Sayulita - Beginner's Spanish Class at Costa Verde International School

After spending the last month of my permitted stay in the U.S.A. on a road trip camping in the National Parks in California, I booked my flight 3 days before my visa expires and flew to the nearest place in Mexico from Los Angeles LAX. On July 1, 2014, I landed in Puerto Vallarta, on the Pacific Coast side of Mexico.

Having been on the road for over a month before I left for Mexico, I did not do much research or planning for my big planned-to-be one year travel towards the south of the americas. The only thing I did was to book a little private place for a week with internet, where I could rest up and do some research and figure out my next move. I ended up in an apartment in Bucerias for a week. 

In the in-flight magazine on the 3-hour plane ride from LAX to Puerto Vallarta, I came across a page on a little surf town called Sayulita, and thought maybe I'll go check it out for a start if it's close enough. And it turned out it was about a 30-40 minutes bus ride from Bucerias, and I found a beginner's Spanish class to attend that was operating out of the Costa Verde International School in Sayulita. When I went to visit the school, I was happy to see that there is a Little Free Library outside the school, which reminds me of the Sivananda Yoga house I stayed at in Los Angeles. I begin to feel a good vibe about this.

I met Nancy the teacher, and the following week, I moved to Sayulita and to start one week of beginner's Spanish class with her.

Nancy (far right) is nice and fun to learn from, and I met nice classmates and made a few friends :)

My spanish at the end of the week was really very basic... but I begin to get into the sound of it. I was eager to learn more on the street.

a quiet temple

after the high energy in uma devi, we went by this other quiet temple. it is a totally different experience, a different architecture, a different atmosphere. instead of the crowd, there were not many people in this one. the white structure and intricate carvings gives it a sense of sacredness and calm. we wondered around for about 10 mins before continuing on our way.

umadevi

we arrived at the umadevi temple at around 8plus in the morning, i think it was a saturday. on the way to the entrance of the temple, there were many of these 'holy man' who'd offer you these prayers and red wrist thread, which you supposedly can't refuse, and would have to pay some money for it. ha.

it was really crowded and there was a rush to enter the temple each time the gate was open. inside the temple the devotees were very focussed on getting their prayers heard, jostling and squeezing amongst one another to get in front to place their offerings. it was a heady experience, being in that crowd. quite powerful.

haji ali

haji ali was quite an amazing experience. the walkway leading to the temple in the middle of the sea is only visible during the low tide, and during high tide, it is entirely submerged in water so that the temple is inaccessible on foot. on the weekend late afternoon is when it is most crowded and when the people are hurrying to visit this sacred site. the walk in is rather long, paved with vendors selling prayer materials, as well as many beggars or homeless people. along the way we all get wet as the tide threaten to rush ashore; some tries to escape the water, while others rejoice in the fun of this refreshing sprinkle.

the journey towards a holy site is filled with anticipation of some solemn environment. however, when we arrived, it was a nice surprise, as we see a bust of energy coming from the people playing with the waves and having so much fun with nature. it is such a nice place to hang out and spend an energetic or contemplative afternoon, away from the city. it is this sea-facing backyard of the temple where we spent most of our time there, hardly venturing into the dim interior of the temple where the solemn prayers are taking place, where it is less welcoming than this free rejoicing of play.

mumbai madness

mumbai's traffic is quite crazy. check out the rope the police is holding in front of the traffic light to stop the horde of people waiting to cross the road... an entirely new concept for us who basically just walked to the road side before realizing there is such a practice happening behind us. the fierce-looking cop looked at us but left us alone. this is at the cross junction outside of Churchgate Station, one of the main interchange train station in mumbai.

the underground passageway to the station itself is no less crowded!




the local trains during the peak hours are always crowded and most people near the doorway (there is no 'door' door) are hanging on to the handle in the train, while half their torso is swinging out of the train.

fishing village in andheri

the fishing village is full of energy - the strong smell of the salty sea, fishes, shrimps, squids etc. etc. all spread out on the beach just after the rows of fishing boats return from their venture. the man unloading their catch, the women spontaneously setting up their market place, everyone moving about, shouting bargains, contributing to the incredible burst of dynamism on this sandy beach.

most people do not really understand how our equipment work; most just ignored us and went on with their business, while there are a few who would look and wonder into frame... equally curious about what we are doing and how we look i guess... the colours and light were great too. these photos were taken with ka5's digital compact camera which i borrowed while he is videoing.

train ride

finally i made it to india - mumbai. 5 days in mumbai on research on the diaspora project and i seem to be on the train or around the train endlessly. the hot and crowded landscape of india is as i imagined. the intensity of the sight, smell and taste - very tactile. the people are at once so loveable and annoying, open and obnoxious. the class divide of india is exhibited on the streets of mumbai.

the train journeys are like relief from the packed city of people and traffic. seeing people come and go, flitting sights of the sparse suburbs. restless spirit of a little girl, thoughtful soul of a young mother.

late night arrival in mumbai

less than 4 days after 10 days of hot and noisy saigon shooting, we are off to mumbai, arriving late at night past midnight. it was warm and humid. we were harassed at the airport by the luggage guys and end up having to tip more than we like for his uncalled upon service of putting our bags into the trunk of the taxi.

the taxi. yes, these black yellow tops are all over mumbai. when we were making our taxi reservation at the airport counter, we asked for the one with aircon and paid a little bit more for it. when we got to the taxi, it was a different matter. there was no aircon and the driver was sleeping in the driver's seat. when awoken to take us, it took him awhile to wake up and then almost reluctantly took the job. i don't really know how the system there works but by then we were at the quiet carpark area, tired and can't be bothered to fuss over these details. so we went with the taxi and arrived at our hotel - Hotel Godwin - on Garden Rd in Colaba. more on the hotel later.

the filming starts from the taxi as we leave the airport. along the way i observe the many little shops/ pockets of partitioned space, lined up along the road, people sitting around... the crammy feel of these interiors, with its bare light bulb hanging precariously on a wire from the ceiling, instantaneously reminded me of a mama shop feel, although the mama shop i know are a little bigger, but no less crammed. it's an interesting identification that is at once familiar, exciting, and strangely comforting...

random pix 2: taipei mood

random pix 1: taipei

apparently the current fashion trend in taipei is the black-and-white zebra lines print.


man practising falungong outside a shopping mall window display ledge.

i like taipei

it's my first time in taiwan and my only impressions of taiwan were their crazy and super-funny variety shows, old tear-jerking tv soaps, fighting parliament and some of their pop music. i must say that after visiting taipei, i like it very much and one of the reason is its similarity to japan. some parts of taipei feels so japanese, its quaint and small architecture, pop culture and mannerisms... no surprise since taiwan was occupied by the japanese for some 50 long years. they are different of course. the advantage of taipei for me is also the access of the language. my chinese is not fantastic but enough to get by and when i'm not lazy, i can read quite a bit lah. :p