Life in Mexico…Moving
to a New Sense
By Jan Morgan
Return
For almost four years now, my husband, Fred, and I, have lived in Mexico. We
started in Xalapa, Veracruz for 6 months, and then hung our hammocks in the
Yucatan peninsula, east of Veracruz by about 700 miles. We lived on the beach
for two years, and now rent a house in Merida, the capital of the state of
Yucatan. We also rent a beach house.
It has been such an interesting four years…I can’t remember any other four-year
span in my life which offered such diversity, wonder and sense of peace as these
last years have.
In the beginning. We never planned to become residents of Mexico for a long
stay. We figured that one year would give us a good feel for the country, and
then we would move on to other parts of the world to explore. On our agenda has
been New Zealand, South America and Europe. Well, four years later we are still
here, still enjoying life, learning the language, still learning a new sense of
what life is about. It is difficult to explain to people who have never been to,
nor even wanted to, visit another country and experience life through the eyes
of a stranger...you. Tourism is a beginning. Sometimes going to a place for a
week’s vacation is the start of the appreciation of life there, creating a
curiosity for more information.
My husband coined a good statement: “tourists like to be entertained…travelers
like to entertain themselves.” It pretty much wraps up our experience, because
we definitely like to entertain ourselves in the neighborhoods and paths that
lead away from the popular places.
I will share with you our experience of arriving in Mexico and of taking the bus
from the Texas/Mexico border to our first home in Xalapa, Veracruz.
We arrived in Reynosa, Mexico, at 2:45 p.m., after dropping off our rental car
in McAllen, Texas and hiring a taxi to take us across the border (for $40). Man,
what a bus terminal! The place was hot, hot, hot, with lots of adults, kids and
bags. Many people appeared to just be there because they had nothing better to
do! No one at the ADO desk (our bus line) spoke any English, so, after writing
and practicing my phrase over and over, got up the courage to ask for our
tickets. I gave her a $1000 peso note, given to us as a going-away present from
a friend, plus an American $100 bill for our $170 fare. The $1,000 peso note
should have been worth $100 or so, with the exchange rate being $10.60 at the
time. The attendant looked at the peso note, looked at me, back at the peso
note, then disappeared into the back office. I was afraid she was going to come
back and tell me the note was counterfeit! When she came back out, she handed me
the peso note and said something to the effect of “better give me something
else, because this one’s no good.” Luckily, we hadn’t depended on paying with
it, but we thought it would be a great way to start our trip…paying for our
tickets with pesos! Wrong. As it turned out, none of the Mexican pesos we took
with us was worth anything anymore. It had been devalued years ago, and new
money had been minted and printed. Go figure!!
So, here it is, 3 o’clock, and our bus wasn’t leaving until 8 p.m. We got the
last 2 seats together, at the back of the bus. We had five hours to kill and
seven bags to keep our eyes on. We took turns going to the bathroom (and had to
pay to “go”), which had no toilet seats on the toilets. Hmmm….maybe it is easier
to keep the toilets clean that way. We people-watched and dripped sweat for
about an hour and a half, and then went down to the immigration office to apply
for our tourist visas. We went in shifts, with my husband going first so I could
watch the bags. When it was my turn, the gentleman in the office asked me a few
questions in Spanish, that I luckily understood, then gave me my tourist visa
and said “Okay, Honey!” I guess that was the extent of his English!
We killed some more time, got snacks, and played dominoes at the snack bar. We
gave suckers to crying kids, watched people light candles at the permanent
grotto to Our Lady of Guadalupe, and watched children chase after pigeons who
share the terminal. Between the heat, the sticky marble floors and not
understanding any Spanish, we actually fared quite well! We were on an
adventure, and no amount of discomfort was going to spoil it!
When it was time to head to the gate to board the bus, we corralled our bags and
stood in front of the guards at the little turnstiles. He asked me what was in
our bags….I told him “clothes,” and he passed us both through. We traveled in
the luxury bus with fully reclining seats, movies, blankets and pillows. We
watched the sun go down and the green fields and small towns pass behind us, as
our 14 hour ride began.
We arrived in Veracruz with an hour to spare before our bus left for Xalapa, a
2-hour ride away. After the short bus ride, we arrived in Xalapa, got into a
well-worn hatchback Nissan cab, driven by an older woman, to our first house in
Mexico. She drove like all the Xalapeños…fast and furious, honking at each
intersection to announce her presence, and avoid being hit. We arrived at our
casita to begin our sojourn.
Over the next 6 months, we reveled in the experiences this country has to offer.
We shopped at the local markets, learned the words for all the vegetables,
fruits and foods we needed, and watched as the vendors smiled in amusement at
our strange accents. The markets are an amazing combination of sights, sounds
and smells; people loudly hawking their wares, while others are sitting silently
against the wall waiting for people to buy. The people are such combinations of
features, too. You can readily see the Indian, Spanish and Cuban influences.
Some of the things I have noticed over our time here: Mexicans can be Italian,
Chinese or Irish. I don’t know why I never thought of that before, but it made
me understand my ignorance! Other cultural things: Shoe stores seem to be a very
big business. Women still wear high heels, no matter if they are walking the
hills of Xalapa, or the flat streets of the Yucatan. Every taxi and bus has a
rosary or two hanging on the mirror; you don’t see many banged up cars on the
streets, in spite of the zipping in and out of traffic. People in Mexico are
much more patient with foreigners than Americans are. They try to help at every
turn, have ready smiles and love their children. Families spend time together,
and you see grandmas, grandpas and children holding hands, talking and walking
together. Most laundry is done in little stores that charge by the weight, and
they wash, dry and fold your laundry in a few hours, as it is not common to have
a washer and dryer in your home.
Culture abounds. The symphonies and museums have great attendance, and are
affordable for everyone (we paid about $4 for a ticket to each). Most museums,
galleries and cultural venues are open to the public for free on Sundays as
well.
Over all, it is amazing to see how simply life can be lived. We have experienced
what it is like to live without a telephone…(not as difficult as I thought), not
having hot water in the kitchen for washing dishes, living without voice mail,
call forwarding or cell phones. In Xalapa we didn’t have mail delivery, and
there were no mail boxes on the corners. If we wanted to receive mail, we went
to the post office and registered. Stamps are very expensive, and the local
in-town mailing charge is 90 cents. Stamps for air mail are higher. We have seen
neighborhoods where people live without electricity, running water, indoor
kitchens or even indoor plumbing. And they are not cranky, don’t feel poor, and
seem to live a sensible life.
The “cocinas economicas” (economical kitchens) offer a full lunch for about $2,
and workers flock to them during siesta time, when most offices and stores are
closed for a couple hours. We have learned to shop, eat, and travel at certain
times; contrary to habits learned in the United States.
On to the Shore
After moving to the Yucatan Peninsula, we have lived on the ocean, and traded a
city life for the slow pace of a fishing village. We watched gulls and pelicans
search for lunch and dinner in the Gulf in front of our home, we watched people
on horseback ride on the beach, and sandal-less tourists stroll the beach,
combing the sand for shells.
Our travels have taken us to ancient Mayan ruins, the shores of the Caribbean,
small towns so far removed from modern-day things that you forget it is 2007.
Maybe they have the right idea…we seem to see many old people, so obviously the
slower pace has kept people living longer and healthier. Whatever their secret,
we like it and intend to stay a while longer…we have moved to a new sense.
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For questions or comments, you can contact Jan at janbek@mexicoanswers.com