Me encontré este post en otro blog y decidí compartirlo con ustedes.
Favor de tormarlo con humor (y un poco de filosofía, jajaja).
Language proficency
As frequent readers of this blog and people who have met me personally know, one of my main interests is the use of language and I speak both Finnish and Spanish with my wife (with a liberal sprinkling of English depending on the subject).
With her we've found out that who speaks better the language of the other depends on the day. Sometimes I speak Finnish better than she does Spanish, sometimes it's the reverse. Is it just because of general tiredness or some other reason?
Come to Oaxaca
Whenever you have the chance to visit Mexico, come to Oaxaca. The state capital of the same name, 6 hours away from Mexico City, is a World Heritage Site, has a long history, a strong Indian component to society and a beautiful downtown with lively markets and good food. Within 60 kms you will find plenty of towns specialising in different handicrafts, historical sites and Zapotec and Mixtec archaeological sites. Its people are very warm and the weather is also quite agreeable.
You won’t regret it.
What if your consumer can’t afford it?
This BusinessWeek article on Mexican microlending and a newspaper note I bumped into detailing the growth of luxury brands in Mexico made me wonder on whether it is ethically sound to sell high-ticket products to a consumer if said person can't afford it.
On one side you have the free will of your customer, on the other the fact that you may knowingly sell them something that will cause them more trouble than enjoyment. I'm all for giving all the necessary information to the consumer, but he/she has to take their decisions independently.
Contrapunto
De pura casualidad durante mi visita en México me encontré un programa de discusión y análisis de tópicos de política y economía nacional llamado Contrapunto, el cual por desgracia ya ha sido cancelado. En esta ocasión la conductora y los invitados discutieron sobre el balance de México en 2007 y las perspectivas para 2008. Me quedo con los siguientes puntos:
- Aunque la economía mexicana se ha mostrado fuerte durante el año, está por ver qué tanto resistiría una probable recesión en Estados Unidos, dada la fuerte interacción comercial entre ambos países.
- Las reformas que necesita el país siguen (y seguirán) estancadas, y seguiremos con medidas a la Frankenstein.
- Aún así, no ha habido un colapso como se esperaba después de un 2006 tan crispado.
Dialing in Mexico is a nightmare
I truly wonder who was the idiot who decided on the dialing scheme in use in Mexico. Absolutely user-unfriendly, it means that a person roaming there doesn't actually know how to dial a number as the standard international form (country code + area/mobile code + number such as +52 55 5555-5555) just doesn't work. To make matters worse, the number you dial to a mobile phone changes every time depending on where the caller and the receiver are. Absolutely insane!
The details in Lee Iwan's blog.
Unreal Mexican TV
I've heard before criticism of Mexican TV saying that the actors and acresses there depicted have very little in common with the average Mexican (if there is such a thing). I think it shows a certain aspirational aspect of the Mexican psyche, where being fair skinned is desired.
Mexicans use TV to escape, not to see themselves the way they are.
Mexican consumerism
Even though certain sectors of society rant against neoliberalism and whatnot, the truth is that Mexico has become a rather consumerist society. Everybody is trying to sell you something in TV, in the street and even when you're driving as the photo shows. Status is more and more about what you own, less and less about who you are.
At least it means that the economy (at the macroeconomic level) is in good shape with the Mexican Peso being surprisingly strong.
Acapulco beach
Drama
Tal parece que al mexicano le encanta eso del drama, hacer un teatro y montar un tango. Entre lo que uno ve en la calle y lo que se encuentra en la televisión la diferencia no es tan grande como se quisiera pensar.