Sunday, July 4, 2010

Where I live...

So it's my first full day in Oaxaca... I slept until 9 am... which was hard to do, considering the church bells that rang earlier than that, several different times, right out my window (you'll see in a minute). Turns out there are 6 small apartments here at Casita Camila, not 4 like I thought previously, and I met two other folks staying here. Juan, a librarian at UTEP, is making his 12th plus trip to Oaxaca (he comes by bus every time!) and Akeelah, a college professor from Philly, is here in Oaxaca for the 5th time (we were somehow on the same flight and didn't know it!).

We went to the supermercado this AM sharing a cab... just like a normal US grocery, big aisles, lots of product, clean... Though I prefer smaller, outdoor, farmer's-type markets when I travel, it was a good trip, for buying heavier items (dish soap etc) to bring home in the taxi. And I also learned that I needed to buy TP! (They give you one roll when you arrive and that's it, but no one bothered to tell me yesterday!).

I then met my new friend Skye for lunch. I met Skye on the plane, a lovely pixie of a girl who is Australian, but lives in Tokyo and teaches kindergarten. She's lived in Japan on and off for 7 years. She's only in Oaxaca for a few days, meeting up with friends and continuing her travels by bus through to Guatemala...

I start my language classes tomorrow, and am looking forward to it, despite the homework! :-)

Thought y'all'd like to see my little loft apartment. There's no A/C, but with the thick walls and cooler weather and breezes, it's not bad at all. I even had to use abit of blanket last night sleeping!


This is from the front door to the left, near the computer chair. Note the oh-so-very safe wall plug RIGHT above the stove! which the refrigerator is plugged into (the only available plug)! 


This is with my back to the stove. The Wifi isn't very strong *in* my apt, so I have to use the laptop near the open window.

The bathroom sink shares the wall with the table that's in the living/kitchen area (make sense)?
 The stairs are to the right of the bathroom door.

Top of the stairs (they make a slight left turn at the top), with my back against the wall.


To the right is the front wall of the apartment, you can see the top of the front door. The windows to the left are facing *directly* towards  La Iglesia del Carmen Alto which is across the street. Hence the ringing church bells in the AM.

 La Iglesia del Carmen Alto (if you're interested): I can see the little white cross from my bedroom window...

Hasta Luego!


4 comments:

  1. What a perfect apartment! LOVE it that you can see the cross from your window and hear the bells ringing.

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  2. Hi there,
    I'm considering renting one of these little apartments next spring. You mentioned that the plug near the stove is the ONLY plug -- do you mean in the entire place? That means you had to plug your laptop in there??

    And did you find the WiFi connection to be pretty slow/bad? I hope to work while I'm there, so need a place with a good WiFi connection.

    Do you think it is just the particular apartment you were in?

    Thanks! Feel free to e-mail me with your answers if you can: michelledelaine@yahoo.com

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  3. Hi Michelle, I will also email this reply to you. Sorry about the delay, I don't check the blog much when I'm not actively posting on it. To answer your questions, the outlet in the kitchen in NOT the only outlet in the apartment, just the only outlet in the kitchen! That's why I commented on the danger of it! There were at least 2 other outlets in the living room area, plus one in the bathroom and at least 2 - 3 in the loft/bedroom. The WiFi was weakest in my apartment (Sol) since it is farthest away from the WiFi router. Generally sitting at the open window wasn't too bad, though sometimes I had to sit on the back shared patio or in a friend's apt. if I really needed it and the WiFi was being sketchy. From what I know, the WiFi was much stronger/ worked better in the other apartments. I did tell the girls they should get a WiFi booster for the Sol apartment, but who knows if they have done that yet. If you have any other questions about the apt. let me know (via email is best!) texang73 at gmail dot com - Regards, Angela

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