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February 02, 2007
Stuck in a Moment
Things have been going really well this and I’m especially enjoying my Antroplogia Mexicana class. Our maestro, Eugenia is SO nice and she tries so hard to make the class interesting for both Mexican students and the extranjeros. Yesterday in class, we were discussing what factors are necessary for the creation of a stable nation-state and how these factors change depending on the geographic location and historic events. Towards the end of class, we got into groups to discuss some of the lectura and what was even more interesting was the fact that all three countries were represented in my group—Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
I’ve never had the opportunity to be in an educational setting where I can speak directly to students from other countries—students that carry their unique thought processes, background, and personal bias to a round table discussion. And I think that’s just generally due to the nature and type of classes that I take at Michigan. But anyway, the canadiense, Anna-Louise, is from Quebec and is a student at Laval University (which I’ve become very familiar with after traveling to Canada). It’s great because I’ve broken into French with her a few times already…
A lot of our discussion was geared towards how nations treat various cultures.
In Canada, (as we heard from Louise), it’s become even harder and harder to retain the French-Quebecois identity due to globalization of companies and Canada’s participation in world economic and political affairs. Nevertheless, the French culture is still thriving. She was saying that the people first consider themselves Quebecois and then as Canadians.
In Mexico, it works similarly here in the Yucatan. They first consider themselves Yucatecans and then Mexicans. This has to do with the strong separatist identity of the people of Quintanna Roo, Yucatan, and Campeche. Up until the 1960’s we learned, the Yucatan Peninsula was cut off from the rest of Mexico because there were no highways that ran through the jungle. Because of this, the Yucatan Peninsula (the three states: Quintanna Roo, Yucatan, and Campeche) engaged in heavy trading with the Caribbean nations, Europe, and South America. Hence, the culture here in Merida is very reflective of such areas—more so than the culture of mainland Mexico.
Eugenia also told us that there was a short period of time in the 1800s when the Yucatan peninsula was its own separate nation, distinct from Mexico.
In the United States, however, we carry a very different attitude. If I were to be dropped off on a street somewhere anywhere in the world, I would first tell someone that I am an American, then that I am from New Jersey. It’s interesting to think of why this is the case… And at least I feel that it has been United States policy to repress various cultures… Think of the Native American Indians, for example. Their culture and identity has virtually been washed away. And the fact is, when immigrants come to the US, it is almost imperative that they assimilate into an American identity if they want to be successful and lead a stable life in our country…
In other news, I finally got all of my copies for next week from the library. Monday is Constitution Day, so there is no school. I’ll probably be heading to the beach and then I’m working on a group project at night at a Mexican student’s house. It’s been in the high 90’s for the past few days and will continue to stay at that temperature.
Last night, I went with Nina, Erich, and Christie to a video-café on the Prolongacion Montejo. Basically, it was a cross between a Starbucks, Haagen Dasz, and Godiva store with video screens on every wall. They were playing music videos from all around the world. It was a really nice night. The two girls have been here in Merida, studying since August (they are doing a full-year program) and it’s interesting to hear of their experiences, and of their recommendations. My group did nothing.
Today, they invited me to go with them to the zoo and they’re also going to the beach tomorrow. In a little while, I’m going for an interview at a bilingual institute to teach English to students for community service work. I enjoyed teaching English in the US at the library and I think that it’s a great opportunity to do some community service work here in Mexico. Tomorrow, we have an excursion with Elizabeth apparently to a hacienda and another cenote. 8AM at the McDonalds, like usual.
And, yesterday at the UADY, Dra. Shrimpton told me about a girl that is writing her thesis on Sandra Cisneros and asked if I would be able to help her. I think it would be really interesting—I’m writing about Sandra Cisneros for my independent study. She’s reading the same book that I’m reading, but she’s having a little bit of difficulty because it’s in English. We agreed to meet up at the heladeria in the centro on Wed. for a book talk in English. Prof. Ramos will be joining us as well (he said he’d really like to practice a little English).
And finally, I found a new pair of sneakers in a little zapateria. I think I have the biggest shoe size that Merida has ever seen. I’ve been into 14 zapaterias.
Because it has been so hot, I also did some shopping around the Mercado this week for some light-weight shirts to wear. I was looking around for a while, in and out of the different shops—up and down, there are cheap clothes all over. Finally, I entered into a little tienda and I asked the boy working there if he had any shirts in a size “large”. He smiled, stopped, and looked at me and said (in very broken English): “Y-y-you go to Michigan?” It was at that moment that I absolutely froze. He had noticed the M-hat that I was wearing. I told him that yes, I am a student at the University of Michigan, and his mouth dropped open.
I ended up leaving the tienda, because he didn’t have anything in my size, but I stopped for a moment to think about what had happened outside on the sidewalk. I go to Michigan. MICHIGAN. I think it’s amazing how the maize and blue M is a universal symbol. I’ve been stopped in Canada and now, I’ve been stopped in Mexico. I go to the University of Michigan.
And it was only for a split second, in the middle of a busy and hectic week, that I got stuck in a moment.
Posted by jlsumich at February 2, 2007 02:37 PM