Very Friendly People

Hola!

We went to Hotel Rio in Navajoa just to watch the Mexico team beat the US team......not a good game for the US, but Mexico played very well.

The big screen tv was on in the hotel lobby. So we sat down at a front row table, ordered lunch and limonadas, and watched the entire game without having to rent a room and stay the night. There were several tables crowded with Mexicans watching the game, they laughed and joked with us and we all had a good time..............

Above Senor is outside the Rio and to his left is the pool that made us almost want to stay the night.............

On the way home our four wheel drive light came on and we ended up returning to Navajoa again the next day to the Chevy dealership.

There was no way I was going to sit at the dealership for four hours, so while Senor dealt with that, I walked to the Caffeineto down the street. While I was there, a local lady who spoke a little english, came and sat with me and we had a lively conversation about soccer and the game the day before. She asked me if I saw how the Mexican tv cameras kept showing all the sad American fans in the stands. We ended up exchanging emails and she promised to take the bus someday to come and see me in Alamos.

Afterward, I went to the mercado and got lost inside there for about two hours. It is just a huge five or six block maze. Below is the yarn, ribbon and craft store.

I bought some Virgin de Guadalupe charms and a few glass crystal beads and had a very nice conversation with the owner about how much he and his wife like to go and look at yarn and ribbons and lace in Tucson. He said he could not afford to buy any of it, but he likes to look. He told me he has been planning to visit his cousin in Alamos and he will come to visit Senor and me.

Then I walked to the church. The church was very quiet. A nice little old lady came and sat in front of me. She turned around and asked if I wanted to buy some embroidery. I smiled and said no.

On my way out the door she followed me and asked if I wanted to buy some papayas. I smiled and said no.

She followed me across the street and asked me if I wanted to buy a turtle. I smiled and said no. She smiled and said..............adios.

You know what I really like about Sonora, especially Alamos and Navajoa? Everyone is very friendly.

In Alamos, when I walk or bike, every single person I pass greets me. Every shop owner is friendly, everyone smiles at everyone. Every kid says hola or hi. Every teenager makes eye contact and greets me. The old Senoras and Senors smile and say a greeting.

I do not know if I have experienced this in the states. People in the states often ignore each other when they pass on the streets. Usually they have their heads down and they avoid eye contact.

Several months ago, when we went to file our taxes with SAT, the Mexican IRS, we entered the building and sat in one of ten chairs lined against the wall. When we walked in, every single person in a chair said Buenos Dias to us. Then a SAT employee stuck her head around a partition and called, Buenos Dias, to us.

We took our seats and every time someone came in the door, that person was acknowledged by each person in a chair and then, by the lady behind the partition.

The people of Mexico are the friendliest people I have ever been around.

It certainly makes a person want to stick around here.




This morning I went and got my hair cut. The lady I see lives in Barrio de Guayaparines and she speaks absolutely no English at all. But she talks muy rapido alot and gestures alot and smiles alot. That's good with me. She always makes me want to go back.

Tomorrow I have been invited to a shower de regalos, a baby shower for a friend.

I don't know her that well and she speaks no english, but she smiles alot and always wants to know how we are doing.

Speaking of friendly people, take a look at my friend Jimena's blog. Look to the right on my 'check it out' list. Her blog is Panoptica. She is a fabulous artist, jewelry designer and a great photographer as well. She is also a student in Mexico City and the coordinator of the Etsy Mexico Team.

Once you are on her blog, you can click (in the first paragraph) on our Etsy Mexico Team blog and see some of the wonderful talent of the team members. They are from all over Mexico and
their creations are very exciting. There will be interviews with each of the team members. So far there have been two interviews! Go and take a look!

And, start a new trend the next time you are out for a walk............................... smile and then say.......hi.................... to every single person you pass by.