Janitzio

I have some catching up to do here. In November, our family took a day trip to Janitzio, a small town that covers a tiny, but prominent island, in the middle of Lake Patzcuaro – the heart of the pre-Hispanic Purépechan civilization. I’m told that on November 1st and 2nd, the island is literally swarming with thousands tourists during the Dia de los Muertos celebrations.

While we missed the festivities by a week and a half, there were plenty of Mexican families dining at the restaurants near the dock and haggling with the artesian vendors. We managed circumnavigate the island, meandering through narrow cobbled streets and catching a glimpse of the residential side of the island. We stopped to rest and watch a competitive game of island basketball, hoping Jade would regain her energy to make the charge toward the summit to peek inside an enormous statue of Morelos (a hero of the independence and namesake of Morelia) that presides over all of Lake Patzcuaro. She was exhausted, so we decided to save it for another day.

It occurred to me only as we left the island that several of my students over the years have written stories about visiting Janitzio during their vacations to Michoacan. They attempted to provide as much description as they remembered or were capable of given their limited English vocabulary, but I usually discounted the significance of the students’ experiences because I wasn’t able to picture them myself. By having similar experiences as my students, I feel I might be better equipped to facilitate their writing to make it more descriptive, rich, and meaningful. Yes, this sabbatical will be paying dividends.