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amaranto
Joined: 02 Jun 2009 Posts: 133 Location: M�xico, D.F.
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Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2011 9:21 pm Post subject: |
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There's a lot of good advice here. I especially agree that it's most important to be aware of your surroundings and watch out for cars!
I have used traveller's checks (in Cuernavaca), but I found it to be inconvenient. I usually try to go to the ATM accompanied by a friend, but this is not always possible, and it doesn't ensure you won't be robbed by someone with a weapon. I try to take the cash I need on me and not carry around debit cards too much. That way I won't lose too much if I get robbed and won't spend in excess
In my experience, the way people dress here (Mexico City) depends more on their age and what part of the city they live in. While people in their late 30s and up may dress more conservatively on average, all you have to do is get on the metro on a Sunday to see all kinds of styles from all different parts of the city. My friends (all Mexicans) and I dress pretty urban--not at all conservative; we are in our 20s-early 30s.
I've never been in a restaurant bathroom that didn't have soap, and I've eaten out a lot. Just take some antibacterial gel with you if you're worried about this. |
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donato
Joined: 05 May 2010 Posts: 98 Location: Mexico City, Mexico
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Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2011 9:29 pm Post subject: |
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Just want to repeat what others said about the cars and BUSES. I personally know a guy who was hit by a bus while riding his bike in Guadalajara and he broke his femur. I also dated a girl whose dad was killed by a bus in Mexico City. Always look out. If the light is red don't assume the car will stop. And never assume there is a stop sign to begin with. |
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Prof.Gringo
Joined: 07 Nov 2006 Posts: 2236 Location: Dang Cong San Viet Nam Quang Vinh Muon Nam!
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Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2011 9:35 pm Post subject: Food Safety & Sanitation is lacking |
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MotherF wrote: |
One, what makes you think the cooks used the same sink as you do?
Two, they very well may carrry their own soap like many locals do.
Three, there may have been soap in the bathroom but you were not equipped to see it.
What do I mean by that last one? I've been out with a group of colleages who reported that there was no soap in the bathroom. I went back there and there a bag of powdered detergent--the type referred to as fad--under the sink. That's what you are supposed to use to wash your hands with. That's what all the locals do.
I do carry alcohol in gel with me (not the antibatirial stuff, just alcohol in gel) but mostly use that only when there is no water, which is often from Feb-June is this part of the country. |
First, I was offering basic advice. What people might take for granted back home doesn't always apply here. I have seen meat delivered in unrefrigerated trucks, with flies all over, being handled by men with no gloves and then sold in open air market stalls with no refrigeration and in some very unsanitary conditions.
Second, I am no newbie to either TEFL or Mexico, six long years here doing both.
Third, I have watched countless numbers of cooks, waiters, dishwashers etc. use the same bathroom as the customers. Many of the smaller, so-called "mom & pop" places barely have a functioning restroom, let alone separate ones for customers and employees.
Fourth, I know all about using the powder soap.
Fifth, I am certified in food sanitation and safety, both as a food service manager and on the production side. I am more than qualified to make a judgment about the sanitation of any given food-service establishment. |
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notamiss
Joined: 20 Jun 2007 Posts: 908 Location: El 5o pino del la CDMX
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Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2011 10:25 pm Post subject: |
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donato wrote: |
Just want to repeat what others said about the cars and BUSES. I personally know a guy who was hit by a bus while riding his bike in Guadalajara and he broke his femur. I also dated a girl whose dad was killed by a bus in Mexico City. Always look out. If the light is red don't assume the car will stop. And never assume there is a stop sign to begin with. |
Also: Whether you are a pedestrian, bicycle rider, or driver, always look both ways and be prepared for traffic in either direction. Don't assume it's only going one way just because it's a one-way street or a divided avenue. |
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Enigma2011
Joined: 28 Dec 2010 Posts: 60
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Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2011 10:29 pm Post subject: |
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donato wrote: |
4. Tell everyone you're from Arizona and the U.S.A. is #1. |
The U.S.A. IS #1!! |
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Enigma2011
Joined: 28 Dec 2010 Posts: 60
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Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2011 10:30 pm Post subject: |
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donato wrote: |
4. Tell everyone you're from Arizona and the U.S.A. is #1. |
Mexico is a close second. |
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Enigma2011
Joined: 28 Dec 2010 Posts: 60
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Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2011 10:36 pm Post subject: Re: Food Safety & Sanitation is lacking |
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Prof.Gringo wrote: |
I have seen meat delivered in unrefrigerated trucks, with flies all over, being handled by men with no gloves and then sold in open air market stalls with no refrigeration and in some very unsanitary conditions.
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That would ruin ones afternoon teaching class. That's just nasty. No excuse for that. |
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Isla Guapa
Joined: 19 Apr 2010 Posts: 1520 Location: Mexico City o sea La Gran Manzana Mexicana
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Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2011 10:39 pm Post subject: |
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For women: Either a dress or skirt below the knee or pants (preferred if you don't want extra Wink attention) and a blouse/shirt with sleeves of some kind. |
It's been quite a while since I've worn a dress or skirt above the knees, but I certainly see younger women wearing them (though perhaps not way above the knees) without getting undue attention, In hot weather, women of all ages can be seen wearing sleeveless tops, including myself. This is in Mexico City, by the way. |
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Prof.Gringo
Joined: 07 Nov 2006 Posts: 2236 Location: Dang Cong San Viet Nam Quang Vinh Muon Nam!
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Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 2:39 pm Post subject: |
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Again, I offered advice based on a total newbie to Mexico, better too conservative than not enough.
And women that wear skirts do get extra attention, esp. if it's above the knees, I like seeing how men get whiplash whenever a short skirt passes by
A foreign women is likely to be the source of extra "attention" to begin with.
Case in point: I studied Spanish at UNAM last year and there was a young Canadian woman in my class, about 19. She would wear short skirts and sleeveless blouses. When she was on the street cars would honk, stop in the street, whatever. When she crossed, they would screech to a stop so they could get a better view |
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amaranto
Joined: 02 Jun 2009 Posts: 133 Location: M�xico, D.F.
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Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 3:42 pm Post subject: |
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Quote: |
Case in point: I studied Spanish at UNAM last year and there was a young Canadian woman in my class, about 19. She would wear short skirts and sleeveless blouses. When she was on the street cars would honk, stop in the street, whatever. ... |
Yeah, I've seen quite a bit of this. I recently picked up a very blond friend from the airport and took the metro back to my place. A guy sitting beside us stared at her for 15 minutes. He would only look away when I gave him nasty looks. Sometimes I wonder what the hell is going on with some of the men here. |
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Prof.Gringo
Joined: 07 Nov 2006 Posts: 2236 Location: Dang Cong San Viet Nam Quang Vinh Muon Nam!
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Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 4:29 pm Post subject: |
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amaranto wrote: |
Quote: |
Case in point: I studied Spanish at UNAM last year and there was a young Canadian woman in my class, about 19. She would wear short skirts and sleeveless blouses. When she was on the street cars would honk, stop in the street, whatever. ... |
Yeah, I've seen quite a bit of this. I recently picked up a very blond friend from the airport and took the metro back to my place. A guy sitting beside us stared at her for 15 minutes. He would only look away when I gave him nasty looks. Sometimes I wonder what the hell is going on with some of the men here. |
It's just plain disgusting
In the US, looking at a woman without getting caught is an art. Men like to look, of course we do
But I don't make it obvious. Here, it's the 180 degree polar opposite. Men stare like they have been in a prison for 20 years. Even novios and husbands with their novias and wives stare. Absolutely no shame.
Again, my advice would be to any woman, esp. if you're white, black, Asian or pretty much anything outside of the Mexican "norm", when first coming to Mexico, dress conservative. Be prepared for a very macho, sexist society.
Things have changed in some areas in the past 20 years. Women now have careers. But the Metro still features segregated cars at rush car, and female-only public buses have been introduced in the DF. |
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Isla Guapa
Joined: 19 Apr 2010 Posts: 1520 Location: Mexico City o sea La Gran Manzana Mexicana
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Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 5:15 pm Post subject: |
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Even when I was in my twenties and living time in Mexico for extended periods of time, I never got much of the annoying (and at times disgusting) attention from some idiotic Mexican men that several posters have mentioned in this thread. It could be because I am short and, before my hair turned gray, I was not a blonde. Also I quickly learned not to look at people (especially men) when I was out in public and not to smile indiscriminately in all directions, as some of my friends (especially the ones from California ) tended to do. Now that I'm older (a lot older ), I do get the occasional glance from older men in the street, even when I'm dressed in jeans and a baggy top, but nothing to get upset about. |
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MotherF
Joined: 07 Jun 2010 Posts: 1450 Location: 17�48'N 97�46'W
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Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 6:15 pm Post subject: |
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Isla Guapa wrote: |
Also I quickly learned not to look at people (especially men) when I was out in public and not to smile indiscriminately in all directions, as some of my friends (especially the ones from California ) tended to do. |
In the provence, I've found the opposite approach the best tactic to stave off inappropriate attention. Here the sidewalks are narrow and not so busy as in many parts of the big city. So when I'm about to walk by a man or group of men, and woman too why not--I make eye contact and shoot off my most polite buenas dias/tardes/noches. That obliges them to respond in same.
I do perfer to error on the conservative side of dress. When I first came down I brought some short sleeve-less sun dresses with me, but found I felt over exposed when wearing them so newer additions to my wardrobe have all been less revealing. Also, as I live in a place with a hot and dry climate most of the year, it's actually cooler if you skin is covered by a loose layer of light airy material rather than exposed to the sun. I know in the humid coastal regions that is not the case. |
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Isla Guapa
Joined: 19 Apr 2010 Posts: 1520 Location: Mexico City o sea La Gran Manzana Mexicana
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Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 7:21 pm Post subject: |
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My not-looking-at-strange-men-in-public strategy was a tactic I used many years ago when I was young and vulnerable to stares from certain types of men. Now I don't give a d--n and, at least in my neighborhood, say hello to people I run into on the street, even if I don't know them. |
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donato
Joined: 05 May 2010 Posts: 98 Location: Mexico City, Mexico
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Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2011 8:33 am Post subject: |
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Been in Mexico 7 months or so. Stereotypes happen fast, and at this point it sounds bad, but my impressions about relationships is that Mexican women are about 1,000 times better than American women, and Mexican men are about 1,000 times worse than American men...
luckily for me I like women...it just seems like guys here are the scum of the Earth sometimes... |
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