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Puerto Escondido

APR 23

Posted by TC

The sea looks deceptively calm from the concrete roof of my little hotel on the beach in Puerto Escondido. It’s hot, and the wind kicks up some dust from the street of sand below. I’m at the far end of Zicatela beach, a spot called La Punta (the point).

From this angle the straight blue line of ocean towers over the beach, where good waves come crashing in day and night. I see small concrete houses, including a pink castle, but no high-rise exclusive condos. I hear the ceaseless crash of the waves, but no beachside street traffic. The Oaxaca coast is a little far from everything, and the roads to get here are a little too curvy, but there is plenty of return for making the extra effort.

Puerto Escondido is right about in the middle of Mexico’s southern coast. Its main beach Zicatela is a surf beach. La Punta is the spot on the far end of the beach from Puerto Escondido. Called La Punta for its rocky point break, it’s full of surfers all day. The beach is wide and clean. Small houses and hotels are visible between lots of palms, all set back from the beach. As of now there is no hotel larger than a story or two, no pumping beach music, no hustlers. Only every third building in La Punta is made for tourists: small hotels/hostels, good restaurants, and at least one Spanish school. The rest is all for the locals: grocery stores, laundromats, private homes, a church.

I ruin my bodyboard in the heavy breakers my first day out. I keep thinking to rent a surfboard, but I’m not so good and am happy just swimming all afternoon. Plus, my legs are already sore from the several hour runs I do on the beach each morning. If you go around the rocks and cliffs past La Punta, you will find a near-virgin beach on the other side. There is only just a little development on the hills above, none on the wild beach.

8 Venado, my hotel/hostel, is family-run, clean, and convenient. I get a sizable room with balcony and private bath for 100 pesos, or about $8 US. They also have dorm rooms. The best feature for me is a sizable open-air kitchen. I can pay a little more for a hotel (you can go cheaper than 100 pesos in Oaxaca) and will more than make up for it by brewing my own coffee and making simple meals, like Mexican buns (teleras) with mango jam.

A sand-road block up from my hotel is a great four-way. On one corner is a falafel place, the other a burger place, and then next to the burgers is a pizza place. It’s all first rate: all-beef grilled burgers, thin crust pizza, and the first falafel I’ve found in Mexico. All have outdoor seating, and if they don’t serve beer then they don’t mind if you bring your own. Prices are low at less than $5 a meal.

I venture into Puerto Escondido proper for Mexican food in the market. First we go to a juice bar – I have an alfalfa mixture and my friend gets straight-up orange juice, each for about $1.50. Then at one of the little market restaurants I have mole negro and my friend gets a big seafood soup of fish, shrimp, clams, and octopus. Each meal is about $3 US, drink included. If you ever want authentic eats, go to the little restaurants in the market, and always choose the busiest one.

Then I go around to buy some essentials: a big bag of finely ground, rich local coffee, some almonds, some raisins, and a big 3-day papaya. This all costs me around $12 US. The larger, more enclosed part of Puerto Escondido’s market has the stuff for tourists: t-shirts, handicrafts, beach gear.

The walk along the beach from central Puerto Escondido back to La Punta takes about an hour. You pass through the more developed part of Zicatela with its little tourist strip of restaurants and souvenir shops. It’s set back from the beach and not too gaudy. Here I see some even cheaper hotel deals – as low as $4 US a night advertized. At night it’s a place to stroll with a big, sweating Michelada in hand.

Farther along are more hippy-like establishments. My friend and I stop at a bar/coffeeshop full of books and cool carved masks.

Puerto Escondido is a about half a day from Oaxaca City on a very twisty road. Be warned if you get carsick. Second class buses and combis are cheapest at about $5 for the trip. The place to go is the second class bus terminal by the Centro de Abastos, a big market in Oaxaca. On the way to Puerto Escondido you will pass San Jose del Pacifico, a mushroom town in the mountains; Pochutla, a good hub for all points on the Oaxaca coast; and low key beaches Zipolite and Mazunte. You can also get direct buses from Mexico City. Check out this post for tips on bus travel in Mexico.

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Toluca, Estado de Mexico, Mexico →

Working in Mexico – the FM3 Visa

AUG 17

Posted by TC

I went through the FM3 visa application process in 2010 in Toluca, the capital of Estado de Mexico. As a nationwide system, it shouldn’t be much different where you are, but you never know. Expect all of this information to change. Here is the website: www.inm.gob.mx

With the FM3 you will receive an official-looking letter stating which field you can work in. As a teacher my field is education. There are many fields, like engineering. This means you can have as many jobs as you want as long as they are in your field.

The FM3 visa is a card, not a little book like before. With it you are a non-immigrant temporary resident of Mexico. You can work anywhere in the country, not just the state you were originally hired in. It must be renewed every year for a maximum of five years.

First you need a letter from the company that wants to hire you. With the letter they must provide either a tax statement or some kind of permission from the government to hire foreign workers. Unless you will be their first foreign worker, they will know exactly what to give you.

Welcome to Mexico! (click any image for a larger size)

What you provide for the FM3 are:

1. Copies of every page of your passport and the original tourist paper from customs that was stamped when you arrived in Mexico. You don’t want to lose this anyway because you need it to leave the country, although once you get the FM3 you won’t need it anymore.

2. All the documents you brought from home that you needed to get your job – resume, original birth certificate, a rent receipt from your apartment in Mexico, and all your credentials (university degree, certificates, licenses)- in originals to show and copies for them to keep.

3. The letter and documents from your future company.

4. 5 photos (three front and two sides) – check the website for sizes, or get the form from the office. You will make many trips there anyway.

5. Two payments – 500 pesos with the application and 2,000 when it’s ready.

6. The application dated from only a day or two before. You type it on the website and then print it.  www.inm.gob.mx

Bring originals and copies of everything. Make sure you have backups at home, or better yet take digital photos or scans, in case something gets lost. They may ask for certified copies of your degrees – apostillados – which means some company will evaluate them for a fee. I was asked to do this and then got out of it by showing off the originals.

The most important thing of all is to just be patient. You will have to go way more times than you want. They will tell you different information each time. Just smile, write it down, and do what you can. If you can’t provide something, just come back without it and don’t mention it. In the friendliest way possible keep mentioning the letter from your future company. If you get angry and show it, you will get nowhere.

With the FM3 you can work. You will receive social insurance, including health care, and you need to go to another office to get the number. Also, you don’t have to pay to enter Mexico anymore, so when you buy plane tickets make sure they know, because an extra charge for foreigners is automatically put on the price.

If you would like more information, check out this series of blogs I wrote about teaching English in Mexico: http://www.ontesol.com/blog2/?cat=21

Top Ten Mexican Slang

MAY 20

Posted by TC

Top Ten Mexican Slang

The order of this list has absolutely no meaning other than which words and phrases I think are the most interesting, amusing, common, or unique. Please disagree with me, correct my spelling, or remind me of what I’ve left out.
WARNING: if you are a FRESA (stuck-up person) you might be offended by the use of some very vulgar language, but if you are a NACO (low-class, person with bad taste) you will overuse most of the words on this list.

10. You may have noticed NO HAY BRONCA is the name of my blog. It means “no problem.”

9. ¡A HUEVO! (vulgar) – Do you know what huevo means? It means egg, but HUEVOS are balls. There are many ways to use the word. When my Spanish was still at a pretty basic level I had astudent who said HUEVOS DIAS to me – not a very nice thing to say. ¡A HUEVO! means “of course!” – a very useful expression. Another variation is TENGO HUEVA, which means you are feeling lazy.

8. CHELA / CAGUAMA – CHELA means beer, and CAGUAMAS are the big returnable 40 ounce bottles, undoubtedly your best value on the street.

7. ¡ORALE! – Even after over a year in Mexico I still don’t think I can properly describe this word. It can be used for encouragement, like “go for it!” or “right on!” Or it can be use like “let’s do it!” or “let´s go!” It seems to be a second cousin of HIJOLE, which is like ¨wow¨ or “my goodness!”

6. ¿QUE ONDA? – Along with ¿QUE PASO?, ¿QUE TAL?, and the vulgar ¿QUE PEDO?, this is yet another way to say “what’s up?” ONDA literally means waves or, in this case, vibes.

5. PEDO (vulgar) – This word is as versatile as the tortilla, but, unlike the tortilla, very rarely appropriate. As a noun it usually means problem, or more literally, fart. NO HAY PEDO is a substitute for NO HAY BRONCA, no problem. CUAL ES TU PINCHE PEDO means “what’s your fucking problem?” As an adjective it means drunk. ESTOY BIEN PEDO, WEY. “I’m fucking drunk.” A drunken party or a binge is UNA PEDA. You can make great phrases with it too, such as the aforementioned ¿QUE PEDO?

4. CHIDO means cool. If you don’t hear this word 100 times a day, you aren’t off the tourist track yet. On a similar note, PADRE (father) means good or cool while MADRE (mother) usually means bad. No, it doesn’t make sense.

3. ¡NO MANCHES! – The literal meaning is ridiculous, but this is used like “no way!” or “come on!” Look out for ¡NO MAMES!, the vulgar equivalent.

2. CHINGAR (vulgar) – Much like English’s beloved f-word, CHINGAR has a wide range of uses – from describing something positively – CHINGON – to negatively – CHINGADA. Or, if there is a lot of something, traffic for example, you can say HAY UN CHINGO DE TRAFICO. It is also used to express the foulest, rudest, and most aggressive sentiments. This is a truly Mexican word, and to learn the origins and deep thoughts behind it check out The Labyrinth of Solitude by Octavio Paz. For more everyday uses, do a quick Google search.

1 WEY / GUEY – I don’t really know how to spell it. WEY isn’t as famous as ORALE or versatile as CHINGAR, and it may not even be as common as CHIDO. You might even spend a month here without hearing it. But, once in the proper circles you will hear WEY used as every other word, how teenage American girls use ”like.”

“¡Simon wey, mira wey, chupamos veinte caguamas wey, no mames wey, estabamos bien pedos wey!”

WEY means “dude,” and if you haven’t heard something like the above already, I truly hope that when you do you will recall this example and laugh. SIMON in this case is a slang substitute for “si,” or yes.

HONORABLE MENTION(S): You can add “-on” or “-ona” to any body part to describe someone who has a prominent one. For example:

NARIZ – nose — NARIZON – guy with a big nose

CEJAS – eybrows — CEJON – guy with bushy eyebrows

FRENTE – foreheard – FRENTONA – girl with a big forehead

CULO – ass — CULONA – girl with a big ass, often complimentary (vulgar)

Also, you can do this with professions. “ero” or “era” makes a job title.

OBRA – work — OBRERO – worker

PALOMITA – popcorn — PALOMERO – popcorn seller

CULO – ass — CULERO – “ass seller,” but it is really used the way we use “asshole.”

Everyday Mexican Slang

FEB 18

Posted by TC

The most popular post on this blog is Top Ten Mexican Slang. For sure, as happy as I am with that list I know I left a lot out. Ten words and their derivatives aren’t nearly enough to even scratch the surface of slang in Mexico.

So here’s some slang I hear every day. Unlike my Top Ten Mexican Slang, which includes a lot of vulgar language, in this post everything has a PG rating. Later I will write a list of everyday bad language.

Mande

Mande is the Mexican way to ask “what” or “excuse me,” when you don’t understand what someone said. It can also be used like “tell me.”

Ahorita

Ahora means “now.” The “-ita” or “-ito” (female or male) stem is a diminutive, used to show that something is small or cute. So literally ahorita means “little now.”

Mexicans might tell you that ahorita means “right now,” but really it means “soon” or “eventually.” If you ask a Mexican to do something and they reply with ahorita, then you know it could happen in five minutes, five hours, or never.

“Puedes ayudarme con mi tarea?” “Ahorita.”

“Ya vamanos?” “Ahorita.”

Aguas

You may know that agua means water. But in slang Aguas means “be careful.” Don’t ask why. Like slang all over the world, it isn’t supposed to make sense.

Tocayo

A tocayo is someone with the same name. You can say, “Somos tocayos” or just call the person with the same name as you tocayo.

Tope

When you visit Mexico you will notice speedbumps everywhere. Aguas when you drive. They often aren’t marked. Hitting them hard at night makes everyone in the backseat bounce up and slam their heads into the ceiling. They are called topes.

Camion

A camion is a bus. In other parts of Latin America it is a truck. I kept telling people  in Guatemala that I arrived by camion until someone questioned me further. The other word for a bus in Mexico is autobus, not just plain “bus.”

Chamba

A chamba is a lousy job. You can say, “Tengo que regresar a mi chamba” or ask, “Que chamba tienes?”

Chafa

Chafa means something cheap or low quality. I’m not sure if it is an adjective, noun, or both. “Esta coche es chafa.”

Codo

Codo means elbow, but in slang it means cheap, as in a cheap person. The “real” word for this is Tacano. “No seas codo” – don’t be cheap.

Chavo/Chava

Continuing with the “ch” words, here are slang words for young people – teenagers on up. You can also call younger teenagers Chamacos. Remember the final “o” is for males and “a” for females.

Corrale / apurate / tengo prisa

The first two mean hurry up. I don’t know if they are actually slang. Tengo prisa means that you are in a hurry.

I hope these are helpful! Let me give you a link to a good blog for detailed explanations of Mexican slang:http://www.myspanishnotes.blogspot.com/

And this one is full of bad language:http://pelangoche.blogspot.com/

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A Star Wars themed, four-part a cappella musical tribute set to cinematic themes from composer John Williams.

A Star Wars themed, four-part a cappella musical tribute set to cinematic themes from composer John Williams.

YouTube video (lip sync) by Corey Vidal
Vocals (ALL singing) by Moosebutter
Written and recorded by Moosebutter

Please support our careers, everyone's love of Star Wars, and the amazing work of John Williams by sharing this video.

A BIG thank you and ALL musical credit goes to the a cappella comedy group Moosebutter (from Provo, UT), who are not only the voices behind the song, but greatly assisted me in the making of this video and memorizing this brilliant track. Check out their website here:
http://www.moosebutter.com/

[HuatulcoParadise.net] Earthquake in Chiapas

hurricanedivers email@hurricanedivers.com via yahoogroups.com	7:50 AM (21 minutes ago)
to huatulco

Yesterday morning there was a 6.0 earthquake just off the coast of Chiapas.

Here in Huatulco we only felt a little tremor for a few seconds.

I can't find any news of any effects of it in Chiapas.

Roberto

Quake rocks southern Mexico Published July 29, 2012 EFE Read more: http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2012/07/29/quake-rocks-southern-mexico/#ixzz227Qx2PJZ

A magnitude-5.7 earthquake rocked southern Mexico's Chiapas state on Sunday, but there were no injuries or damage, the National Seismology Service said.

The temblor occurred at 7:22 a.m. and had its epicenter 97 kilometers (60 miles) southwest of Ciudad Hidalgo at a depth of 14 kilometers (8.7 miles).

"There were no incidents whatsoever" in terms of injuries or damage from the earthquake, which was only felt in the Soconusco region, emergency management office spokesmen told Efe.

The earthquake was felt in Guatemala's Quetzaltenango and San Marcos provinces, the Guatemalan seismology institute said.

No injuries or damage were reported, Guatemalan emergency management officials said.

A magnitude-5.2 earthquake rocked southern Mexico last Tuesday, but no injuries or damage were reported.

The quake's epicenter, which was located at a depth of 13.2 kilometers (8.2 miles), was 11 kilometers (6.8 miles) south-southeast of San Juan de Cacahuatepec, a town in Oaxaca state, and 24 kilometers (14.9 miles) north of Santiago Pinotepa Nacional, another town on the southern state's Pacific coast, the U.S. Geological Survey, or USGS, said.

Mexico's National Seismological Service confirmed the temblor on Twitter and estimated the magnitude at 5.62.

A magnitude-7.4 earthquake on March 20 killed two people in southern Mexico and was followed by dozens of strong aftershocks.

On April 2, a magnitude-6.0 earthquake rocked an area between the southern states of Guerrero and Oaxaca.

Mexico, one of the countries with the highest levels of seismic activity in the world, sits on the North American tectonic plate and is surrounded by three other plates in the Pacific: the Rivera microplate, at the mouth of the Gulf of California; the Pacific plate; and the Cocos plate.

That last tectonic plate stretches from Colima state south and has the potential to cause the most damage since it affects Mexico City, which has a population of 20 million and was constructed over what was once Lake Texcoco.

The magnitude-8.1 earthquake that hit Mexico City on Sept. 19, 1985, was the most destructive to ever hit Mexico, killing some 10,000 people, injuring more than 40,000 others and leaving 80,000 people homeless.

The most recent powerful quake to hit Mexico was a magnitude-7.6 temblor that rocked Colima on Jan. 21, 2003. EFE

Read more: http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2012/07/29/quake-rocks-southern-mexico/#ixzz227RC3DFS

Huatulco Mexico, Travel Paradise Green

Huatulco Mexico, Travel Paradise Green huatulco – Top Vacation Tips
Huatulco Mexico, Travel Paradise Green. huatulco. ajimuzaqi | July 17, 2012 | Full size is 380 × 253 pixels. Huatlco. beautiful-huatulco · Huatlco at NIght ...
www.topvacationtips.info/huatulco-mexico-travel.../huatulco/

HEY HO LET'S GO TO THE MOVIES!

Save Puerto Escondido! Go check out the IBA!! Get off your butt and do some good!!They are kicking major arse with a rebuilding effort for the Puerto Escondido area, the IBA are doing a ... www.swellinfo.com/forum/showthread.php?15634-Save...

1. Jul 21, 2012 03:57 PM#1

   H2O'C 

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   Save Puerto Escondido!

   Go check out the IBA!! Get off your butt and do some good!!They

   
   

   are kicking major arse with a rebuilding effort for the Puerto

   
   

   Escondido area, the IBA are doing a fundraiser with the

   
   

   assistance of photographers and artist from all over the world. www.ibaworldtour.com

   Reply With Quote

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