San Cristobal, Chiapas

I arrived in San Cristobal yesterday afternoon. I quickly met my mentor, Gracia, and she took me to the house that I will be living in. I live with her friend--an eclectic italian woman who moved to Mexico because she makes textiles and fell in love with the method that Mayan women in Chiapas use to weave. She has a nine year old daughter. They live in a beautiful ranch-house. It is filled with her art and textiles! Envision a layout in an Anthropologie magazine! I can onl hope that she offers to make me somehing in the three months that I am here! I live upstairs in a modest little room. I have to watch my head when I walk around because the ceilings are quite low! It has a lot of architectual charm though. I can open up these cute little doors and walk out onto the balcony overlooking her spacious backyard. And my internet works from my room! I don't have to intrude on their family space everytime I want to check my email. Such an improvement! The rent is a little steep, but I am just relieved to have a secure place to live for now. All my food is included and I have my own bathroom. She serves a midday meal at like 3pm. Mexicans (and Italians!) eat their biggest meal at this time, rather than at night. I make my own breakfast and a little something at night. So far it is working out great. She is a really good and healthy cook. And the best part is, she offers an alternative to Mexican food! Don't get me wrong, I love Mexican food. But a salad every once in a while is amazing.
I have only been out in the city one time, but my initial observation is that San Cristobal is drastically different that Mexico City. It is stunning in a third-world sort of way. The city is bustling and bright, but it lacks the world-class city intensity of the Distrito Federal. I am really amazed at how alive and visible the indigenous culture is. As culturally sensitive as I like to think I am, I was not prepared to walk through the market and see women and men holding live chickens upside-down by the feet. And I took a second look at petite, barefoot women carring huge loads on their backs that are supported by a band across their forehead. I saw several really young women lugging babies that were half the size as them in cloths wrapped around their shoulders. While I was in the bus, the other passengers had a conversation in an indigenous mayan language. I am almost certain that it was about me since I hit my head really really hard getting in the bus. I am too tall to be in San Cristobal!
I thought that San Cristobal was a jungle, but I was definitely wrong. I got caught up in the sensationalism of the Zapatistas! They live in the jungle, but not of Chiapas is like that. San Cristobal is at a really high altitude so the temperature changes a lot during the day. Nights are really cold and days are pretty warm. While I was in the car from Tuxtla (the city where the airport is), I was amazed at beautiful the landscape is. I need to take pictures. It is too hard to explain! Tomorrow I am going to be a tourist so I will try to post some of my pictures.
Today, I met with my mentor and then went to the university that she works at to start my reseach. i don't think I will be studying the Zapasistas anymore. It is hard to get permission and blah blah blah. But I will still study maternal health among indigenous women. Chiapas has a really unfortunate public health system, especially for people who are poor and marginalized. I want to study the medical services that are available for poor indigenous during their pregnancies and before and after the birth event. I want to investigate/criticize the assumption that "less modern" women want to use "less modern" medical services. San Cristobal has more ngo's than any other city in the world. Many offer health services. It is interesting because many indigenous women have begun to accept the very new age services that these organizations offer--water births, prenatal massages, accupuncture, etc...Interesting, right? It is a perfect example of non-linear development. Non governmental organizations are filling up the social space that the Mexican government abandoned during its transition to neoliberalism. Indigenous women, who are usually thought of as being passive in regards to their health, are bypassing the limited social services that the state offers and instead are actively searching out alternative ways to recive medical attention. These are just my initial research ideas. Now I need to see if I am right by talking with women! I met a guy in the library today who offered to help me translate. He works for an organization that helps integrate street children into public schools. It was interesting because although he is Mexican, he doesn't speak Spanish fluently. His first language is tzotil and like me, he started to learn spanish in high school. Such a trip!
Keep in touch! I don't want to be doing all the talking. Let me know what's going on in all your lives!