Guadalajara:Churches

Guadalajara is an old colonial town , today the capital of the Mexican federal state of Jalisco. You can see a lot of churches here, I want to show you two of them. First the Cathedral, which for me looks more like a fortress from the outside. It was built in the 16th century and as it took them about 60 years to finish, a lot of different styles can be seen. The towers were destroyed in an earthquake  at the beginning of the 20th century and were rebuilt  in this way then.

A look at the stone masonry in the chapel to the right.

This church is called  Templo Expiatorio and was built in the Gothic style between 1897 and 1931. It is an impressive and, in my opinion, very beautiful church, as the only decoration inside are the architecture and the beautiful glass windows.

Finally I saw these guys heading for an old building of the university... aliens studying in Guadalajara as well, it is a famous university !!!

Mexican Adventure:Rain

As I said before, it is the rainy season in central Mexico and I did well to escape the European heatwave by travelling to Mexico. But on Monday I was caught in a tropical torrential rainfall that turned the streets and pavements into rivers within minutes. I was lucky, a lady in a shop asked me to come in and wait there, but still, being stuck for an hour because of the weather is something that a German finds hard to swallow.

In Germany people would get upset, look at their watches and blame the government. Or the opposition. Or both. In any case, they would expect the world to end soon. Here in Guadalajara, however, everybody just waited patiently until the street appeared again and one could walk on. And isn't that the best way to cope? After all, we cannot change the weather, so why get a heart attack about it ?

Mexican Adventure I

Finally, after months of waiting I boarded a plane to take me to Mexico City on 9th July. About 11 hours later I arrived, took a taxi to the Terminal de Autobuses del Norte and then one of the very comfortable coaches to the town of Aguascalientes, where I spent the first weekend with a  good friend. When I got there after having been on the road (or in the air) for more than 24 hours, I had indeed passed my first adventure.

Getting out of the plane and through immigration was like everywhere else in the world, but Mexican customs has a kind of lottery for the passengers: you push a button and when the green light appears, you may walk on, if the light is red, you must have your luggage inspected. I was lucky to get through everything in no time, so my next task was to find a desk where I could buy a ticket for an authorized taxi. No problem. Then I bought a telephone card - again no problem - and then tried to ring up my friend . Hmm ... several times I dialled something wrong, but in the end got the right number. Mexican telephones work like phones all over the world, it was just me who was too stupid to dial correctly.

Well, the taxi ride was amazingly fast considering that it was Friday evening and Mexico City was hit by two storms. At some point I thought I should have taken a boat instead of a taxi, but the driver sailed through the water bravely.

In Mexico you don't have railways like in Europe, you travel by coach, and although everybody says that they are cheap, comfortable and very reliable, they really are. I could sleep well during the night ride of 500 km, and the reason why my bus was nearly 2 hours late was the storm in Mexico City. I got a document from my school stating that I am a teacher in three languages: German, English and Spanish (Gracias, Guillermo!) and so I got a discount on the bus and for someone who is used to German railway prices this was like travelling for free. And how can you not like a country where teachers get discounts ????

My first weekend was spent seeing a bit of the city of Aguascalientes and its food (very important) and after the World Cup final I took the bus to my next destination: Guadalajara, where I am doing a two-week Spanish course.

That's all for today ... nos vemos !!!

Internet Friends

I have already written something about the positive sides of the Internet here, but  I would like to add another aspect:   there is more to Internet contacts than "not being only bad." Let me explain:

- You can keep in contact more easily. I know a lot of families that are spread all over the globe and thanks to email, IM and video chat they can exchange information quickly and keep in touch. 200 years ago, when a member of the family emigrated to Australia, it meant that a letter travelled about half a year ... nowadays, an email reaches its destination in half an instant.

 - You can really get to know someone . The anonymity of the Internet can create an atmosphere where very personal talks are possible that would not happen in real life. If (big IF!!)  both partners are honest with each other (of course, with due caution), we come to the next point:

- You can make  good friends on the Internet. Long chats, exchanging photos and information and seeing each other in a video chat, all this can lead to a point where you get really close.  I have talked to hundreds of people and gotten to know a bit about their lives, but some of them have become  good friends. Some I have already met here in Europe - others I still have to meet.  Some have become very important for my life and I owe them a lot (for example the courage to start this blog - xie xie, Sam)  ...  and all this has made me curious as to where life will still lead me.

So next Friday I am travelling to Mexico for four weeks to see a new country, learn more Spanish and meet two more of my Internet friends ... one of them a young woman who I have known since she was a teenager. I am happy about how the Internet has opened the door to the world for me  - so that we all can become friends and be united in peace.

(photo: "Friends" by Guillermo Macias)

Happiness

Happiness is a warm gun (Beatles) - or a warm puppy (Peanuts).  Finding the love of your life. A baby. The baby moving out after 18 years. Leaving the love of your life, because he wasn't right after all.

Some people think, money means happiness. Living on a tropical island never having to worry about a thing. A house, an expensive car, a boat.

As you know, greater minds than mine have already thought and written about this topic, so I can only add my own personal idea of moments of happiness.Of course, unhappiness is a part of it,too, without it you would not recognize happiness. And remember, that the American Declaration lists "the pursuit of happiness" as one of the unalienable rights of every human being. The pursuit of happiness, not happiness itself. Happiness is a tricky thing (Sam C. Chan), maybe it has more to do with ourselves than with symbols of success and wealth.

Well, here are some of my happy moments:
- the smell of coffee early in the morning
- a phone call without bad news
- going to bed knowing that the alarm clock will not ring the next morning
- seeing the sun rise after a night of talking to a  good friend
- seeing myself in the eyes of someone who cares
- being here at this time and place, living this moment and taking it as the gift it is
- being allowed to be me

And what are yours ?

The Forbidden Kingdom: Last Quote

When Lu Yan is deadly wounded and confesses that he is not an immortal, Jason is shocked, but Lu Yan does not seem to be so unhappy about this fact and says:
  
"If one does not attach himself to people and desires, never shall his heart be broken. But does he ever truly live?"

I love this scene , because the character played by Jackie Chan suddenly gets so much depth, you feel, there is a long and interesting story that can be told about him. The amazing thing: Jackie can only create this with his face and voice, as he is lying motionless on the bed.

The first time I saw it in the cinema, it gave me goosebumps. And every time I hesitate to leave the safe path of my comfortable life to embark on some adventure, I hear Jackie's voice speaking these words. Yes, it is safer not to open myself to a new friendship, not to allow my heart to love, not to try something new, because I cannot be disappointed and hurt.  But if I  act like this, do I truly live ?

It took me many years to grow courageous enough to adopt this attitude, but now I have reached the point where I am aware that there is only one short life for me and that I should live every moment of it. And accept everything it has to offer...

(Photo: JC Group 2007, www.jackiechan.com)

"Empty your cup!"

Jason, the Boston teenager who has been transported into a mythic world, has met Lu Yan who helps him to return the magic staff to its rightful owner, but Jason must learn to fight. Lu Yan decides to teach him Kung Fu.

So in the scene I am talking about they sit at the campfire after a day of travelling, Lu Yan has made some tea and Jason is very enthusiastic about  learning Kung Fu. He has seen so many Kung Fu movies, he is looking forward to learning the "Buddha Palm Technique" and the "Shadow Kick". Listening to Jason's talk, Lu Yan fills his cup with tea and keeps pouring even when the cup is full. When Jason protests, he explains:  "How can I fill your cup when it is already full? How can I teach you Kung Fu when you already know everything? Empty your cup !" Jason pours the tea into the fire  - and Lu Yan is quite desperate about his new student.

I first heard this story from my own martial arts master who had got it from a book where the author got it from his master.For most of us the idea to completely forget anything we might know about a subject and start learning from the start is probably  strange. In our Western culture we are encouraged to learn with a critical mind, to question what the teacher says and to draw our own conclusions. Eastern martial arts teach you to submit yourself to your master as he has undergone years of training and knows best.

So I was curious what my students would say to this quote. Amazingly, they understood the  meaning at once. There are teachers and students. Students have to learn, teachers have to teach. It is a tedious fight if you question everything your teacher says, first you have to learn the basics and advance in the topic,  and only after some time of learning are you able to judge yourself.

One student added a further idea: we should be open and curious to learn something new and not let our learning be influenced by preconceived opinions. When you go to a foreign country, for example, it is best to be curious and experience the strange culture with a free mind, not tinted by what you may have heard or read.

So I think, sometimes it is good to empty your cup and give a new point of view a fair chance.

(Photo JC Group, 2007,  www.jackiechan.com)