On the flight from Merida, the fellow beside me, I find out is a first timer and nervous. I feel benevolent; so I give him my window seat. He is so excited and nervous. He's older than me and has never flown before. I tried to reassure him with my newly acquired words: subir and bajar; up and down. So I tell him "we go up, and then we come down, really simple, really easy, no problem". I tell him the statistics on the safeness of flying compared to say bus travel (and that has got to even worse in Mexico) He is somewhat reassured. He asks if that white stuff we are flying through is cloud. Yup, we're flying right through the clouds, I tell him. I find it so charming that he is so child-like. We end up gabbing the whole way, and finally, I really wanted a rest, so I gave him one of my books, the one with all the bad swear words and expressions in spanish; I figure that will keep him amused for a brief time. I tell him next time he comes on a plane he has to bring a book or something to keep is mind calm.
So maybe it didn't occur to him that I wasn't a native speaker because near the end when I tell him where I'm from, he is shocked to discover that english would be my first language. Wow, I'm really kicking butt in the spanish language department I think to myself. That makes three huge conversations I've had in the last three days. Still, there are days when I goof up on "how are you", so I won't let it go to my head.
At the airport I find two british gringos and ask them if they want to try to share a cab if we are headed in the same direction. We give it a shot and supposedly it will work. I make a deal with the driver for less, and off we go. Then the driver has an issue and tells me his boss was wrong, that in fact I'm going in the opposite direction. It is actually the truth. It ends up I'm paying more because the cheap brits don't pay enough but I wasn't going to argue. I was so enthralled with the conversation that ensued once they left, that I didn't care. That makes four conversations. It ends up the nice taxi driver starts telling me his marriage troubles. I don't know how it got on the subject of sex, but there was no stopping him complaining about his wife who won't do it with him, more than once every 15 days. I tell him it's probably going to get worse, since he's been married 15 years, then when he's married 20, it will be once every 20 days and so on. I wasn't helping. He told me that "americanas" have this reputation by mexicans that they really really like sex and want to do it all the time. Was it true? Well, not being an americana, I couldn't say, but speaking from a canadiense perspective, I would have to say its not true in general. But, si, he insisted; he has friends who tell him this, that the americanas can't get enough, and want to make love all day and don't care about the cleaning, the laundry, the cooking etc.
Hm. I assure him that might be true, but that the making love all day is an urban myth. "It's more likely that they don't want to cook, clean, OR make love I tell him. "Really?" the poor guy asks, not wanting to hear this. We mexicans are demanding, he tells me. We want to do it at least once a day. Well, I consider his problem with his wife and suggest they come to a compromise somewhere between once a day and once every fifteen days. Have you tried talking to her? I ask. Si, si, he assures me, he complains all the time. She has told him he should just go out in the street and find somebody and get is fix and then come home and be nice.
Huh, I tell him, now you have permission so what's the problem? He is outraged; "do know how expensive a prostitute can BE??" I suspect he feels he should be able to get it for free at home. Doesn't seem to be working for you so far does it - I ask.
He goes on about a gringo friend of his who is not highly sexual and has married a Mexcan woman. Why the hell did you go and do that? he gets asked by the mexican men. He is happy because she cooks, she keep a spotless house, does the laundry and takes care of him. No american woman knows how to do that anymore. Well, I suggest, it's a matter of priorities. Some men just don't have a high sex drive. Well, the taxista thinks, maybe it would all be better if mexicans married gringas and the mexican women married gringos. In the end, I didn't know what else to say except that he should see a marriage counselor.
I feel like he should have paid me for the cab ride.
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