This week at the newspaper was quite interesting: the article I wrote about the gas explosion in Mexico City ended up on the front page, which was a nice suprise. Funny how easy it is for me to write headline news on these work experience placements (!) No, I am not smug at all.
There was also a fairly gruesome story about a local girl who had a baby, supposedly aged 9. The world's media picked up on it, including the Daily Mail, who flew a reporter from New York straight out to meet us about it. I say "us"- I am sure he had no desire to meet me at all, but I was taken along for drinks after work, which was thoughtful.
He was a nice guy, you know, for a tabloid reporter. He had moved from the UK to Brooklyn, NY, to work for the expanding American Daily Mail website. His life seems pretty desirable, but he repeatedly asked me why I wanted to go into journalism, and repeatedly told me that I shouldn't... but then I am yet to meet anyone who has told me "Yes, do my job," (of various types) "I love it and every day I wake up happy to be alive". I still kind of think that if I end up working for National Geographic or similar, then I will in fact be one of those people. So I remain undeterred.
As far as the baby-story goes, it's become understood that the mother is most probably about 15 rather than 9, but lied about being 9 due to a dodgy birth certificate... It's all very dodgy, and also very sad because there are most probably hundreds of similar stories from the area, and yet the only reason the press have picked up on her is the fact that she may or may not be 9.
There are a few horrible stories about at the moment, particularly regarding Mexico and travellers. I won't name them here just in case my mother is yet to discover them and worry, but my point is, despite all the gore, I'm still confident about travelling next month. I still believe that most places are very safe, as long as one knows what not to do and where not to go. I actually think a traveller is less likely to find trouble if they are travelling solo, because when one is alone they are less likely to take risks, go out at night or talk to strangers. I am sure that most girls both home and abroad are more likely to humour a stranger's drunken conversation when out with a group of friends, because being in a group gives them a false sense of security and feeling of invincibility. If those same girls were walking home individually for instance, they would avoid a talkative stranger like the plague.
Personally, I'm very good at ignoring people to the point of rudness- probably because I'm British. So I'm not worried and neither should anyone else be.
On Friday morning, I woke up to no electricity, gas, hot water, internet or purified drinking water. This was not ideal, seeing as I was very much looking forward to washing away the remnants of alcohol and in desperate need of re-hydration. I'm still not sure why there was a problem, but when I left the house (after having had a cold shower and reluctantly drunk a glass of milk), I saw several dug out holes in the street and pavement, along with small groups of Mexican men scratching their heads, which I assumed must have something to do with either the root or the solution of the problem, or both. All is ok again now, though.
This weekend's adventures will hopefully include a bus trip to Tonala, where there is a huge Sunday market.
Rosie and husband told me that I could stay with them forever if I liked. I am quite tempted. They suggested I ship over my parents and my dogs- Rosie said that they would be my surrogate grandparents (at least I think that's what she said...) I told her that was a nice thought, but that she is actually the same age as my mother. Then I told her that I have a 92 year-old grandmother and she nearly passed out from amazement. They are such a nice family and I am really happy to be able to stay with them.
No comments:
Post a Comment