Advice taken.

It's around 12 am Friday, July 31st and I am in the longest line @ LAX waiting for my baggage check. Along with my travel friend, I am far too stoked to be heading to our vacation in Mexico to let long lines get to me. As we start chatting too loudly a man near to us asks us where we're headed that we seemed so happy. He wishes he were in our shoes (instead of going on a business trip) and begins to give us his "best advice": don't get married so soon!
Ok, it was more like, "enjoy your youth." He said to seek out life's pleasures and explore cultures, meet and listen to people, but surround yourselves mostly with those that bring a positive energy so you can bounce off each other and generate a larger aura of positive energy that enriches life. But most importantly, he shocked us by saying, "NEVER stop smiling." He told us just as we were already doing so, that that creates light in a dark room.

Good stuff.

Let’s just say the long line didn’t seem so long after chatting with him and before we knew it we were in the lobby waiting room. Our adventure had already begun.

Sahuayo, Michoacán was the first destination and one of the most interesting ones. Having never been there I had made an idea in my head of what to expect. And yes some of these ideas ARE stereotypical- let’s admit we all have some. I figured that although I am Mexican, it is a different level of Mexican-ism and I was going to feel out of place. You know... a different style of the Spanish language (I use a horrible mix of Spanglish), dirtier houses (dirt roads= dirtier living areas, right), and harder access to amenities that in our lives are essential: the wonderful world wide web!

Sure, this would be a different type of vacation, but with better food.

Ok, so it turns out that YES they DO speak better Spanish, their houses CAN be tidied up a bit more, and there could be one or two MORE internet cafes. The thing is that everything I just said can be anywhere else. That's not what makes the city what it is. My mind was widened the day I arrived on the warm land, colorful and genuine. But of course what stole my heart was its amazing food! Man can they cook.

The richness of the city comes from the culture and the people that keep it alive. I was showered with hospitality, stories of myths and legends and ancestors that can be traced to decades ago, and most importantly a different pace of daily life. They took the time to eat (and man do they eat), enjoy conversations, and take pride in their work- in which they refreshed midday for two hours (I was jealous).

I left Sahuayo with a new perspective on daily life. And although I cannot take those two hours for break every day, the stress of daily work- whether it is at a job or running errands, I found can be minimized and transformed into an enriched life.

But man was that food good! (Final comment)

Lizzette Cisneros, Assistant Media Planner