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What I was expecting before I went to Mexico was that the land would be quite dry, it would
be quite hilly and there would be palm trees everywhere. Well yes, when I got there that
was certainly what I was greeted with but I was greeted with a lot more than that. The
university over there, the campus, is really really modern. In fact I would say it’s
a lot more modern than the University of Birmingham, which was quite a pleasant surprise. They
even have a media room, they have an outdoor swimming pool and loads of sports facilities.
I was completely not expecting this at all. As for the people there, the students were
really friendly. In Mexico the culture there is that everyone is greeted with a hug and
a kiss. This is quite not the case in England so it was a really nice welcome over there
and I really felt that I was really welcomed and everybody was so nice to everybody else.
Similar to Phoebe, I wasn't really expecting it to be so colourful, bright. I was expecting
sort of deserts, the usual stereotypes that you hear about in England, but it was so beautiful
and that really shocked me. I remember seeing bright fluorescent orange tubes and bright
cars and lots of greenery as well and that really blew me away. But I think I kept very
open-minded. I wasn’t really expecting anything so when I got there everything was just amazing.
The people are so friendly, so nice. Everyone says ‘buenas dias’ and everyone’s just
so welcoming all the time everywhere you go. That was really nice to experience.
Well, if I have to describe Mexico in one word that would be colourful because it wasn't
just the people, it wasn’t just the buildings, it wasn't just the music. It also, as Adeola
said, it broke so many clichés about the country that it was unsafe and there was loads
of problems going on. Yes, this is true but actually the people there are so warm, so
kind, so ready to help and out there for you. I just felt so warm and at home throughout
my whole stay and I did enjoy it loads and also I was very surprised by the organisation
of the whole event because you think Mexico, you know, people like siesta, a bit of a break
and what not, but it actually came out to be very well organised, we knew what we were
doing, we were very well entertained throughout the whole programme. It was not only about
studying, it was about having fun as well. We had a once in a lifetime opportunity such
as going to the Mayan Pyramids or going to a real tequileria so we did have a blast.
Yeah, I just wanted to add that before I went, I thought it would just be work intensive
because after all, it is advertised as a summer school, so I thought OK, it’s going to be
like lectures here. No it wasn’t, it was very hands on activities and really engaged
you in learning so it felt like you were having fun rather than learning, but also learning
of course. There were loads of activities planned by the staff over there and I’m
really grateful for all of that.
Touching on what Phoebe just said, there was so much culture and I didn’t think we’d
be exposed to that much culture. I thought it was just going to be seminars, classes,
lectures, but we were exposed to so many culture trips. We got to do so many activities, both
on campus and off campus, and I think I really appreciated that. That made me grow and learn
about other cultures. It meant we could talk and socialise with other students as well,
so it was very nice.