The locals......

Our diver came to collect after cleaning the bottom and brought his family. Mom is expecting another - and we sat on the end of the dock and talked about life on the water. Would we do this with our diver in San Francisco Bay? Uh, no way - he would be off to the next high priced job - there is an ease here that is coulkd be called manana time, or just good social skills. I think it is the character of Mexico - warm, caring and interested in each other. I complain sometimes about how much the workers talk to each other, which is constant - but the lesson there is they communicate and that is a good thing. We could learn a lot there.

Mexicans going home from the US ride cheap buses that allow them to take treasures home. This fellow wore his hat to and from the US, but no one laughed at him in Mexico. He insisted on putting the thing on my head to take a photo to his relatives. He was so full of happiness at going home, there was nothing we could do but share it. Would this happen at a bus stop in Topeka? I don't think so.
We walk the beach some days and find the vendors with their carry cases all sealed up but they want to show us what they have if we even show a little interest. When we say we have no money in our bathing suits, the reply is "Mexican Credit" and we all laugh. Laughing is endemic here. Does this happen as a rule in the US? No.

This fellow was given the challenge of finding something special for our friend Linda. He went right to her Amakua: a turtle....so the disappointing day in Mismaloya turned out to be pretty special, after all. He doesn't look sure, but the smile he later gave was worth the silver in the turtle.
The guards here call, "Amiga" at Maribeth, Lisa or me as we walk by - which means, Hi friend....pretty neat. And they run to open the gate for us if we forget our keys- smiling, always smiling. Viva Mexico.