It has been one week and two days since I have been in Mexico, despite being next door neighbors the United States and Mexico have a long list of differences in culture, food, infrastructure and overall life styles. We landed in Mexico City and were picked up by my dads side of the family to Pachuca, Hidalgo to be with my grandmother. I will write about each category for my first week here and include great descriptions of the first and basic noticeable observations. 

FOOD

     I’d one hundred percent stand by the fact that so far the food here is way better than up there, and I made that decision like two days in. It’s literally some of the best food I have consumed. I’m no stranger to Mexican food, authentic too since my mom makes amazing authentic Mexican food and down here it is actually amazing. It’s like I’ve opened my taste buds to a new world. The quality of the food is just so much better and the fact that the Mexican cuisine is miles ahead from hamburgers and hot dogs and whatever fried foods the U.S has to offer. It also embarrasses the Tex-Mex style of food up there. The quality of steak, eggs, and avocado is oddly noticeably different and better than up in the U.S. Th

is is true due to the fact that a lot of Mexicans sell more fresh and organic produce like steak eggs and avocados in street corner shops (will get to this later). Meaning for example, you walk into one of many corner shops to buy some chicken, the chicken you bought was more than likely killed fresh that morning in a stable environment, not pumped with hormones. These corner mini markets are packed with the most fresh and organic foods you can find. The highlight foods so far are easily street tacos, mole, barbacoa, and pan dulce (sweet bread or any type of bread really). And mixed in with the salsa over her

e which is way better than in the U.S. And the bread here is amazing, you can’t walk around a plaza without smelling an amazing scent coming from one of many bakeries. And the basic chocolate cake here that I had for my birthday is the best cake I’ve had and it came from a local street shop costing about roughly 12 U.S dollars. 

Culture/Life Style

     Mexican culture and lifestyle is a lot. The people here are honestly a lot nicer and friendlier than up in the United States. Although having a weaker economy and getting paid less than Americans, people seem genuinely happy when working. People seem happier all around as a matter of fact. Greetings on the streets are a lot more common, a lot more people excuse themselves, there are conversations and group meetings all around, and neighbors love each other. The fact is: People here don’t need much to be happy. Mixed in with the vibrant music, colors, gatherings and festivals people live good lives by just being outside whether it’s setting up stands to sell certain items and foods, to just taking a walk with family people live happier lives outside of the house, the culture is too rich. Lifestyle here is very different to the states, my dad pointed out a basic summary that life up there, someone is more comfortable while life down here one is more happy. In Mexico you see more people on the streets walking as for most you don’t need a car to get groceries or go to a park or soccer court. You can walk down the street and easily encounter a small mini market that is placed right next to someone’s house (I’ll cover the architecture later). Contrast to the U.S where walking out of your neighborhood to go eat or get groceries is way less common, hence needing a car for everything. In Mexico more people are out, you can walk around and there would be a mini band hammering down on a tambor alegre or “cheerful drum” which is common for the cumbia style of music. I saw a couple dancing to music outside of a street shop at a plaza. Dancing is a very common practice that is deep rooted in the culture. It’s not common for one to pass by you while you are eating and say “Aprovecho” which means to take advantage, a very common nice saying.

Scenery 

     Like the U.S, landscapes throughout different regions are vastly different. Central Mexico ranging from Mexico City going northwest there are plenty of mountains. They are amazing, Pachuca which is surrounded by mountains as well has breathtaking views when up on the mountains. The highest point of elevation I’ve been on is in the town or “pueblo” my dad grew up on on top of the mountains called Real Del Monte. This point reached 9000 feet above sea level, 4000 more than Denver, Colorado. Further west along the Pacific Coast you can find more flat lands with the presence of many hills. Down south and east closer to Guatemala and Belize is the more tropical/jungle environment, this is where you can 

find the Yucatan Pyramid. As for the cities and small towns, they are filled with vibrant rich culture, flooded with many street vendors, shops, markets and street dogs. In many cities, there are plenty of stray dogs roaming around the streets dispersively. In small towns or “pueblos”, street dogs are everywhere. There are an estimated 18.8 million stray dogs in Mexico that roam the streets along with humans. As for infrastructure, many cities don’t possess the typical skyscraper scenes as for most large cities in America. Instead, there are smaller buildings that are close and tidy next to each other, this goes for houses as well. Someone’s home can be in the same building as someone’s corner shop, though commonly in this instance the shop is also owned by the homeowner. They are like apartments space wise, except they are homes.