For the week, I stayed with a cast mate, Barby, who lives in Queretaro and her family. I was roomed with one of my closest friends, Grant from Colorado, Katy from Wyoming, and Anna from Italy.
Tuesday was a very special day for all of the women in the cast because it was Women's Appreciation Day, which was a project put together by Grant and gave all of the men a chance to appreciate the women. We arrived early to the facility to decorate and set up. We all put money in to buy breakfast for the women. When the women arrived, we escorted them to their seats where they sat down to watch a powerpoint with an appreciation letter written to each one of them by one of the men. As we served them breakfast and juice, we gave massages to any woman that wanted one. We then gave the woman a chance to ask the men anything they wanted, which turned out to be pretty funny. To end the morning, some of the men painted the women's nails and we just took time to enjoy one another's company.
After lunch, we had a laughing session where we looked through pictures and watched videos of funny moments from the semester. We also took time to hear funny stories that had not yet been shared with the entire cast. It was so great to reminisce on memories throughout the semester and to also have time to sit and laugh together.
Wednesday, I was doing promotions with a small group of people. In the morning we went to a community impact site where we did a radio interview with one of our radio sponsors. We then went back to the downtown area to pass out fliers and hang up posters. After lunch, we went to another community impact site for another quick radio interview.
In the afternoon, we had internal time where we talked about life after Up with People. We were divided into groups, those going on to school, starting work, traveling for a second semester, working for UWP, or unsure. It was nice to get together with people who would be having similar experiences once we returned home and talk about our concerns.
Thursday, I went to a high school to facilitate workshops with the students. CONALEP is a private school and it was one of my favorite schools where I have facilitated. The students were so engaged in the workshops and really interested in learning. The teachers at the school were so encouraging and inviting to us and made us feel so welcome. We facilitated three workshops in the morning at the high school and then we transfered to the elementary school. We only had a short time with the elementary school students, so we played games and answered questions. As we left the elementary school, the teachers presented us with a box of beautiful home-made cookies as a gift for coming to work with their students. We headed back to the high school for lunch and then to facilitate one more workshop. It was such an incredible day with the students and teachers. I will never forget the gratitude I experienced from the teachers and the students.
After the workshops, we transitioned to a mall where we had a BTS mini show. It was a unique BTS because we performed right in the middle of an atrium with people watching from all sides. It was also challenging because we had to change costumes in another part of the mall, so once we finished a song, we had to sprint down the hall and up the stairs to quickly change and run back down. It was an exhausting, but a very fun BTS.
Friday was another day of facilitating workshops at a high school. The school was a public school, and in Mexico, the public schools are most often for lower income families. The students at this school did not speak much English, so it was an awesome opportunity for me to practice my Spanish. I had a blast interacting with the students and it was a boost of confidence to see the students having fun and understanding what I was saying!
In the afternoon, we had another BTS in the public square in the city center. We had a great crowd, but it was unbelievably hot to perform outside in the sun.
Saturday was host family day and we all traveld to San Sebastian Bernal to hike the Bernal Peak, which is the third largest rock in the world. I am not quite sure what the difference is between a rock and a mountain, but Bernal Peak looked like a mountain. We hiked up to the shoulder of the rock to look out over the beautiful desert. As we headed back down, I could feel the sun burning and I was drenched with sweat in the heat of the day. We made it back down to enjoy some delicious homemade tacos from a street vendor. The rest of the evening was spent relaxing at home and hanging out.
Sunday was our show, which was in an incredibly beautiful auditorium that seats 3200 people. We had a special rehearsal where we were all put into new positions to just have fun. I was put into a couple solos, which is not something I am used to doing, but it was a lot of fun and was a good laugh. We had a great audience and I was even blessed to meet a cast mate that traveled with my parents. It's always special for me to connect with alumni that traveled with my parents and to share my UWP experience with them.
