious. The whole concept of spending almost as long at the airport either side of the flight as the flight itself is surely not what God intended. But then, if God had intended that we should fly, he would have built the airports closer to where the people live.
We amassed this morning at Heathrow, group G2 checking in together as instructed by Dynamic Dave the travel agent. This was a smooth process, apart from one group who managed to arrive late then had to re-pack her entire bag due to being over the weight limit. I won't mention her name, but you know who you are, don't you Sheila?
Just a bit of background to this trip. We are a large group of adult members of Girlguiding in Greater London Kent, plus our Region Chief. We fulfil numerous leadership roles within the County and have been looking forward to this trip for a long time. My hope is that it will inspire those involved to lead groups abroad, to learn more about the giant organisation they are part of - WAGGGS- and generally to engage more with Guiding on an international scale, be it by encouraging their girls to apply for international opportunities, or they themselves. There was talk over dinner this evening of people thinking about taking their units abroad, and that's what this is all about - enabling our members to show their units what they are part of and how exciting and special the world of international Guiding is.
We are now spending two nights in Mexico City, to acclimatise, as we are a very long way above sea level. I know this because my deodorant exploded earlier, for this very reason.
I can't wait to see a bit of Mexico City tomorrow, before heading to Our Cabaña on whatever the next day will be. I struggle with seasons and changing the clocks in the UK - this travelling back in time malarkey is therefore immensely confusing. I think it's Tuesday now, but I can't be sure.
We had some April Fools fun this morning, various texts were flying around to say all flights to Mexico had been cancelled for the forseeable, which worried a few people.
I shall sign-out there. Happy Tuesday (I think).
We amassed this morning at Heathrow, group G2 checking in together as instructed by Dynamic Dave the travel agent. This was a smooth process, apart from one group who managed to arrive late then had to re-pack her entire bag due to being over the weight limit. I won't mention her name, but you know who you are, don't you Sheila?
Just a bit of background to this trip. We are a large group of adult members of Girlguiding in Greater London Kent, plus our Region Chief. We fulfil numerous leadership roles within the County and have been looking forward to this trip for a long time. My hope is that it will inspire those involved to lead groups abroad, to learn more about the giant organisation they are part of - WAGGGS- and generally to engage more with Guiding on an international scale, be it by encouraging their girls to apply for international opportunities, or they themselves. There was talk over dinner this evening of people thinking about taking their units abroad, and that's what this is all about - enabling our members to show their units what they are part of and how exciting and special the world of international Guiding is.
We are now spending two nights in Mexico City, to acclimatise, as we are a very long way above sea level. I know this because my deodorant exploded earlier, for this very reason.
I can't wait to see a bit of Mexico City tomorrow, before heading to Our Cabaña on whatever the next day will be. I struggle with seasons and changing the clocks in the UK - this travelling back in time malarkey is therefore immensely confusing. I think it's Tuesday now, but I can't be sure.
We had some April Fools fun this morning, various texts were flying around to say all flights to Mexico had been cancelled for the forseeable, which worried a few people.
I shall sign-out there. Happy Tuesday (I think).
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