On Tuesday night, my trip to Mexico came to a close and I arrived back at home. Throughout this past week and on the plane ride home, I did a lot of reflecting and thinking about what I would and would not miss about Mexico, and what really irritated me in Mexico.
Things that I miss about Mexico:
-The beautiful flowers everywhere
-Seeing very colorful houses where ever I look...greens, yellows, purples, oranges- you name it!
-The hospitality- everyone was super friendly! Many people in the U.S. just aren't that way.
-The food- delicious!
-The warmth! Nothing like wearing sandals, swimming, tanning, and getting a sunburn in January!
-Being able to practice my Spanish all day, everyday.
-The delicious bakery that was right around the corner in Mexico City- we went there every morning for breakfast!
-Seeing how genuine everyone really was. These people know what really matters in life. They have so little, but are always smiling and work really hard to earn what they have. They are so thankful for what they have.They are simply determined people who are caught in a bad situation.
Things that I don't miss about Mexico:
-Not being able to drive my car- when you're used to driving everywhere, not being able to drive for 3 weeks sucks. Then again, the drivers there are crazy and there are so many people that I wouldn't have wanted to risk driving there anyway.
-Putting ALL toilet paper in the trash can. You can't flush toilet paper there!
-Being stared at 24/7 because of my blonde, curly hair- I got many kisses blown at me and a marriage proposal from men in their 40's or 50's, because of it.
-Not being able to drink water straight from the tap
-The food- I definitely had a couple too many tortillas, tortas, and the like. I'm ready for a break from Mexican food!
-Having to brush my teeth with my water bottle. That was kind of inconvenient...
-Having people talk really quickly to me in Spanish, giving them a blank look, and then apologizing to them, because they talked so fast that I couldn't understand anything.
Things that irritate me about Mexico:
-How corrupt their government is- The last election was very, very rigged. The police are corrupt too. It's ridiculous.
-How many children do not get to go to school, because their parents (who didn't go to school either) can't afford it. So these children might end up like their parents, selling products on the streets.
-How the 10% of the population controls EVERYTHING and 70% of people in Mexico are in the "poor" category. These people in the bottom 70% are known as the informal economy. They do not have a steady job and often their daily wages are only 65 pesos. That is equivalent to like $6.00 here. That is for a day, not for an hour.
-How people in indigenous mountain villages are victims of residual poverty. They literally make about $1.00 (U.S.) a day and that is literally only enough for food. 80% of women in Tlamacazapa have never left their village, so they don't know what exists beyond them. They spend their entire day weaving sturdy baskets out of palm leaves, but sell them really cheap to the middle men, who in turn go out and sell them in the big towns. They can't afford to send their children to school, so they have no math/money concepts. The children start making baskets at a very young age and chances are they will never be able to leave the community either.
-1/3 of the population has diabetes, due to all of the sugar they consume and Coca-Cola they drink. However, they do this because their water is not safe to drink. The government won't do anything about it. One of the villages we went to had no running water and had to hike to wells each day to collect water. But it wasn't even good water- arsenic was in the water.
I'm sure there is so much more that I could say and share, but I will stop with this. Overall, the trip was wonderful. It was an incredible learning experience and I have so much that I'm still trying to wrap my head around.
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