Hello everyone,

I apologise for being too busy and lazy to update my blog and now I have lots of explaining to do. I guess that I will just start from my trip to Tuxtepec. (btw. Now I'm too lazy to put photos but I promise I will add some later)

So we all intercambistas from this district met in Tuxtepec. A city in the state of Oaxaca. The place was full of mosquitos and after the trip my legs were covered with red spots where the little creepers had enjoyed their lunch.

The trip began on Sunday 2 weeks ago. The bus ride went quickly talking with other exchange students from my city and listening to the Brazilians speaking portuguese. I want to learn to speak it too. It souands so funny and cute it sounds like Spanish, Russian and Chinese all mixed up. xD I already know some frases that I asked from the Brazilians... so when I'll rturn to Finland I will also speak Portuguese.

In Tuxtepec we met our 4-day host families. My new dad was waiting there and he took me home and complimented my good Spanish. :) Yay! Home I met my 2 new sisters and my mom. My sister from Germany lives in that home permanently and my other sister from Taiwan was staying there just 4 days like me.

I slept in the same room with my sister from Taiwan, Winnie. She is one of the sweetest and cutest girls I have ever met. I hope that I will be able to visit her in the city where she lives here in Mexico. She told me that I am just like a doll because I have so blond hair. The truth however is that she is 100 x more a doll than I am. She is small and really doll looking and she has cute clothes. 

After talking with Winnie and taking a shower we had dinner in a restaurant. Going there was overwhelming but awesome. I'm used to meeting one or two new exchange students at one time but now I met a whole restaurant full of new faces from all over the world (though most of them were from Brasil, France and Germany but anyway)  First I didn't know what to do but then I started to talk with people and it was amazing. Suddenly the whole restaurant had something in common. Everybody had faced same problems same cultural differences and everybody had something to tell about their home countries. I also met the boy from Finland who had sat next to me the whole 12 hour flight to Mexico city. It was really weird. I couldn't speak any Finnish anymore. I tried to speak but I couldn't remember the words or how I should say the words. He admitted too that my Finnish wasn't that good. Even though we spent many hours there when we had to go I could have spent 10 hours more.

On Monday we were welcomed by the city and we were given papers that said that we are guests of honour in Tuxtepec. This would have been quite cool if they would have had airconditioning and if they would have written my name without making so many writing errors. ;D After that we visited the Corona beer factory. It's kind of funny because one of the forbitten things is drinking... though drinking with Rotary is allowed so we could drink in the end of the tour in a restaurant. (and drinking without Rotary finding out is allowed too so...) The food was good and we all enjoyed ourselves this time my speaking Finnish went a bit better though it was still very bad and sounded unnatural.

In the same evening we had Brasilian food that wasn't really Brasilian. At least according to all the Brasilian exchange students. I believe them, there are so many exchange students from Brazil. Including me. I changed my flag from my name thingy with a Brazilian girl. Earlier that day we had also taken a official group photo and now we all got copies of it. Soon everybody started to write in the backside of others' pictures in their own languages and that was what we did the rest of the night. I love my picture. Eventhough I look terrible in it I don't care because there I have everynbody and the backside is a lovely mix of all the languages and it's nice to read the messages that others have left me.

On tuesday, which also happens to be the independence day of Mexico we spent the day swimming, getting us tanned and playing games in a lovely place. We also ate there but the food wasn't really that good. I think that's because they had prepared food that was obviously not what they usually eat, planned to please foreigners. No chile, not at all tasty. They should prepare what they can prepare: Mexican food.

So in the evening we celebrated the Mexican independence day. I thought I was already ready to go when my new hostmom came and was like: "Make up your eyebrows" I was like I don't have any make up fot that and then she dragged me to her room and played make over with a Barbie doll. So soon I had eyebrows. I couldn't decide if I liked it or not. I was not used to having visible eyebrowns. I took a little off them and when they were a bit less strong they looked quite fine.

I had an awesome evening. It felt kind of unreal to be there. I realized that I am in Mexico. I felt sp proud of my country and I have never carried a flag with same love to my country as I carried the Mexican flag that night. We saw fireworks, Mariachis playing and singinga and just had awesome time with all the exchange students. In the end of the night at 2 o'clock I didn't want to leave. I didn't want to say good bye to all those people. Most of them I wouldn't see before Ruta Maya. However I didn't really have a choice so I kissed and said good bye to all my new friends except The german and Taiwan girl because they would still be home with me that day and tomorrow morning.

Home I felt different. I didn't feel the same that I felt when I left Finland. I am a lot braver and more independent in a way. I laugh more at myself. I dance more. I'm cal in situations that I would be absolutely terrifyied in Finland. I never complain about anything that is unnecessary. I got a sudden thought that I want to cut bangs. Winnie agreed that it would probably look good. I nearly did that already that night but I decided that maybe 3 o'clock in the morning is not the best time to do something like that if you don't want to regret it in the morning.

When I woke up I hoped that it would be 7 o'clock and I would have many hours before my bus leaves. I didn't even look at the cloch and went straight to the shower. After taking the shower I noticed that I had just one hour left to eat, stuff all my belongings into my suitcase and make myself look like a normal human being and not the zombie that I look like when I get out of the bed. I managed to do all that in time and said farewell to my new family and left.

When I arrived home (my permanent one) i was absolutely exhausted and so was Jessica who was staying in our house with me because her hostparents had gone to a funeral and they would come back in few days. We asked if we could stay home tomorrow and not go to school but mom said no. I wasn't quite happy with this but I didn't whine that would be stupid. Home Jessica was trying to make the internet work in her laptop and my parents were helping her. So I layed down on the floor and closet my eyes listening to what they were talking about at times when my parents came to talk with her. I breathed and acted so that I looked as sleeping as possible. Finally they got their internet working and the last thing my dad said before leaving the room and closing the door: "Oh and mom said you don't have to go to school tomorrow because you are so tired" About 3 seconds after closing the door I get up laughing silently and Jessica stares at me looking suprised and she says same playful smile on her face that was covering my face too: "you weren't sleeping, were you????!!!! Omg!" and I just smiled a twisted smile and raised a finger on my lips to tell her to be quiet. Then we laughed silently and she gave me high-5. Was this manipulating my parents to let us stay home? Yes, but I actually was quite tired. ;)

Next day we woke up about 3 o'clock and I could still have slept more. In the evening we called all the exchange students and went to malecon to eat tacos arabes, they are good! :) 

Next day was friday and I went to school. After coming back from the school Jessica was having headache and she went to rest while I decided to go to hairdresser. My mom took me there and the I tried to explain her what I wanted to be done. It was the same creepy hairdresser that did me pedicure earlier I should have already learned that I don't go there. So my explaining went a bit wrong and instead of just cutting bangs on the other side of my fore head oblique she took the scissors and without doubt just cut oblique bangs on my whole forehead. I was a bit upset but I kept my face calm. I just instructed her what I wanted her to do to it and finally it started to look oh right. I went home and in front of a mirrow I  changed the parting back to the side like it was before I went to the hairdresser and she put it in the middle. Now it really started to look good. I called Victoria in a little state of shock (but positively) ripped the angsty, black Elimy the strainger shirt off and replaced it with a pink hello-kitty shirt. I put on some eyeshadow and then we drove to Victoria's house to pic her up because I was going shopping with her. I hadn't mentioned her about my hair because I wanted an honest reaction. When she stepped in the car I turned to face the backseat and said hello. She was like: "Elina! Omg! That looks awesome! When did you do that??!!"  Apparently I didn't fail my hair. In the evening we were going to go  in a party and there would also be all the exchange students and the whole school. I wanted to look awesome with my new hair and I wanted eyebrows and new clothes too. So we had a good old-time shopping spree and soon I had a kiler dress, make up and for the final touch I bought a flower to put in my hair. I also finally bought sun glasses because I forgot mine in Finland. All my friends in Finland have probably herd me complainnig how sunglasses don't fit me. Now they do. They do with this hair. As well as some hats that I really love. I wanted to buy a hat but I decided to buy that one later.

Home I dressed up, put on my makeup, combed my hair and put on the flower. I looked absolutely gorgeus. I actually did. I don't often say that but honestly that night I looked good. Jessica was till getting ready when the news came. YOU CAN NOT GO TO THE PARTY. My mom told us the bad news. Becaise of this jerk that is a hostdad of one exchange students Rorary had forbitten going to the party from the kids in my club. This guy has something against one French exchange student who is near. In a Rotary meeting where the hostfamilies were told. He noticed that the girl would stay in her house and what did he say... In front of her, in front of Rotary, in front of everybody he said: "I don't want her to stay in my house." He won't really be anyone's hostdad after the exchange student who lives there at the moment will move away. But back to the story... So this guy heard that the French exchange student is going to the party so he told Rotary "She is going there and she studies in an university. She is a bad kid and it's going to be a bad party. They will drink there and I don't want any of the exchange students to go there. I will go there myself and take photographs and I will make them look bad in the internet." So Rotary didn't really have any other chice than to say that we cannot go. Jessica was pissed off. I was pissed off. I was angry. I was sad. I cried in my new dress, in my new makeup. This was supposed to be my night. My night that I would once in the life time have a cool new look and look fabulous and see the faces of everyone I know suprised. Yes, it was supposed to be my night. He made it his night. The night that all the exchange students turned against him.

I was till crying without being able to stop when my hostmom came and hugged me. Then Victoria called and she wanted to talk us about what had happed. She was just as pissed off as we were though I was the one who was really that sad. I tryied to keep myself sound normal and not to cry but I failed and Victoria decided to come over. She came here and mom ordered us hamburgers (that are absolutely delicious here) then we watched legally blond and after all we had a good night. Jessica and Victoria both slept in my room and it felt nice to have a sleep-over party with friends like we always had in Essi's house in Finland. I miss that.