“Welcoming and sincere people”
Letter from... Mexico! Estefanía González raves about her new home.
Sep 28, 2015
Estefanía González in front of the university’s Biblioteca Central.
A colorful welcome: This was the street where Estefanía González stayed after arriving in Mexico, with her friend Lorena’s family.
Image Credit: Estefanía González
Eye to eye with history: Estefanía González at the prehistoric ruined city of Teotihuacán, near Mexico City. The site, which was among the largest in the world between 100 and 650 A.D., has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1987.
Image Credit: Edgar René Ruiz Lopez
The library was built by Mexican architect and painter Juan O’Gorman.
Image Credit: Diana Pauly
Mexico is too good to me! I have now been here for just under two months, and I have settled in very quickly. I spent the first week with the family of my friend Lorena, a good friend I met two years ago, during my semester abroad in San Diego. They adopted me right away as a sixth member of the family. In this way, I got to know the Mexican people as very sincere, welcoming, and warm right from the start.
Now I live in shared housing not far from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico (UNAM), together with a Mexican student and a friend who also studies at Freie Universität. I am currently taking classes at UNAM. The atmosphere at the university is indescribable: The campus is huge, packed with people from a wide range of different origins, with diverse interests. At my department, Filosofía y Letras, you can really sense the revolutionary character of the university, which is well known in Mexico for political activism and critical thinking.
And it’s no wonder the central library is a World Heritage site! The mosaic façade is overwhelming and thoughtfully conceived down to the smallest detail; thousands of small tiles merge together to form an impressive mural showing the history of Mexico.
Mexico City is huge, busy, and chaotic, but also very colorful and lively. Like in Berlin, the individual neighborhoods here, the zonas, are known for each having their own atmosphere: Condesa is chic and hip, La Roma is a haven for hipsters, and Coyoacán is dreamy and colonial. It’s a lot of fun to explore the different neighborhoods and get lost in their endless small, colorful streets. This week I am traveling to Oaxaca, one of Mexico’s 31 states, which is famous for its excellent cuisine and fabulous beaches. I can’t wait!
Estefanía González
In our campus.leben series "Letters from ..." six students, two doctoral candidates, and an apprentice are reporting on their experiences abroad. Here we introduced the nine travelers.