Goodbys, the future - and mystery

As mentioned in the previous post, many of my friends leave or have already left after this semester. They either finished their semester/year abroad, or they simply completed their studies as a whole.

So, after many entries about the very different world view of my US American roomie, finally a photo of us both, together with my Mexican roomie R.

Me, A. (USA), R. (Mexico)

Also some Mexican friends left in order to study abroad or after having finished their studies, like for example R. And yes: Mexicans seem to favor names with an initial "R". I have no less than three roomies to whom this applies.

My "neighbour" R. who is from Mexico but who will do his master's degree in Canada.

Some people ask me if I'm sad to suddenly "lose" so many friends. To be honest: I really enjoyed the time being with them. Yet, more often than not, I am the one who's moving on and obviously I had to get used to such goodbys in order to reconcile them with my lifestyle. Not to forget: Nowadays it's extremely simple to keep in touch with people from all over the world, thanks to Facebook, Skype, etc. So, no - I'm not sad, but rather anxious to get to know new people, and to hear from the guys who left how they are doing far away.

Today I handed in my final essay in this semester. Now I only have to take one more exam, which doesn't have anything to do with my studies here, but which is rather a prerequisite for a possible future master's degree. And then on 23rd of May I'm free... until the 28th, wenn summer school is starting... But hey, four and a half days! That's better than nothing! I'm thinking about going to Taxco with some German friends and to Xalapa with a Canadian friend who will also leave soon. Let's see...

Apart, I'm already planning my trips to Peru and Colombia in July, my internship in Mexico City from August 'till December, and I'm also already thinking about a possible trip to the US in December/January, in order to visit a friend over there. That's how life must be. Travelling is awesome!

I think, especially my time living in Mexico City will also be quite a "journey". Although I have been to several huge cities like Tokyo, Bangkok, or Hong Kong, Mexico City is a different story. Each and every time visiting it, I really enjoy the vibrant atmosphere. And yet, each and every time at least one person tries to scam me.

Last week, when I returned from my job interview and were already about to leave, a foreign man (not a Mexican) asked me in perfect English if I could help him. He started to tell me a story of how his passport and all his belongings had been stolen. That he had to cancel his credit card, etc. He asked me to help him out with my Spanish as he wanted to call his airline to get another flight. I even went with him to the public phones, but as his story developed to something including Western Union, transferring money to Mexico and that he therefore needed an official ID (as his one supposedly was stolen), I really didn't feel like being in front of an honest man, especially as I had the feeling that he was not calling anybody at all.

And why did he need my Spanish skills when suddenly English worked just fine?! I think, he also wanted to get some more information about me, as he seemed especially interested in what I was doing in Mexico and where I was from. Well, of course I'm a student from Chihuaha and live in Mexico already since 1995, with a lot of friends nearby, right?! Long story short: I recommended him to go to the police and left immediately, without even looking back. It's so sad that you have to become less helpful in order to survive in such a city...

To finish, I still wanted to write down some observations "typically Mexican", many of them still a mystery to me:

"Looking for female personnel with 'good presentation'. Age: 18-25 years."

I finally got a shot of a very standard - read: sexist - job offer.

I also totally don't get how Mexicans like stuff like:
Gelatine - In Germany we put it apart before enjoying the fruit tart, as it's only used to fix the topping, here they eat it as a sweet, because it "tastes so deliciously fruity"...

Source: CulturaMix.com

Salsa - Mexicans seem to be resistant against salt. Even extremely salty food like potato chips or popcorn are soaked in salsa. You won't believe how many times I had to return a dish ordered in a restaurant, as it was just so salty as to be inedible.

Source: NachosNY

Source: ImyPollo

And of course pizza comes with five different bottles of salsa, as well...

Source: AvengingBishop

Living in "Maya country", I should probably not be surprised that there is corn everywhere. But still - what creepy concoction is the omnipresent night-time snack "esquites": Corn kernels (not the golden variety which would still be edible, but a nearly white one without any taste), loooots of mayonnaise, loads of cheese, SALT, chili powder, lime... Urgh...

Source: Wikipedia

It was also funny when I told my roomie that after I had "accidentally" put half a garlic head (about 10 cloves) into my single portion meal, my friend I met short after would probably hate me. But no - my roomie explained to me that once you brush your teeth, all the smell is gone... Erm, ya, for sure...

And the final mystery I still have to solve: Why are all the church clocks in Mexico permanently stopped?!