PastUpdates

Currently I am working full-time for International Truck & Engine. I spend most of the day working on technical projects. Outside of work I am concentrating on finishing up this semester so that I can head to Mexico. I will be leaving the week of the 24th of June.

In both the month of February and April I was recognized for my community service efforts and leadership skills. I was honored by Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne (IPFW) at the 18th annual Great Men and Great Women Diversity Breakfast (click here to read the article). On April 5th I was recognized as Distinguished Student Organization Member of the Year by IPFW. The group that I was president of, Hispanos Unidos, received the Outstanding Student Organization award. The advisor of the organization was recognized as Advisor of the Year (click here to see picture).

I just wanted to let you all know that I made it to Cuernavaca, which is where I’ll be until July 28th. The flight went well. I actually ended up making two new friends on the way to Mexico City.

The family that I am living with is great!! They have a son named Alvaro (~11yrs old) a daughter who is studying art (~18) and a daughter who is studying the language arts (speaks Spanish, French, and English and can teach Italian ~21). The house has a beautiful view of a series of mountains riding the horizon. There is a small swimming pool in the front yard and they tell me that there is a whole lot to do here in the city.

Shortly after arriving to the house I learned that I will be starting school tomorrow morning, when I was not expecting to start until Monday (so much for a little bit of partyingJ). There are also three other students staying here at the house. They all come from a university in New Mexico, but hadn’t known one another until coming to Cuernavaca.

That is it for now. I am exhausted from the flight, so I’m going to go and take a siesta.

It seems as if the weeks are just flying by. In 4 days I will be departing for Monterrey, which is where I will be living for the next 9 months. My experience here in Cuernavaca has been AWESOME!! I have made so many friends, my professors are great and the city is filled with tons of things to do.

I have taken lots of photos so that all of you can see the true beauty of Mexico. United States' media and entertainment have given it's citizens a very poor representation of what Mexico actually looks like. It is a country enriched with culture, magnificent architecture, and extremely beautiful historical land marks. If you do not believe me then take a look for yourself. For those of you who remember the film "Tarzan of the Jungle," take a very close look at the album entitled "Las Estacas." This is where the movie was taped.

I am pleased to tell my faithful readers that I have finally made it to MONTERREY. My journey started the moment I stepped off the plane. After being picked up from the airport, I was invited to explore an offer on an apartment. This offer had been in the works since before the end of my last semester at IPFW. The roommates were really nice, but the apartment just did not fit my needs nor my likes. This is why I spent all day yesterday looking for a place to live.

Thank God there are other Rotary scholars here in Monterrey. I called one of them and he invited me to stay in his apartment until I found my own. I can truly say that it was meant for things to happen this way because shortly after arriving to Alan’s house I was introduced to someone else that believes in the Christian faith. We became friends very quickly. My new friend and I spent all day Saturday looking for my new home. The first house that we visited was perfect. In the ad it was listed as an “asistencia.” In this type of home everything from having your clothes washed to having your food prepared for you 5 days out of the week was included in the rent, which was only $250/month. There was also high-speed internet, cable, and air conditioning--all of which are must-haves in Monterrey. I know, you’re probably asking yourself “Why didn’t you take it Josué?” For two reasons: number one, I would have been living with a family, which is something that I have been blessed with all my life; I feel like it’s time for a change. The second reason is that I would’ve had to share my room with someone else, most likely someone from my country, which always presents the temptation to speak English.

The second house was listed as a “cuarto.” And that’s exactly what it was: a room. The house was magnificent. The señor that lives there is an interior decorator and a collector of all things antique. The interior of the residence was truly awe-inspiring. Not only did it look like a museum, but it also had an indoor garden. I loved the house, but the room was a bit cramped. I couldn’t even scratch my back without possibly busting the window out or breaking something that was created during the Roman Dynasty. The gentleman was really nice, too. You could tell that he was truly involved in his work. So much so that I noticed a spider hanging from his chin as he was showing me his 13th-century art collection. It would have only cost me $300/month plus utilities to live in the midst of a museum/garden.

The third place (pics below), which is where I’ll be living, is a suite. It is 5 minutes walking distance, from the school. There are stores and bank services right outside of my housing addition. There is also an extremely beautiful park one street over. I chose this place because it complemented me the most. The only thing that I don’t like about this particular choice is the fact that I don’t have a Spanish-speaking roommate. I’ll be living alone. After thinking about the situation for about 30 seconds, I decided that everything would be fine. Living without a roommate will force me to make more friends and to always search for things to do outside of the house.

All in all, everything is going great. My first two days have been hectic, but with the help of God, local Rotary members and scholars, and the help of my family and friends, my time here in Monterrey will be the most significant experience that I have encountered thus far in my life.

For those of you that are in Fort Wayne, if you have not heard the announcements on 21 Alive and all of the major radio stations then I’ll have to tell:

FRIDAY WAS MY 22ND. BIRTH DAY!!J

When I was a teen I wouldn’t have never imaged that I would be spending it here in Mexico. Wow, the places life takes you.

So far everything has been going great. I really like the school. There is so much to do on campus, from doing volunteer work with indigenous people from all over the country to rock-climbing. My classes are really interesting too. I’m taking a Mexican culture course, a literature, phonics, and a communications course. All of which will help me in meeting my 10 yr. meta (goal), which is to work in a Spanish speaking country practicing engineering.

My best friend Juan was here two weeks ago. He came for a short visit. He brought the rest of my stuff from the Fort and helped me break the apartment in. As you’ll see in the pics we had a great time together. We got to see this awesome waterfall called ‘Cola del Caballo’, which is only about an hour away from Monterrey. We also visited the Zócalo, which is the main plaza here in Monterrey. The city is surrounded by history. I love it.

Talk to you all soonJ