First-Year Student Journals : Alma : Journal 10

Spring Break 2003

Aside from an amazing trip my friend, sister and I had planned to take to Mexico, the thing I most looked forward to during spring break was getting enough sleep and seeing my family. Surprisingly, these two things are what I got less of.

The trip to Mexico was tiresome but loads of fun. Our first main destination was to the city of Tampico in Tamaulipas. My sister, friend and I hung out in the town’s main square, admired the tourist attractions and shopped a bit. The people’s way of life seemed very laid back and relaxing. On Saturday night entire families gathered around the plaza and watched a humorous clown show. Their worry-free way of living was something I truly envied. It was a culture nobody would hesitate to be a part of.

Our most exciting destination was El Tajin, where we explored ancient native ruins. We visited the Pyramid of 365 Niches that was built in 600 A.D. According to our tour guide, these ruins were the most extensive found in the Americas. The brilliance and creativity of the Native Americans’ work was still apparent and remarkable in the ruins. Right after this destination we had lunch at Papantla, the vanilla capital, where I came across a unique group of individuals. They were a labor organization called Zapatistas who were peacefully protesting their right to natural resources that had been taken away from them by the government. A middle-aged man of native descent talked to my sister and me about his movement to preserve the indigenous languages in Mexico. To date, the language has been severely undermined due to the government’s failure to recognize it as a legitimate second language for employment purposes. The man, who now goes by the name of Tajo (“the smallest one”), hoped to achieve the language’s recognition as an official second language through peaceful purposes.

I got back to my hometown on Tuesday night and enjoyed a delicious barbeque with my family. The next day I was back on the road heading for South Padre Island to meet up with old high school friends. We mingled for a bit before heading to a club, then came back to chat some more and catch up on the most recent things...well, to gossip. Friday night’s baked fish dinner at my sister’s finalized my spring break week since we came back to Austin Saturday afternoon. I really wish I could’ve spent more time with my family and maybe put in an extra couple of hours of sleep, but there’ll be plenty of time for that down the road. For now, my biggest school motivator is that summer is less than two months away. Woohoo!



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	Spring Break 2003 Aside from an amazing trip my friend, sister and I had planned to take to Mexico, the thing I most looked forward to during spring break was getting enough sleep and seeing my family. Surprisingly, these two things are what I got less of. The trip to Mexico was tiresome but loads of fun. Our first main destination was to the city of Tampico in Tamaulipas. My sister, friend and I hung out in the town’s main square, admired the tourist attractions and shopped a bit. The people’s way of life seemed very laid back and relaxing. On Saturday night entire families gathered around the plaza and watched a humorous clown show. Their worry-free way of living was something I truly envied. It was a culture nobody would hesitate to be a part of. Our most exciting destination was El Tajin, where we explored ancient native ruins. We visited the Pyramid of 365 Niches that was built in 600 A.D. According to our tour guide, these ruins were the most extensive found in the Americas. The brilliance and creativity of the Native Americans’ work was still apparent and remarkable in the ruins. Right after this destination we had lunch at Papantla, the vanilla capital, where I came across a unique group of individuals. They were a labor organization called Zapatistas who were peacefully protesting their right to natural resources that had been taken away from them by the government. A middle-aged man of native descent talked to my sister and me about his movement to preserve the indigenous languages in Mexico. To date, the language has been severely undermined due to the government’s failure to recognize it as a legitimate second language for employment purposes. The man, who now goes by the name of Tajo (“the smallest one”), hoped to achieve the language’s recognition as an official second language through peaceful purposes. I got back to my hometown on Tuesday night and enjoyed a delicious barbeque with my family. The next day I was back on the road heading for South Padre Island to meet up with old high school friends. We mingled for a bit before heading to a club, then came back to chat some more and catch up on the most recent things...well, to gossip. Friday night’s baked fish dinner at my sister’s finalized my spring break week since we came back to Austin Saturday afternoon. I really wish I could’ve spent more time with my family and maybe put in an extra couple of hours of sleep, but there’ll be plenty of time for that down the road. For now, my biggest school motivator is that summer is less than two months away. Woohoo!