Our last day in Dolores. Up and packed and out to UTNG for a final, 8:00 a.m. class with Rosalie, helping her students practice their conversations for next week’s oral exam. This was a final reminder of how much fun it has been working with these young people.

Then a wonderful send-off ceremony, with speeches from the Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs and a couple of more advanced students, traditional songs, and a karaoke number in English. Our host at the pulqueria and his wife were also there, and it was wonderful to be able to thank them again for their hospitality. We were given certificates of appreciation and, in turn, thanked UTNG for letting us work with them and see what a wonderful future they are building for Mexico.

We then set off for Guanajuato. The mountain ride was as glorious as at our arrival, but now we recognized names and landmarks…our Mexico. We dropped our bags in our rooms and headed out for the city center. What an exciting city – bustling with energy on a Friday afternoon. We saw the Diego Rivera museum and the marvelous architecture and exhibits at the Alhondiga museum.

Also ran into Chuy on the street, on his way to class. Lunch outside in a shady square, a little shopping, and some people watching in the green Jardin Union. Our final dinner was at a window table overlooking all the activity in the square – mimes, costumed musicians, and hundreds of people out enjoying the evening. Back to our hotel for an early night since Evelyn and Mary have a 4:15 a.m. taxi to the airport. Joyce will enjoy a more leisurely departure on Saturday.

While we’re all looking forward to home, that Willy Nelson song comes to mind, “On the road again…just can’t wait to get on the road again…”

Our last full day in Dolores. Joyce and Mary took a last walk around down town before breakfast, when the city is so cool an green.

After our morning meeting, we walked-up to the campus for the last time, since tomorrow we'll ride up with Carl. We had three classes , two with Chuy and one with Bill. Students are still hard-working and eager, but exam time is starting; and many of them are focussing on next week's finals.

Spent the break in the library and returned to the sac for conversation club only to find the room full of students taking exams. After waiting next door for some time we returned to the teachers' area where Marcia brought us one final student for conversation practice.

Back to the hotel with Carl where we'll have our final meeting and and head off to a party at Vero's. Tomorrow morning we have an 8am class with Rosalie, a good-bye ceremony, and then we're off to spend an afternoon and evening in Guanajuato prior to am Saturday flights back home.

So many final thoughts... but a short one: Truly it is in giving that we receive... and we all have all received so much from our volunteer experience in Dolores.

The last week is rapidly coming to an end and we are getting more used to the program and the lovely town of Dolores.

We had a late start for classes, 10:20 am, so we could enjoy some time in town. Got a ride to campus with Carl and had a great variety of classes again. Some are small and quick to speak English. Other classes may be large and are having English classes for the first time. But all of the students are receptive and seem to enjoy our presence.

We spend an hour at 4:00 pm in Conversation Club to help those who want extra time to practice. Have met some industrious kids.

We enjoyed a fabulous meal at the Plaza Restaurant and took a brief stroll around the park. Actually saw one of our students dancing in the band shell. His specialty was “break dancing.”

THOUGHT: No matter how thin the pancake, there´s always another side.

George Vecsey, NY Times sports writer

Today was the first of three late-start days. Our first class only began at 10:20. This afforded Joyce a chance to roam around Dolores taking photos to preserve and reinforce her memories, and we all had a nice breakfast at the Plaza Restaurant.

We worked with Marcia for the first time today. Marcia is an expatriate American with a more direct teaching style than we have observed. The kids came to class on time! In her classes we prepared the students for an oral exam on describing other people. ¨Jeans” is a word they all know!

The Conversation Club had more advanced students today and was quite interesting. We could see how they are starting to grapple with the age-old conflict of remaining at home (Dolores, San Felipe, etc.) or moving away from family to pursue economic opportunity. They were smart and funny.

Our host at the hotel drove us out to the country to visit the 2^nd oldest church in the Americas – a rare treat. This was followed by a barbecue in the hotel patio, hosted by Sr. Pompeio, which was an excellent conclusion to yet another fascinating day.

THOUGHT: An adventure is only an inconvenience right considered.

G.K. Chesterton

Hi ho! It’s back to work we go. After reviewing our first week on Sunday evening, we’re all committed to week two, but the alarms did seem to go off awfully early this morning. (The switch to daylight savings time didn’t help – it was dark outside.)

After a meeting with Carl, he drove us (what luxury) to campus and then headed back to Querétero.

We had our first class with Nathan and worked in groups on the concepts he provided us. Back in the teachers´area, Joyce dutifully transcribed the log, and we all waited for our first class with Veronica. Unfortunately, she was sick today, but Jaime eventually found us and took us to her class for a 15-minute session, which we hope was of some help to the students.

Next was JJ´s class, where he challenged us to create and deliver a lesson. After five minutes of brainstorming, we decided to use world maps and have the students plan a vacation – pricing tickets, packing, etc. It went quite well.

This was doubly fortunate because, after a quick snack chez UTNG, we had a second group of Veronica’s students to manage on our own. Although they were at a slightly different level from JJ´s, the lesson plan worked.

After a break, we met in the resource room with the Conversation Club. At first, there was only one participant, Gerald, an amazing UTNG graduate who had just returned from working in the US due to his father’s sudden death. His intelligence, focus, and drive were inspiring. Towards the end of the session, a couple of beginning students joined us, and we hope they come back to practice.

Dinner at El Caudillo – our waiter wanted to practice his English so ordering was a bit of a hodge-podge, but still a pleasant evening.

Heavy traffic around El Jardín -- watched an ambulance try to weave its way through, then home to the hotel.

THOUGHT: Ignatius Loyola’s “What profits a man if he gain’s the whole world but suffers the loss of his soul?” seems to speak to the Mexicans we’ve met who worked in the US but returned home.

Joyce and Evelyn: A day off to explore and enjoy. Joyce and Evelyn took the bus to San Miguel and had a wonderful adventure exploring the city with a personally guided walking tour. The guide spent two hours with them and impressed them with his love of San Miguel where he has always lived. They visited an art school where they viewed outstanding murals by Pedro Martinez. He was extremely knowledgeable about the history and architecture of San Miguel and taught them a lot.

But, of course, before they got serious about touring San Miguel they had to get their American coffee fix. Joyce had a cappuccino at Starbucks and Evelyn had her caffeine from Dunkin Donuts. Both shops are easy to spot right off the plaza.

The guide, Jesus, suggested a wonderful place for lunch and they were treated like royalty there. A gratis appetizer was offered and Evelyn enjoyed a healthy grilled vegetable salad while Joyce enjoyed delicious tacos.

They next found their way to the Ramirez Market and discovered the silver and other shops. Both made purchases of necklaces, earrings, and pendants and were very pleased with their decisions.

They just made the 4:00 pm bus back to Dolores – it was backing out of the parking place, but stopped for them. They enjoyed the milk stop run where workers were getting off and on.

Joyce and Evelyn shared their travels with Mary and met Carl at 7:00 to take him to the newly discovered restaurant, El Sabroso Pollo. He was impressed, but the crowd there was noisy and the echoes off the stone wall were loud. The upcoming week´s planning meeting was held back at the hotel and everyone looked forward to a good night’s sleep.

THOUGHT

If you know all the answers, you haven’t asked all the questions.

Mary: Mary stayed in Dolores to explore the city and search out places of interest for sightseeing during the upcoming week. Among places of note were 1) churches – Our Lady of Sorrrows (Dolores) with amazing wood carvings and the Third Order Temple, where mass was being said, accompanied by guitars and singers and where the church was packed. Statues were covered in tiny Milagros. In both churches, posted in the back were marriage banns, complete with pictures and family histories. 2) Museums – Hidalgo’s house contained rooms furnished as they were in Father Hidalgo’s time, copies of letters and revolutionary documents, and the tithe hall filled with wreaths, plaques, and a large statue of Hidalgo. Independence Museum, in the former prison, contained wall sized drawings, statues, and exhibits explaining the struggle for Mexican independence. 3) Government buildings – The first floor of the Mayor’s Office and the Visitors House were open and both had interesting courtyards.

Best of all was sitting in El Jardín, listening to church bells, watching teenagers parade by, and eavesdropping on the shoeshine man.

This was a school day in Dolores for public and college students. Walked to the campus and got there before anyone else. Our first class was with Karina -- who is also Nathan’s wife -- with students who come only on Friday evening and Saturday. They are older and not yet too swift in their skills. At one time we merged with another class and kept going for over an hour with 6 or 7 in a group.

Then the weekend began and we all did our own thing. Mary had her hair done, Joyce shopped for us and Evelyn stayed put, reading and resting.

Mary discovered a beautiful, newly opened restaurant that we decided to try, and it was wonderful. We will go back there for sure.

THOUGHT

“Amidst the mud and muck of things, something always, always sings.”

Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch