2% of my day was not so great. But 98% was amazing, and so I'm going to start with the "bad" so that when you finish reading the post in its entirety, you feel happy.
On my walk home tonight, I stopped to look at an interested Day of the Dead display tucked in a courtyard just off the Zocalo. A man approached me and said (this conversation happened in Spanish)
"Hey, do you remember me?"
I looked up and sure enough it was the man who randomly bought me a memelita in the Zocalo last week. I said, "Yes. Thank you for buying my memelita last week. That was nice." He started explaining to me what the display was about, and giving me a short history of Catholic traditions + Day of the Dead.
I asked him about indigenous customs. He couldn't answer me; I should have known then that he was a creep. Instead, he told me a few more things and then asked "What are you doing tonight?" I responded with "My family is waiting for me at home. They're expecting me for dinner."
This is a classic military brat lie. It's the "I'm not going to tell you I'm walking home alone with no one expecting me" move.
Then he asked for my phone number. I told him I didn't have a phone. Then he asked if we could meet in the park and chat (at this point, I was moving out of the dark courtyard and back towards the main road with tons of people). He grabbed my hand and said he'd really like to do an intercambio (like language exchange) with me. At this point, I wasn't sure if he was being creepy or just an older man who wanted an intercambio. I told him that my friends could use the practice too, but that I wasn't comfortable meeting him alone.
He said, "I only want to be with you."
I said, "Sorry. I need to go. My family is waiting."
Then he grabbed my arm (just as I was a foot away from the main road) and said, "You're not going anywhere." He pulled me towards him.
Maybe he meant to hurt me as much as he did. Maybe my pulling violently away from him and stumbling into the road hurt me more than he intended. Either way, he got aggressively angry and followed me out into the street.
He looked really mad.
I ran to Cafe Brujula (about 10 feet away) and hid for a while. I asked the barista to check to make sure he was gone. He went out and said he didn't see any creepy looking angry dudes, and I booked it back to my house.
I guess I can't walk alone in the Zocalo anymore. That guy will probably see me and grab me and then I'll be afraid to leave the house ever again.
--- Now, before you get freaked out and say "That's Mexico for you" or something racist and inappropriate let me remind you that I have been accosted other times in the US by men of my own (and other) races. This man does not represent Mexican men. In fact, he represents the polar opposite. His actions in no way speak for the male population here, nor do his poor manners reflect the manners of men here. If you are thinking that, you are wrong. ---
Now let's get to the 98% awesome part of my day.
Breakfast. I love breakfast. Every morning, Martita feeds me gold.
Class - I love class! I love being a student! I love studying! I love learning! I love Spanish! I love my teacher! Today, we spent the whole day working on something I asked about. Luckily, my whole class didn't know the concept either, and so I didn't feel like a jerk for hijacking the class (or his lesson plan).
Mask Making Class - Mask making class is super fun. I love the 2 Octavios (teachers) and Omar. They are funny, hands on teachers that make you feel like an adult in a craft class - not a baby in a craft class. We are planning to make a video in which all of us/our masks appear. We spent class time telling jokes in Spanish and learning Spanish slang from one of the Octavios.
After mask making class, Lucy, Saskia, Billy, Thora and I all walked to the barber shop. Yesterday, Lucy and Saskia and I decided we were going to shave the sides of our heads (like Cordelia)! The two barbers there are MS13 gang members and are fully tatted (arms, necks, faces).
They're really nice dudes!
There was also the cutest little boy in there who was playing peek-a-boo with me, and would laugh hysterically every time I pretended to cut his hair. Anyway, Billy basically got us all hooked up with this place...we were the 3rd, 4th, and 5th girl Billy has brought to this shop. I'm sure the guys are wondering what the deal is. But, they didn't ask questions. They just shaved away. And they did great jobs of it. We all look really awesome. :)
After that, Saskia and Lucy went home. Thora, Billy and I went to the taco place...they didn't eat. But I ate 4 tacos + 2 extra tortillas to clean up the taco spill leftovers at the end. In the restaurant, the waiter's name was Gego. Or something like that. And they thought my hair was cool, too. And they were weirdly shocked that I was ordering and speaking in Spanish.
I'm not sure why. I must not look like I can do it.
After that, I walked home.
There were a million little things about today which I loved. Lots of laughing. New experiences. Cute little kids, smart remarks in class, being dared by a teacher to steal free fruit from a conference at our school and chickening out. Climbing on the tables at the school. Walking in the rain. The Day of the Dead festivities around the city. Talking with Martita.
98% is okay with me.
On my walk home tonight, I stopped to look at an interested Day of the Dead display tucked in a courtyard just off the Zocalo. A man approached me and said (this conversation happened in Spanish)
"Hey, do you remember me?"
I looked up and sure enough it was the man who randomly bought me a memelita in the Zocalo last week. I said, "Yes. Thank you for buying my memelita last week. That was nice." He started explaining to me what the display was about, and giving me a short history of Catholic traditions + Day of the Dead.
I asked him about indigenous customs. He couldn't answer me; I should have known then that he was a creep. Instead, he told me a few more things and then asked "What are you doing tonight?" I responded with "My family is waiting for me at home. They're expecting me for dinner."
This is a classic military brat lie. It's the "I'm not going to tell you I'm walking home alone with no one expecting me" move.
Then he asked for my phone number. I told him I didn't have a phone. Then he asked if we could meet in the park and chat (at this point, I was moving out of the dark courtyard and back towards the main road with tons of people). He grabbed my hand and said he'd really like to do an intercambio (like language exchange) with me. At this point, I wasn't sure if he was being creepy or just an older man who wanted an intercambio. I told him that my friends could use the practice too, but that I wasn't comfortable meeting him alone.
He said, "I only want to be with you."
I said, "Sorry. I need to go. My family is waiting."
Then he grabbed my arm (just as I was a foot away from the main road) and said, "You're not going anywhere." He pulled me towards him.
Maybe he meant to hurt me as much as he did. Maybe my pulling violently away from him and stumbling into the road hurt me more than he intended. Either way, he got aggressively angry and followed me out into the street.
He looked really mad.
I ran to Cafe Brujula (about 10 feet away) and hid for a while. I asked the barista to check to make sure he was gone. He went out and said he didn't see any creepy looking angry dudes, and I booked it back to my house.
I guess I can't walk alone in the Zocalo anymore. That guy will probably see me and grab me and then I'll be afraid to leave the house ever again.
--- Now, before you get freaked out and say "That's Mexico for you" or something racist and inappropriate let me remind you that I have been accosted other times in the US by men of my own (and other) races. This man does not represent Mexican men. In fact, he represents the polar opposite. His actions in no way speak for the male population here, nor do his poor manners reflect the manners of men here. If you are thinking that, you are wrong. ---
Now let's get to the 98% awesome part of my day.
Breakfast. I love breakfast. Every morning, Martita feeds me gold.
Class - I love class! I love being a student! I love studying! I love learning! I love Spanish! I love my teacher! Today, we spent the whole day working on something I asked about. Luckily, my whole class didn't know the concept either, and so I didn't feel like a jerk for hijacking the class (or his lesson plan).
Mask Making Class - Mask making class is super fun. I love the 2 Octavios (teachers) and Omar. They are funny, hands on teachers that make you feel like an adult in a craft class - not a baby in a craft class. We are planning to make a video in which all of us/our masks appear. We spent class time telling jokes in Spanish and learning Spanish slang from one of the Octavios.
After mask making class, Lucy, Saskia, Billy, Thora and I all walked to the barber shop. Yesterday, Lucy and Saskia and I decided we were going to shave the sides of our heads (like Cordelia)! The two barbers there are MS13 gang members and are fully tatted (arms, necks, faces).
They're really nice dudes!
There was also the cutest little boy in there who was playing peek-a-boo with me, and would laugh hysterically every time I pretended to cut his hair. Anyway, Billy basically got us all hooked up with this place...we were the 3rd, 4th, and 5th girl Billy has brought to this shop. I'm sure the guys are wondering what the deal is. But, they didn't ask questions. They just shaved away. And they did great jobs of it. We all look really awesome. :)
After that, Saskia and Lucy went home. Thora, Billy and I went to the taco place...they didn't eat. But I ate 4 tacos + 2 extra tortillas to clean up the taco spill leftovers at the end. In the restaurant, the waiter's name was Gego. Or something like that. And they thought my hair was cool, too. And they were weirdly shocked that I was ordering and speaking in Spanish.
I'm not sure why. I must not look like I can do it.
After that, I walked home.
There were a million little things about today which I loved. Lots of laughing. New experiences. Cute little kids, smart remarks in class, being dared by a teacher to steal free fruit from a conference at our school and chickening out. Climbing on the tables at the school. Walking in the rain. The Day of the Dead festivities around the city. Talking with Martita.
98% is okay with me.
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