Well yesterday I arrived in Merida! As far as travel days go, everything went smoothly. We had to wake up at 2:00 am however (something I will never be happy about). The plane ride from Philadelphia to Cancun was 4 hours. Then we took a bus with our amazing guide Hugo to Merida (which took another 4 hours).

My homestay is so nice! On the outside it doesn't look like much necessarily, but me and my roommate have our own room with our own bathroom, closet, and TV. Plus we actually have internet! Wireless at that! More reliable than Ursinus! So much for being the more developed country, huh USA? Ah, I kid I just like giving Ursinus a hard time.

I'm sort of lacking in creative wit tonight and you may have noticed. I assure you there's a great reason for this. Today was my first full day in Merida and also my first day of classes! It was a typical school morning: woke up at 6:15, had breakfast, and took the bus to school (where I was greeted by my first exam and two peacocks). Pretty typical until school ended at 2:30. The trip that had taken me 30 minutes that morning stretched into 4 hours when me and 6 other girls got lost. We took a bus to where we thought we lived but evidently we were sorely mistaken. It turns out we had the wrong neighborhood (Merida is divided into neighborhoods kind of like counties I guess). A nearby English speaker informed us that our neighborhood was across the city. So two buses later, we found ourselves in another neighborhood but still no homes! Imagine our confusion! We stared at our maps frustrated and confused until we concluded that our homes weren't even listed! No! Our neighborhood is not even on the map! And we hadn't bought cell phones yet and therefore had no one's numbers to call for help. So we ended up wandering around, heading generally north to find our homes. We finally found the right neighborhood but still couldn't find our homes! We knew we were so close and yet with no map or knowledge of the city we were still so very far. Fortunately, one of the pairs' host fathers noticed us on the street and picked us up. We were literally across the street from our homes!

But we made it home safely and we now know how to operate the public transport system (better anyways). It was a wonderful experience but it really wiped me out. Plus, adjusting is exhausting! I invest infinite amounts of energy and effort into every conversation every moment of the day and I still understand so little! And in those rare moments that I do understand, my skills are too limited to respond! It is one of the most frustrating situations I have ever been placed in.

But goodness look at me ramble! Tomorrow I'll finally reveal the trials and tribulations of Boot Camp! Get excited for the next addition!