Amigos Nuevos

Today, I ended up going out, after spending most of the day feeling somewhat sick, and working on my laptop. I was starting to feel better, and I set out to find a hostel and get an interview, so I could set up my next place to stay when I am done staying here in my apartment. I went to get some food, and found a small place where I ordered beans, rice, and steak for 80 pesos which had some other yummy ingredients mixed in, and there were also tortillas on the side I could use. I ate most of it without the tortillas, but I did make a couple of tacos out of the meal, and both ways it was quite good. It was not my favorite, but still good, and the family was very friendly, and I plan on going back. They accidentally overcharged me and I let them know, and they were very kind about it and apologetic. I then set out toward the hostel which was not too far of a walk, and it is quite a bit closer to the beaches than my current place.

As I was getting close, I got a call from one of the Germans, and he was letting me know he was back in town from Zipolite, and he was in Zicatela if I wanted to join him. I hadn’t seen him in a few days and decided to hop on a colectivo over to La Punta Zicatela. While on the colectivo, I went a bit too far, because I wanted to try getting off at a later stop to save myself some walking, and when I pressed the button for the driver to pull over, he kept driving. I thought he was going to stop but he never did, so I had to press the button again a few blocks farther down, and it ended up being a solid 20 minute walk from there. I was a little later than I told my friend I would be there, but it was no big deal, and I got to walk through some new streets that were very different than most of the places I have been. I realized that there were parts of Mexico that were very different than the parts I had seen, and it was interesting to get some perspective of how some people lived, a little farther away from the busier areas. I walked along some dirt roads which were very rocky and uneven, passing houses, with various car parts, broken furniture and garbage, littering their lawns. There were places with beds outside, that looked very dirty, and some of the houses did not seem to have water tanks like most houses around here. It’s very interesting to see how different some people’s lifestyles can be, compared to my own background which I have experienced. Many people tend to feel that they come from very difficult backgrounds, and while we all have had our issues throughout the years, it really is humbling to see how some people have grown up, and to see some of what they have gone through.

Arriving at the beach, I catch up with my German friend who calls me Mt. Everest or Everett Anwesen, which is Homestead in German. He tells of the Zipolite experience, and how he attended a party with only locals, that he happened to walk upon. He explained that he enjoyed being surrounded by the locals, and enjoyed lots of good food with them and had a good time. We watched the sunset, and then we decided to go to Primo, the burger place which I had talked about fondly of, and he was excited to try. They were damn good, as per usual, and he was not disappointed either.

Returning to our apartments, the courtyard was full. The other German sat at the table, and two local families were sitting down, enjoying their time, with a few bags of chips and some sliced pineapple and papaya, which they were putting Tajin on, which is a chile powder. Right away, they invited us to the table, and we all sat. They offered their food right away, as well as offering refrescos, in this case sprite. There were three languages going on at the table, mostly Spanish, and there were definitely just moments of silence, trying to make conversation with people who don’t know each other’s languages. It is a very interesting experience, and it is very wholesome to see everyone sit patiently, and smile at each other, encouraging the learning and slowly getting our ideas across to one another. As I sit here, typing my story, the German reads over my shoulder and tells me I write so many details. At first, I think he is making fun, but then he clarifies that he thinks I am a good writer. He says I could be a ghost writer for… he tries to recall a famous American author. He cannot. Ahhh, Stephen King, he thought of it. The details are what help me share the experience to anyone reading. I can't always tell when this guy is messing with me. It's awesome. The two families are staying in the other two rooms in this complex, and they are both so friendly, speaking patiently and slowly, and helping me when I try to speak in Spanish with them.

We sat around for a long time, exchanging stories, and sharing pictures, learning about each other’s lives. It is nice to just sit and listen to people around me speak Spanish. When they are speaking to each other, they talk much faster, and I do not understand hardly as much, but it is still nice to listen. A guy about my age was telling me about how he has graduated from high school, and is going off to the Mexican Army, leaving tomorrow for Tijuana. I asked him if he was scared, and he said mostly, he would just be very far from home. He then proceeded to show me some of his interests, with videos of bull riders, which he had seen many in person, as well as chicken fighting. I have heard of these things but never really talked to someone who actually goes and attends these events. He really enjoyed the bull riders, and showed me videos he had taken at many different events, with the men holding on desperately, getting thrown around and just waiting for the bull to calm down, or until they lost their grip and then fell to the ground, trying to avoid getting stomped on the floor by the very heavy animals. He also showed me some pictures of a cow which they had slaughtered, and skinned, preparing it for making tasajo. This was a sight I had never seen before, and it was a little much for me when he proceeded to show me a video of them draining the sangre, or the blood in English.

Continually, I find myself amazed by how friendly both the locals as well as other tourists are here. The boy's mother exchanged numbers with me and said that when they returned home, they would invite us to their ranch if we would like. Today has been a nice day, and I hope to get to know everyone better over the next little while. Thank you all for reading. :)