5/28/10: Lazy days

No photo this time, since I really haven't been doing much the past few days. It's been lovely. I wake up to a breakfast of fresh fruit, bread, and cheese, go to spanish class for a few hours, then wander among parks and cafes looking for a new place to sit and read for a couple of hours.

Earlier in the week I was chastising myself a bit for a) tearing through my books too quickly and b) not spending my afternoons in museums, churches, etc. I'm over it. I found an English bookstore to restock on reading material and have also reminded myself that I'm on vacation and can do whatever I want, including spending a huge chunk of time reading for pleasure. Anyway, this seems to be the Oaxacan way. I'm certainly not the only one leisurely passing the hours with a book in a park or cafe.

The only downside to this routine (besides being a little overcaffeinated at the moment) is that I get interrupted a lot as a young woman reading, writing, or drawing alone. These encounters have been pretty benign and surprisingly interesting, though. I don't find the men here to be particularly aggressive or less than polite. In fact, I've had some really interesting conversations about Mexican labor unions, US immigration policy, and must see beaches in Oaxaca. Ultimately I make up some excuse about meeting a friend so I can politely decline an invitation to continue the conversation at a bar somewhere, but I haven't felt at all threatened since I've been here.

A, a friend from the language school who has lived in Oaxaca for a few months now, pointed out that these encounters match the Oaxacan lifestyle more generally --- not too aggressive, just kind of meandering.

So now I've embraced my laziness, partially using assimilation to Oaxacan culture as an excuse. But for me, this trip really is about slowing down, not rushing off to my next appointment, and unwinding. So far I'm doing pretty well with that. I've even stopped subconsciously reaching for the smart phone I no longer have.