So I shall impart to you some things I have learned in Cuernavaca from justing being, just living, just experiencing...
1. What it means to be a girl in Mexico
- Fathers are protective. Boys do NOT talk to girls in front of the fathers unless the boy is asking the Father for permission to talk to the girl AFTER being grilled by the Father beforehand. (Some girls in our group experienced this the first day. Their padre got SO MAD.)
- You will be kissed. In the culture, greeting everybody, stranger/family, old/young, ugly (jk...NOBODY is ugly....except a Mexican Hairless dog...looks like a chinese crested only bigger)
But you greet everyone with one kiss on the left cheek.
- If every seat is taken on the bus and you get on, YOU WILL get a seat. Men are EXPECTED to give up their seat on buses, at full dinner tables, on park benches, etc.
2. What I have taken for granted in America
- AIR CONDITIONING.
- Public trashcans on the streets. It seems minor, but when you have the need to throw something away when you are out and about, it is very frustrating.
- Flushing toilet paper.... They use trashcans for that here instead because the pipes are too small. It's .....different......
On that note I apologize in advance if this is gross but it's something to know for your travels.
Google Moctezuma's Revenge.
If you know what it is, I will only say this: It is not a matter of who it will happen to, but a matter of when it will happen.
Moving on......
3. The word NO
In english when one uses the word no, it simply means no. In this culture, it means "Try Harder." It's almost considered rude to not question the "no" several times. It implies sincerity.
For example:
When eating comida, the senora comes and asks if we want more. We say no. She says, ok, what do you want? We say no thankyou. She says how about some more potatoes? We say no thats ok. Chicken? No. Beans? No. How about fruit? No thank you. Are you sure? Yes. Here. I'll get you some more tortillas. No thank you we're full. (and it goes on for a bit until you are walking away from the table while she is still questioning you.) This is only an exagerration. Our madre is actually very good at knowing when we have had enough. Others...not so much ha
So those are some tidbits from the week.
Also, I climbed up a mountain today. A LEGIT mountain.
It was VERY high up. Ouch.But SO worth the loooooooong climb :)
