Greetings from Guanajuato City—the colorful capital of the state with the same name located in the mountains of central Mexico.

My adventure as part of a delegation representing the Penn State University Office of Global Programs and Bellwood-Antis High School has been quite an experience thus far!  From touring a variety of cultural and historic sites to eating delicious authentic Mexican food, one could not ask for a better introduction to this region. Most notable has been my visit to the Guanajuato University and prepa (high school). Not only have the people been super nice and extremely hospitable, but having the opportunity to learn about the educational system in a different country has been very interesting as well. Despite the fact that my surroundings look and sound different, I have found that our goals, values and obstacles for the most part are much the same—an observation that confirms my theory that regardless of where one travels in the world, people are just people.

After a weekend of enjoying the unique sights and sounds of the city—street vendors, markets, musicians, artists, museums and a silver mine—we will journey to additional prepas—Penjamo and Salvatierra—throughout the upcoming week to meet the individuals we will working with during our return trip in the fall. While there we will also spend some time with the principals and teachers to plan for our upcoming teaching assignments.

Similar to educators in the U.S., many teachers in Mexico also have the interest to integrate technology across the curriculum. In fact, they can enroll in professional development sessions, workshops and courses geared to expand their skills and knowledge in this area. So, of course, I shared Edutech for Teachers with them. I’m hoping this site will be a valuable resource for my new friends in Mexico!

A special shout out to our hosts—Laura, Carmen, Martha, Rosa Ellena, Doris and Manuel—Muchas gracias por su amabilidad y por hacer de esta visita una experiencia memorable. Estoy contento de que llame a mis amigos!