To the next....

Hello dear friends and family,
I´m sorry I´ve been m.i.a. from the blog world, but after that last entry I had my fill of the internet for the remainder of my stay at the Bosque.
I am currently writing from the center of a large bus station in Mexico City, with an hour and a half left before I board an overnight bus to Oaxaca City, where my sister and co. live.
I think I´m in for a great deal of culture shock, not so much because I will be fully (rather than barely) immersed in Mexican culture, but more-so because I am returning to flush toilets, traffic, and a greater abundance of commerce and buildings and masses!
My last couple weeks at the Bosque were truly fantastic. Don´t be surprised if I continue wwoofing for the next few years!!!! (If you aren´t familiar with wwoof, I encourage you to explore the websites www.wwoof.org).

I don´t even know where to begin telling about my experience. My creativity is weighed down by fatigue, so I think I´ll just describe a day in the life of Katerina at the Bosque:

The workweek starts on Wednesday. During the first two weeks I consistently woke up at 1 am and 4:30, needing to pee at either one or the other of those times. The nights were so cold that my body woke me up so it could focus on warming my muscles and bones and not just my bladder. I toddled down the stairs and didn´t bother walking to the outhouse but instead popped-a-squat around the back of the building. Usually I´d have to walk around the spots where my roommates had done the same not long before.
Around six I officially woke up but stayed in bed for another 15-35 minutes. Then I rolled out of bed, lit a candle, and dressed in multiple layers to ensure my warmth through breakfast. I was always the first to arrive at the casita, and delighted in the few minutes to meditate alone by the early-morning fire, watching the colors appear outside as they were illuminated by the light of dawn.
At seven I began chopping onions, garlic, and other vegetables to make eggs for myself and some other volunteers. When Dan came he´d usually make coffee for all who wanted some. If I hadn´t started cooking by the time Dan came, sometimes he would take over and I´d set the table instead. We had a nice routine going for a while.
Other volunteers would slowly toddle in, and we ate breakfast communally. Most of the time other people would wash up if I had cooked.
At 8 o´clock sharp work began, and we´d be divided into teams to work with two local Mexicans, Beto and Chileno. They both had the sweetest little-boy smiles decorating their late-thiry-year-old features. The first few days I was more shy, but soon we began a language exchange, teaching each other words to describe what we were doing, and other, sometimes rather goofy expressions. One day we found a terrantula underneath a pile of wood and I was told that a spider is "una rania". This prompted a memory to appear of Genny, my Columbian nanny/non-related family member, singing me a song about an elephant on a spider´s web. Beto knew the words and helped me learn them again. The teaching and learning of languages made the sometimes very difficult/tedious labor extremely fun.

Lunch was served at 1:30, having been cooked by Marie and two volunteers (we switched daily). Everyone was always famished, and it was not uncommon for people to take upwards of 3 helpings.

The afternoons were relaxing, balancing out the business of morning. I usually read, went for walks in the forest, did/taught yoga, took naps in the sun, played guitar, and/or chatted with other volunteers.

And now I´m sick of writing, though there is of course an infinite amount to tell.
I hope all is well with you, where-ever you may be. I will write again soon from Oaxaca, hopefully with photos to post!
Much love, light, and peace,
Katerina