Now that we have rediscovered the local little restaurants, we went out for dinner last night.
We found a nice little corner place “ Rosita’s Loncheria” with tables on the sidewalk.
The owner and waiter was Rosita of course. She took our order and from then on we were then entertained by a young man whom we think was her son.
The first thing he had to do was run off down the street and disappear somewhere to get me my cerveza. He came back with the wrong one so had to retrace his steps and get me the right one. Not that I really cared about the brand.
By entertaining I mean he did all the rest of the serving. He was about 10 years old. We always speak Spanish as much as we can and usually get through a meal without having to speak English. He was well schooled in what to say to us in English, and when.
He had several standard phrases like “How-is-your-meal” “ Is-everything-okay” etc. He was a lovely young man so at the end of the meal we gave him an extra tip just for himself.
While we sat there Mexican life went on around us. Except for one Canadian lady who was obviously a friend of Rosita’s we were the only other Canadians in sight. It was a typical street scene, kids playing in the road, moms and dads standing talking. There was a severely handicapped man, maybe about thirty years old who was having a hard time walking upright. Nobody took any special notice of him, he was accepted as just one of the crowd. And of course, there is always a bougainvillea bush close by for some colour.
Mexicans are so easy to get along with. Sometimes you find one that may be a bit standoffish but once they get to know you they are the friendliest people around. I think we have an advantage as are seen around a lot and not considered short term tourists. Rosalie usually asks their name and remembers to use it next time we see them. It helps a lot. And of course, they appreciate us trying to speak their language.
When we first came here I wasn’t a fan of the local food. Lately though, after discovering some of the smaller restaurants where the locals eat I only want to eat there. We went out to renew our phone plan and Rosalie dragged me into a roadside taqueria. We each had a mushroom omelet and a coffee, it was the best, and of course, only cost $140 pesos ($9.70) for both of us.
Being here is good for us both. We are living simply but richly. Soaking up the culture, learning the language and above all having a good time. I hope we can carry that attitude back with us in April.