Only in México: Blair Murphy

It has officially been one month since I stepped foot in Mexico. I never knew the routine of starting classes would make my time here pass by so quickly. On the upside, I have finally been here long enough to know my way around instead of looking like just another tourist. That doesn’t mean that I don’t still stick out like a sore thumb, but I think the look of confusion on my face has definitely dwindled. I now understand to a certain degree why people stare at us. It is more than us merely getting hit on by Mexican men. There is a certain curiosity in seeing someone who looks different from you. In my case, I am now curious whenever I see white people too.

On a random note, just about everything here is eaten with salsa. When I say everything, I mean it. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks…it is always there. Not saying that I am not a fan of salsa, I just need a little variety sometimes. Because of this, we have decided to branch out on our food choices when we eat outside of the house. The last place I ever expected to have Sushi was in Mexico, but it has really been one of, the best, if not the best, meals that I have had since I’ve been here. I came into this trip thinking that I was going to be eating tacos, quesadillas, and fajitas the whole time. I was wrong. They have just about everything here that we have in the states. Eating the food here has also made me realize that we have a very limited amount of food that is “American.” In fact, the main things I associate with “American” food here are sandwiches, burgers, or hot dogs. I am just glad that we have relied on some other countries to broaden our food choices back home.

Anyways, that is enough about food. This weekend a couple of us had our first Mexican movie theater experience. The funniest thing is that the movies are all pretty much in English with Spanish subtitles, but the names are different. For instance, “The Hangover” here is called “¿Qué pasó ayer?” which translates directly into English as What happened last night? The movies here also come out much later than they do in the states, but that just means that if we really liked a movie from back home we might get to see it again here!

This weekend a few of us made the trip from Mérida to Chichen Itza. It is one of the most touristy ruin sites here, but after going there I can see why. The main pyramid there is just huge; there is no other way to describe it. I also really got a greater sense for what the ball courts were like because the little rings through which the balls passed during the games were still intact on the walls of the court. There was a little thrown for the King to sit and watch the game and basically wait to see which of the two players would later be sacrificed. Crazy.

There were both pros and cons to the tourism of Chichen. Stands lined the walkways to every ruin site so that you could not escape the constant pressure to buy something. In saying this, there was also a constant source of entertainment every time we walked from one site to another. The phrases that the venders had picked up to draw in English-speaking tourists were nothing but comical. Everything was either “almost free,” or at a “discount for today.” When they asked if you spoke Spanish, the phrases that followed next were either “barato” or “tiene un novio,” which mean cheap, or do you have a boyfriend. It never got old.

Well, time to study for Midterms after our five days of class. As much as I am not very excited about them, I also have the thought in my head that in 4 days I will be arriving to the island of Cozumel to do nothing but relax at the beach for our fall break. Only in Mexico.

Blair