Day 6 in Mexico

Another wet day…but it was one of the best days I have had on this trip thus far.  We visited the children at a school today.  The principal met us at the bottom of the hill to welcome us and then led us to his school.  The children were so welcoming.  They even made us a banner to welcome us.  All the children enjoyed meeting Morgan.  They all wanted to take pictures with her. We played some games and made bracelets with the children. Just like many of you, the children in Mexico enjoyed using the camera to take pictures.  I can’t wait to show you the pictures that they took. 

All the children loved the bracelets that you made for them.  They especially liked the book that we donated to them.  After a performance by the children, the teachers and some family members made us a delicious lunch.  We enjoyed guacamole and chips and rice and beef tortillas.  I ran into many of the children as I was walking down the hill to get back to the bus.  They were so excited to wave goodbye to us.  Some of the children had so much fun that they asked if we could play with them tomorrow.  Although it was sad leaving the children, Morgan and I had a great time and will remember this day for a very long time! 

The banner that the children made to welcome us.

The children enjoyed making bracelets!

We played with hoola hoops and used different body parts like our neck, leg, arm and waist. We had so much fun! We also played a game of Huevo, Huevo, Mariposa. Does anyone know what game that is?

The children also loved the bracelets that you and your families made at our fiesta. They asked me what all of your names were. They liked that they had friends who had the same names as the children at the CDC.

The children were so excited to take pictures and spend time with us. They held our hands all day long and had the biggest smiles on their faces!

 

Day 5 in Mexico

It was a very rainy day today.  I am so glad you helped me pack my suitcase and reminded me to bring my umbrella.  Morgan is also happy  because she doesn’t like to fly in the rain.   We went to a beautiful park that was called Tzintzuntzan, which means place of the hummingbirds.  Have you ever seen a hummingbird? After the park, we took a boat across a lake to an island called Janitzio.  An island is a  piece of land surrounded by water.  Morgan enjoyed listening to the Mariachi band on the boat and looking at the beautiful view outside the boat.  The people live and work on the island.  If they need supplies, a boat brings it to them.  For example, the mail is delivered by boat.  The island is shaped like an upside down ice cream cone (triangle).  We had to walk up a lot of stairs to reach the top of the island.  All along the way, we met many people who were working in their stores and cooking food.  We had a great time on this island.

That is the same boat that we took to get to the island.

The Mariachi band played beautiful music.

This is the island of Janitzio

Morgan and her friends enjoyed quesadillas and lime. Morgan met a new friend, Molly the Flamingo.

Day 4 in Mexico

I hope everyone is enjoying the snow in New Jersey.  Today was a chilly day.  Although we did not have snow, we did have to wear our jackets to keep warm.  Before leaving the hotel this morning, Morgan spotted an orange tree and wanted to stop and have some breakfast.

Did you know that oranges grow on trees?

After a long bus ride, we arrived at Dos Estrellas

 (2 stars) Silver Mine.  We looked at beautiful rocks with colorful crystals and stones.  A long time ago, people worked in the mine.  In the mine, they found lots of gold and silver. Before leaving, Morgan signed the guest book.

This is the entrance to the mine. What do you think it looks like inside?

Morgan spotted this wonderful creation outside as we were walking back to our bus.  What do you think it could be?

We spent the rest of the day touring the city of Morelia and shopping in an indoor fleamarket.  Morgan and I found some great things and we can’t wait to bring them back to show everyone. 

 

 

Day 3 in Mexico

Morgan and I had an amazing day today!  We visited the Monarch Sanctuary in Chinqua.  We rode a horse up the mountain and had an amazing view of millions of Monarch butterflies hanging onto oyamel trees in clusters.  Although everyone voted for me to name my horse Sparkly, he already had a name.  My horse’s name was Raul and my guide was Roberto.  Morgan was a little nervous on the horse but Raul was a great horse and Morgan ended up having a great time.

Roberto (guide), Morgan, Miss Liz and Raul (horse)

Once we reached the Monarch colonies, we saw millions of butterflies.  Some were on the oyamel trees while others were resting on the ground or flying in the sky.  Because it was a cloudy day, many of the butterflies stayed in their clusters because it was cold and their bodies were not ready to fly.  When the sun came out and warmed the butterflies, many of the butterflies left their clusters and flew in the sky.  This is called cascading.  Some butterflies landed on your flowers, while others landed on Morgan and his friends. I saw a few butterflies with tags on them.  It is possible that some of those butterflies were the ones that you helped to release. Here are a few pictures from the Monarch Sanctuary.

The Monarch butterflies are in clusters on the oyamel trees

This is a close up of a cluster of Monarch butterflies. How many Monarch butterflie do you predict are in this picture?

Monarch butterflies landed on Morgan and his new friends. Tweeter is Morgan's new friend. He is a bird.

Morgan was so excited when a Monarch butterfly landed on one of the flowers that you created.

There were so many children at the Monarch Sanctuary. They enjoyed meeting Morgan. Morgan and I donated your flowers to them. They were so excited to have something made from children in New Jersey.

I can’t wait to get back to New Jersey to show you all the wonderful pictures I was able to take of all the Monarch butterflies in the sanctuary. 

Day 2 in Mexico

Today was our second day in Mexico and the weather was sunny again, but a little bit cooler than yesterday.  Morgan and I had such a great time today.  We got on the bus early this morning to tour the town of Tlalpujahua (tloowel-poo-HOW-wah). Morgan and his friends, Squeaky and Hopper greeted the bus driver, Charlito. Morgan flew onto the steering wheel and tried to drive the bus. 

While walking around the town, we passed a parade of preschool children.  They were singing songs just like we do in the classroom.  Some of the adults wore colorful masks while the townspeople followed the children on their horses.

We spent a lot of time walking around the market.  The market is where the families go to shop for their fruits, vegetables, clothes, and items for the house.  While shopping around the market, we heard a beautiful band playing music.  Morgan and his friends got excited so we moved closer to the stage.  We ran into 2 boys who were also playing the guitar.  We greeted them and took a picture.  Of course, Morgan wanted to play the guitar.

Here are a few pictures from the market:

They sell fruits and vegetables.

They also sell items for your house such as cups, plates and pots, just like in our kitchen area in the classroom.

Some of the children's abuelitas were making beautiful table cloths. This is called crewel sewing. This is when you sew a picture onto a piece of fabric using a special needle.

On our ride back to the hotel, we stopped on the side of the rode to see the many cacti plants.  As we were walking, we noticed volcanic rocks.  The rocks were from a volcano a long time ago.  

  Tomorrow is going to be another very exciting day.  We are going to visit the Monarch Sanctuaries.  I wonder if I will find any of our Monarch butterflies? 

Greetings from Mexico

Hi Everyone

I just wanted to let everyone know that we made it to Mexico and are having a great time.  I wanted to share some really neat pictures of our first day in Mexico.  The first picture was taken from the airplane.  Morgan and I spotted 2 volcanoes as we were preparing to land in Mexico.  The volcano on the right is called Popocatepetl (poe-poe-cah-TEP-tl)  and it is the male volcano.  The one on the left is called Iztakcihautl  (Ish-tahk-see-WHAH-tl) and it is the female volcano.  The volcanoes are covered with snow because they are at such high altitudes (that means that they are really tall and reach high in the sky), but in Mexico, it is very warm.  Many of you predicted that the weather was going to be sunny and it was definitely a sunny day today in Mexico. How is the weather in New Jersey?

Can you find the 2 volcanoes in the picture?

Another very exciting thing that happened today was when me and Morgan got to meet the pilot of our airplane, Dino.  He took a picture with Morgan, Squeaky and Hopper. 

 

 He even let Morgan pretend to fly the airplane.  Morgan was so excited!

What will me and Morgan do tomorrow?  Check out the blog to hear more from us as well as see more pictures of our adventure in Mexico.

Preparing to go to Mexico

Miss Liz & Morgan, Miss Hope & Squeaky and Miss Humeyra & Hopper are getting ready to go to Mexico.    Check this blog daily to follow us on this exciting journey as we travel to Mexico.