The day of the dead this weekend.
Sickness:
Last week I had stomach cramps that got worse every day until I could hardly walk. I went to the doctor at my university and got some medicine. The medicine made me feel like I was wearing a heating pad on my torso. Almost all of the Americans with me have had some stomach issue like this. It is really hard to trace what causes the sickness because the bacteria will enter your body from some dirty apple or cheese and then the germs can take weeks to grow into your stomach until it causes problems. That is why everyday my cramps got worse. I am better now and have more fear of the food here.
Either way I am usually really careful, but juice or what not in restaurants is not always safe. Either way be thankful for highly regulated food in the US. Our regulation is world famous and that is why after deaths in China from spoiled milk, US food and drink companies invested highly in countries in Asia.
Not Minnesotan:
There is one thing a lot of Latin woman do that is quite annoying. They will often ask for a picture of themselves. You could be with a girl from somewhere in Latin American traveling or walking around and they will ask for a picture of themselves. They will hand you their camera and say ¨will you take a picture of me? This has happened several times here and with my Hispanic friends in Europe. My German friend and I always made fun of it, and it looks like it is present here as well. I am not sure if it is just a manner of being conceited or just culture but it is so annoying and viewed as bad in MN. It may be hard to picture exactly what I am saying but maybe one day I will ask you to take a picture of me alone even if I am with you and other friends.
Paying the Police:
I was told the only place in Mexico where you can pay off the police for a traffic violation is in the City here. I have been with friends who are pulled over and they usually only have to pay the police officer 200 Pesos to evade the tickets, that is less than 20 dollars. It is funny because they say they only need a Sor Juana to pay off the police. Sor Juana is a very famous nun from Mexico whom is presented on the 200 peso bill. Kind of ironic using a nun to pay off the police.
I wonder what would happen if one day the police stopped accepting these brides. I think there would be a major civil uproar if the rich society in Mexico couldn´t continue to use it´s money to evade laws. People think Mexico is a poor country but it certainly isn´t. It is correct to say it is a rich country with poor distribution, considering the BMW´s and $8,000 watches people own you would understand. In the US we have a huge difference in money distribution but in most cases everyone can go to college and get a degree if they work for it. If your parents wash windows at the stop lights here, it will be very difficult to have enough money to go to a school with a NAME and get a good job.
I might sound bitter in this section, but sometimes the arrogance of the rich here and how they address the corruption is hard to block out.
Pesos:
I always forget to mention this about the Mexican Peso. It is a really annoying currency. 13 pesos is worth about one US dollar. The reason the peso is annoying is because no one ever has enough change. The other morning I needed 4 pesos to ride the morning bus, and I only had a 100 peso bill. I had to go to the gas station to break the bill. I tried to buy some gum costing about 10 pesos and the gas station didn’t have change for me. The 100 peso bill is worth less than ten dollars and the gum costing a dollar. I then had to go to the newspaper vendor in the street to break my bill.
Imagine going to a gas station with a ten dollar bill and trying to buy some 1 dollar trident and the attendant saying, ¨sorry I don´t have change.¨ The American would be quite irritated, but here it is quite normal and most business never have enough change. Even when I went to American express to cash a traveler´s check, the bank didn´t have enough currency to give me. In conclusion the peso can be irritating, but the dollar is quite strong against it, so that is a nice benefit.
Work Trip:
For the first time in my life I feel asleep in class yesterday. I was sitting up and after several minutes of excel spread sheets I fell asleep. I was tired due to a 5 day work trip to Guadalajara that began on Saturday and ended yesterday. Guadalajara is a city North of here, about an hour plane ride. You all should know of this city because it is the home of Tequila, or at least the small town next to it is the home.
The event was on Tuesday and we went early to visit the town and tour a tequila factory. I now have a new appreciation for this alcoholic beverage and know what makes tequila good and what kind NOT to buy. We visited the Jose Cuervo Mansion and learned all about this world famous Mexico drink. We had to take about an hour cab ride out of the city to the facility, but the green mountains and scenery were worth it.
The hotel we staying in was modern and we all had rooms on the top floor. I had a view of the city and my own king size bed along with some 8 dollar bottled water. The rooms were just like IKEA and reminded me of the hotel in Barcelona. We never had to time eat lunch so with per dium money we could order room service. First time in my life I have ever had room service.
The event went well as usual, more information about investing in Texas. My job was to organize the raffle tickets and stamp valet tickets. There were all new speakers at this event so it was interesting to hear some new information. I met these two businessmen whom sell really expensive homes. They kept telling me I need to go to law school and somehow get into immigration. It is great meeting new people because they all have great insight into completely different career paths.
Halloween:
Halloween is celebrated in a different way here. It is called the Day of the Dead. Many families and businesses create large altars that can compose of entire rooms. The altar is dedicated to a deceased person, there is usually a photo of them and then lots of their favorite items are placed in a pit of colored sand below the picture. Many skeletons and traditional decoration also make up the altar, and some families even put the dead person´s favorite food out for them to munch on as their spirit passes through the altar on Halloween night. I have always found this holiday interesting as it is a day in which many people think of the deceased and actually make their favorite meal. Mexicans can be very mystical and this is one great example of their culture.
I think it would be cool to do this one year at home to one of my grandparents. I really don´t know what their favorite dishes were but it would just be a cool dedication to someone important. My roommates and I might make an altar in our house just to celebrate the holiday. We think making one to Michael Jackson would be funny, but we might not want his spirit roaming around out house.
Have an awesome Halloween and eat some candy corn for me.
Last week I had stomach cramps that got worse every day until I could hardly walk. I went to the doctor at my university and got some medicine. The medicine made me feel like I was wearing a heating pad on my torso. Almost all of the Americans with me have had some stomach issue like this. It is really hard to trace what causes the sickness because the bacteria will enter your body from some dirty apple or cheese and then the germs can take weeks to grow into your stomach until it causes problems. That is why everyday my cramps got worse. I am better now and have more fear of the food here.
Either way I am usually really careful, but juice or what not in restaurants is not always safe. Either way be thankful for highly regulated food in the US. Our regulation is world famous and that is why after deaths in China from spoiled milk, US food and drink companies invested highly in countries in Asia.
Not Minnesotan:
There is one thing a lot of Latin woman do that is quite annoying. They will often ask for a picture of themselves. You could be with a girl from somewhere in Latin American traveling or walking around and they will ask for a picture of themselves. They will hand you their camera and say ¨will you take a picture of me? This has happened several times here and with my Hispanic friends in Europe. My German friend and I always made fun of it, and it looks like it is present here as well. I am not sure if it is just a manner of being conceited or just culture but it is so annoying and viewed as bad in MN. It may be hard to picture exactly what I am saying but maybe one day I will ask you to take a picture of me alone even if I am with you and other friends.
Paying the Police:
I was told the only place in Mexico where you can pay off the police for a traffic violation is in the City here. I have been with friends who are pulled over and they usually only have to pay the police officer 200 Pesos to evade the tickets, that is less than 20 dollars. It is funny because they say they only need a Sor Juana to pay off the police. Sor Juana is a very famous nun from Mexico whom is presented on the 200 peso bill. Kind of ironic using a nun to pay off the police.
I wonder what would happen if one day the police stopped accepting these brides. I think there would be a major civil uproar if the rich society in Mexico couldn´t continue to use it´s money to evade laws. People think Mexico is a poor country but it certainly isn´t. It is correct to say it is a rich country with poor distribution, considering the BMW´s and $8,000 watches people own you would understand. In the US we have a huge difference in money distribution but in most cases everyone can go to college and get a degree if they work for it. If your parents wash windows at the stop lights here, it will be very difficult to have enough money to go to a school with a NAME and get a good job.
I might sound bitter in this section, but sometimes the arrogance of the rich here and how they address the corruption is hard to block out.
Pesos:
I always forget to mention this about the Mexican Peso. It is a really annoying currency. 13 pesos is worth about one US dollar. The reason the peso is annoying is because no one ever has enough change. The other morning I needed 4 pesos to ride the morning bus, and I only had a 100 peso bill. I had to go to the gas station to break the bill. I tried to buy some gum costing about 10 pesos and the gas station didn’t have change for me. The 100 peso bill is worth less than ten dollars and the gum costing a dollar. I then had to go to the newspaper vendor in the street to break my bill.
Imagine going to a gas station with a ten dollar bill and trying to buy some 1 dollar trident and the attendant saying, ¨sorry I don´t have change.¨ The American would be quite irritated, but here it is quite normal and most business never have enough change. Even when I went to American express to cash a traveler´s check, the bank didn´t have enough currency to give me. In conclusion the peso can be irritating, but the dollar is quite strong against it, so that is a nice benefit.
Work Trip:
For the first time in my life I feel asleep in class yesterday. I was sitting up and after several minutes of excel spread sheets I fell asleep. I was tired due to a 5 day work trip to Guadalajara that began on Saturday and ended yesterday. Guadalajara is a city North of here, about an hour plane ride. You all should know of this city because it is the home of Tequila, or at least the small town next to it is the home.
The event was on Tuesday and we went early to visit the town and tour a tequila factory. I now have a new appreciation for this alcoholic beverage and know what makes tequila good and what kind NOT to buy. We visited the Jose Cuervo Mansion and learned all about this world famous Mexico drink. We had to take about an hour cab ride out of the city to the facility, but the green mountains and scenery were worth it.
The hotel we staying in was modern and we all had rooms on the top floor. I had a view of the city and my own king size bed along with some 8 dollar bottled water. The rooms were just like IKEA and reminded me of the hotel in Barcelona. We never had to time eat lunch so with per dium money we could order room service. First time in my life I have ever had room service.
The event went well as usual, more information about investing in Texas. My job was to organize the raffle tickets and stamp valet tickets. There were all new speakers at this event so it was interesting to hear some new information. I met these two businessmen whom sell really expensive homes. They kept telling me I need to go to law school and somehow get into immigration. It is great meeting new people because they all have great insight into completely different career paths.
Halloween:
Halloween is celebrated in a different way here. It is called the Day of the Dead. Many families and businesses create large altars that can compose of entire rooms. The altar is dedicated to a deceased person, there is usually a photo of them and then lots of their favorite items are placed in a pit of colored sand below the picture. Many skeletons and traditional decoration also make up the altar, and some families even put the dead person´s favorite food out for them to munch on as their spirit passes through the altar on Halloween night. I have always found this holiday interesting as it is a day in which many people think of the deceased and actually make their favorite meal. Mexicans can be very mystical and this is one great example of their culture.
I think it would be cool to do this one year at home to one of my grandparents. I really don´t know what their favorite dishes were but it would just be a cool dedication to someone important. My roommates and I might make an altar in our house just to celebrate the holiday. We think making one to Michael Jackson would be funny, but we might not want his spirit roaming around out house.
Have an awesome Halloween and eat some candy corn for me.
entrada de Adam Gilbertson a las
20:53
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