From time to time we've outlined a few of the things that the foreign visitors do differently from our Mexican Hosts. There's more differences than you might think-but the happier we are to live here the more we shout VIVA la differencia!
Buying Property
The most stable investment in an unstable economy is land. When a Mexican buyer asks about an advertised property, his first question is "How many meters of land?" A North American asks about the bedrooms and then the baths and kitchen. They seldom ask for the precise measurements of the land.
The Shopkeeper
Try to remember to say "Buenos Dias" or "Buenos Tardes" as you enter a business, even if there is no one in sight. We've learned to not "bother" the clerk until we need help. That delay in greetings is seen as unfriendly and dismissive by Mexican employees.
Adios
Want to share a cheery greeting to those you pass on the sidewalk, but don't have time to stop and visit? The correct greeting is "Adios"--Not "Hola." You are saying "Good Bye" as you meet them. Coming or going, you are offering a blessing to those along the way-the literal translation of Adios is, "To God."
Eye contact
Looking a Mexican straight in the eye can be considered aggressive or flirtatious behavior. Look at an area near the eye and quickly look away. Sometimes you may feel a Mexican is truthful or is slightly evasive because of this lack of eye contact. Direct eye contact belongs to our culture's standards of behavior. Lingering or intent eye contact with the opposite sex here is construed as a come-on. In rural areas, looking intently at a baby can be interpreted as an attempt to cast the "evil eye." Even here you'll alleviate parents' fears if you gently touch the baby as you admire it-that simple touch breaks the possibility of the spell of the evil eye.
Put the Money into the Hand
Here's a small detail, but an important one. At the grocery store, the OXXO, the takeout stand-it is far more polite to put the money directly into the checker or clerk's hand. Putting it on the counter for them to pick up is a snub-an indication of not wanting to make direct contact with them.
Physical contact
It took several years to learn to cope with being bumped, jostled, and touched at crowded fiestas, in lines and in street markets. The suspicious side of me was concerned about pick pockets. It felt as though people were being deliberately inconsiderate and rude. My attitudes changed when I realized that many Mexicans grew up with the whole families, including three or four children, sleeping in a single room. With the extended family in the house and constant inevitable physical contact at home, touching in the street takes on a different aspect. Studies show that North Americans reflect their need for space by communicating most comfortably at 36-48 inches. Hispanics move in closer, to about 18 inches.
The "Bad" Words and Dirty Jokes
Don't learn the off color words in Spanish. That way you won't be tempted to disgrace yourself. Mexico's mores are like the customs back North 50 years ago. Wise remarks and barely dirty jokes are bandied about when the men and women are in separate groups, but it is very disrespectful and in extremely bad form to swear or make double entendres in the presence of the opposite sex or children.
