December review

Hard to believe that the year 2022 is already coming to an end again. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas season! I am currently in the car on the way back from a week's vacation with Carmen's family. Together, we spent the holidays in a vacation home near Pueblos San Sébastian Bernal. The panorama of the small town of Bernal is characterized by the monolith "Peña de Bernal". With a height of 288 meters, the rock formation is one of the tallest in the world and is considered one of the thirteen wonders of Mexico. You can only reach the top of the famous rock with the appropriate climbing equipment.

We spent a week in the vacation home from December 21st to 27th, 2022 and enjoyed the peace and scenery, as well as the amenities of the property. The house had a large terrace with barbecue, a beautiful garden, a bar and even a small pool (although no one dared to get into the pool, as it was cold during the day with temperatures between 9 and 16 degrees Celsius).

During the week, we did puzzles, played games, painted, explored Bernal, and went on a bike tour. One highlight was the trip to a vineyard in the region, including wine tasting and a meal at the local restaurant. But of course, the most important thing was Christmas.

Christmas is celebrated here in a similar way to Europe. On Christmas Eve, which is called "Nochebuena" here, we have a shared dinner and then exchange gifts. December 25th is also a holiday, which is spent with family. However, there is no second Christmas holiday here, and many people go back to work on December 26th. So on the 24th, we spent the day together in a relaxed way and started preparing the Christmas dinner in the late afternoon. The main dish was fish, with a vegan version for me (vegan salmon). There was also apple salad, potato and vegetable salad, and potatoes in mole sauce. ("Mole" refers to various Mexican sauces that are cooked. The word "mole" comes from the indigenous language "Nahuatl" and can be translated as "mixture" or "brew"). For dessert, we had a "Tarta de Santiago" with berries and a traditional German Christmas cake, which I found in a German store in Puebla. Before dinner, after we had dressed up for the evening, there was a little dance party, and after dinner, we opened presents and then sat by the fire for a while. The family had actually agreed to celebrate without gifts this year, but we still exchanged a few small things. Carmen and I had baked cookies for everyone beforehand and given them in jars, and I received a small cultural pouch as a gift from Carmen's sister. In total, there were 13 people for Christmas: Carmen and her two sisters, Carmen's two sons and daughter plus her daughter's partner, her sisters' two sons plus one of their girlfriends, and the girlfriend's mother. Plus, there were five dogs roaming around in the garden.

All in all, Carmen's family welcomed me warmly and it was a fun and relaxed week and a Christmas in beautiful and joyful company.

And what else happened in December?

One day before our vacation, Ina and Manuel invited me to a gathering with their family, which took place on the evening of December 20th and during the day on December 21st. Every year, the family practices a ritual for the winter solstice to welcome the sun after the longest night of the year. This is an old tradition of the indigenous people of Mexico. This year, I was able to experience these customs on the evening of December 20th and in the morning of December 21st. Throughout the evening, we sat together around a campfire. Before lighting the campfire, Manuel's sister went from person to person with a small bowl of burning wooden sticks to "cleanse" us with the rising smoke (it is believed that the smoke removes all negativity from you and rises up into the sky). At the campfire, we made music with rattles, drums, and voices. Among other things, the songs were dedicated to the "Madre Tierra" (Mother Earth) and the "Gran Espíritu" (Great Spirit). Later in the evening, we smoked a pipe. Normally, the pipe is passed around in a circle and shared, but due to the pandemic, we skipped that part and the two pipes that the guests had brought remained in their owners' hands. In addition to smoking the pipe, part of the ritual is that each person in the circle speaks up and addresses the "Gran Espíritu", expressing their gratitude, whether it be for the experiences of the year, the treasures that Mother Nature provides us with, life, the sun, and so on. The campfire burned all night, but around 2 o'clock, I went to bed to get at least a little sleep, as we wanted to be awake for the sunrise the next day (around 7 o'clock), to greet the sun. So in the morning, we welcomed the sun with another ritual. This also included cleansing each member of the group with the rising smoke from the small bowl. Accompanied by words of gratitude for the sun, wind, food, water, protection, and everything that nature provides for our lives, we turned to all the directions of the sky and then sang some more songs. Unfortunately, I couldn't experience the entire ceremony because I had to leave early to go on vacation with my family, but I hope I could give you a glimpse of indigenous traditional rituals that honor and appreciate the connection to nature and all existence.

These were my two experiences at the end of the month. At the beginning of the month, on December 2nd, I went to Mexico City together with all the other volunteers for a safety briefing at the German Consulate. This was a mandatory event for all weltwärts volunteers who were in Mexico at that time, so we also got to know some Germans from other organizations and were able to exchange ideas with them. After that, we took a small bus tour of the city, although unfortunately, we didn't see as much as we had hoped, and then we went to a restaurant where they served dishes from all over Central and South America.

Another highlight in December was a rafting tour that a friend took me on. We went with a total of 14 people to the state of Veracruz for a day and were on the rapids of the "Río Filobobos" river in Tlapacoyan with three boats. We also jumped from a rock wall into the water during the tour, saw a beautiful waterfall, and walked through a small, dark cave. So it was an overall very eventful and action-packed day, and the trip was definitely worth it.

Work was a bit quieter this month. With the exception of one person, all the students had already completed their social service for the semester at the beginning of December. I mainly worked in the area and maintenance of the gardens and grounds, as well as the production of fertilizers and other tasks that needed to be done. Unfortunately, we are still struggling with ants. I also took on parts of the guided tours for guests at the Casita de Barro for the first time, because in the next few months, I will be leading the tours for guests around the site on my own. In addition, I met with Ina and Manuel a few times to plan my project. The idea is to establish units on nutrition and "One Health" (the connections between the health of nature, animals, and humans) in primary schools next year and to strengthen the children's awareness of the importance and implementation of healthy and sustainable food. In the long run, a garden will be created at the school where the children can actively participate in growing their own healthy food in a simple and sustainable way. In January, I will further develop the project together with some stakeholders and potentially involved participants, and if all goes according to plan, we will start with the classes in February.

Another news from December: I actually started biking to work. The distance is 11 kilometers and it takes me about 45 minutes. After a day of physical work, it can be exhausting, but the landscape with the volcano and mountains in the background is simply beautiful.

That's all from me for now. I am very excited about everything that the new year will bring and everything I will still be able to experience here in Mexico.

I wish you all a happy new year and lots of luck, health, and joy for the coming year!

¡Feliz Año Nuevo!

Sandy