Planes, trains and automobiles or in our case by foot, bus or taxi!
With all the interesting and exciting places to visit in Cuernavaca, we figured it would be important to give you the inside look of what transportation looks like in Cuernavaca!
This past weekend our students and some of our staff members visited the Chapultepec Zoo (Zool贸gico de Chapultepec)聽in Mexico City. The Chapultepec Zoo is located in Chapultepec Park (Bosque de Chapultepec).聽 Chapultepec Park is more than double the size of Central Park in New York! Chapultepec Park is approximately 1695 acres of beautiful flora with many species of trees and plants, as well as fountains and outdoor activities.
Chapultepec Park is considered 鈥渁 lung of Mexico City鈥� as it produces continuous oxygen, filters water for the city, and helps regulate the temperature in the area. The Chapultepec Zoo was founded in 1923 and later renovated between 1992-1994. It is a free zoo! It is home to diverse species, including lemurs, hippopotamus, antelopes, and endangered species such as the volcano rabbit, Mexican wolf, and jaguar. One of the most famous exhibits is that of the Giant Panda. Currently there are three females giant pandas at the zoo: Xiu Hua (Born in 1985), Shuan Shuan (Born in 1987), and Xin Xin (Born in 1990). Luckily, we saw two out of three! We all had a blast and students are excited to go back and explore more of聽Chapultepec Park!
Welcome back to our weekly Cuernavaca, Mexico feature the 鈥淐uernavaca Corner鈥�! Today鈥檚 post comes from Brittney Westgard, alumni of our Social Work program and current volunteer in Mexico. Brittney is an Augsburg College Alumni.
This week we explored some of the most beautiful parks, natural attractions, and outdoor locations in Cuernavaca!
Jumping right in, let鈥檚 explore Jardin Borda right across the ravine from CEMAL located in downtown Cuernavaca. Jardin Borda was built in the late 1700鈥檚, in which had various uses over the years such as: a summer house, a hotel, a restaurant, and now a botanic garden. Overseen by the Department of Culture of the State of Morelos, Jardin Borda is not only a great place to relax, explore, and read, but a popular location for cultural events such as theater productions, concerts, and art exhibits. Continue reading “Cuernavaca Corner: The Beautiful Outdoors”
Every week we are going to be sharing some of our favorite places in Cuernavaca with you! We will be giving you the inside look on all the fun places to go in Cuernavaca, Mexico while you study abroad! Today’s Cuernavaca Corner was written by Brittney Westgard, alumni of our Social Work program and current volunteer in Mexico. Brittney is an Augsburg College Alumni.
CGEE-Mexico joins LGBT Pride Parade in Cuernavaca on August 27. Photos courtesy of Ann Lutterman-Aguilar.
Welcome to Mexico, CGEE Fall 2016 students!
CGEE-Mexico students spend part of orientation for fall semester in Mexico City.聽 They loved their visit to the important cultural-religious site of the Bas铆lica de la Virgen de Guadalupe.
Here are some photos from the summer program’s recent excursion to聽the Nevado de Toluca, or聽Xinant茅catl.聽An extinct volcano that is located in the State of Mexico, southeast of the city of Toluca. The Nevado de Toluca is approximately 4,600 meters above sea level. There is a crater in the volcano which contains lakes (Lake of the Moon and Lake of the Sun). The students were able to go down to these lakes. Although at one point it started hailing, the students really enjoyed the excursion! Two of our host families also came along and had a fun time climbing the Nevado.
Thanks to new IRA Amber Ramirez for the photos and description!
Here are some snapshots of last week’s cooking class with a former CGEE kitchen staff. Students really liked learning a new, typical Mexican dish! They made tlacloyos (stuffed homemade tortillas), flan (custard-type of desert), creme of poblano pepper and salsas!
Amanda is a junior at University of Vermont, who is studying abroad in Mexico with CGEE spring 2016; and studied abroad in Central America with CGEE fall 2015. This is an excerpt from Amanda鈥檚 blog post,聽鈥淶apatistas: Educating Yourself as a聽Tourist鈥�. Her blog is a great resource for anyone considering study abroad in Latin America! She also has travel tips for traveling as woman, and traveling as a woman of color.
Being in Chiapas, with a strong presence of indigenous communities, I cannot help but dedicate a post to the Zapatistas. A revolutionary indigenous militant group based here in this southernmost state of Mexico, I have a great love for the Zapatistas and their movement. Indigenous people everywhere all over the world struggle under racial, economic, and political oppression and here in Mexico it is no different. The fight for justice continues and the Zapatistas are currently at the forefront of it.
The Zapatistas are also referred to as EZLN, Continue reading “The Educated Tourist”
This is a guest blog post & photos from聽Crystal Winkelman, a St. Cloud State University student currently participating on CGEE鈥檚 program, 鈥淪ocial Work in a Latin American Context.鈥� See her post recapping March聽.
As my time here in Cuernavaca dwindles, I am having bitter sweet thoughts. I want to go home in just two weeks but I also want to stay longer and enjoy the beauties of this country! From hiking up the side of a mountain, to spending a week in Mexico City visiting the social work students at UNAM, to being able to spend more time with my host family, this last month has been an amazing one. This country is full of people cultures, places, and people. I am continuing to learn the language and practice more within my host family as well as within the community. My favorite memory was a week where students from UNAM came to our school and we learned the differences and comparisons of Mexican social work and social work in the United States. Makes you remember that even though we are from different countries, speak different languages and may have different values, we are not all that different from one another.
