I now have two good, thought-provoking posts hostage.
Tex related a story about some of the new summer program students who have began flooding Xalapa with their bermuda shorts and bad accents. A large group of Americans were in La Oveja Negra drinking mojitos, and one of them commented, "I feel like this is, like, authentic Mexico!"
Really? White people and everything?
One of my favorite ways to experience authentic Mexico is to go to the pulquerÃa on the other side of the center. Pulque is an alcoholic beverage made from the maguey plant, a relative of the agave from which we get tequila. Mexico's indigenous peoples used pulque for rituals, and it remained popular under Spanish rule because a drunk population is easier to control. Pulque was widely consumed until fairly recently, when the beer companies started misinformation campaigns claiming it was detrimental to the health. Now, there are just a few pulquerÃas still scattered about.
Yesterday I rounded up what became a rather large group of foreign students to go for pulque. I had no money, but with Jon and SB buying I managed to sweet talk my way into three mugs of the citrusy beverage. On previous visits I'd only ever had one, so I didn't really realize what I was in for. But pulque is most definitely stronger than beer.
The fun began after most all the white people had left, leaving just Nick and me behind. We had only been alone for a minute or so when some Mexicans invited us to go talk with them. They were all in their mid-twenties and wanted to pick our brains about "what Americans think of Mexicans." Let me tell you guys: I sure get sick fo speaking for you.
It ended up being a lot of fun. We spent hours with them hanging out at one guy's apartment and talking, and I gave my phone card to one of them who calls his girlfriend frequently from pay phones.
This is authentic Mexico: you meet people, you befriend them, you talk and have a good time. I've found that, in general, people here are far friendlier than in the States - though sometimes they need to get some race resentment out of their system first (I find I'm often listening to someone I just met rant about how Americans treat Mexicans).
4 comments:
I think I might have told you this already, but, last time I was in Munich, I ran into a couple guys who were from Mexico City, and they were the exact opposite about everything, they never mentioned how they were upset about the way America treats Mexicans, instead they told me that "the ones" who immigrate there were what we would call "white trash" and that they didn't want them in Mexico. Now, let me remind you that those were their words, not my own.
but you should def bring me back some pulque!
mex did not tell you that i did!
boo
i love your comment on the real mexico, or at least how it was for me!
i was at my hair dressers yesterday and she talked about some mexican guys that she works with and how many people treat them like shit in the resteraunt but how they are the friendliest people she has ever met. we had a wonderful conversation. it was refreshing to have in this town of mine
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