Traveling Etiquette

By Cindy Gomez
Editor

It has become a yearly pilgrimage for HPR staff to visit Mexico over the holiday break. Lately, anti-Mexico sentiment, daily negative media reports travel advisories, have stemmed the usual influx of American vacation-goers to Mexico.

Yes, there is turmoil in Mexico—both internal strife and violence as well as in her government and her policies. Stories of gruesome decapitations, murders and kidnappings abound. But, no more than any other country by comparison—or for that matter—no more than is exhibited in the U.S. every day.

Here’s some perspective: The U.S. is in the top 30 of most indebted countries in the world along with countries like Sri Lanka, Nicaragua and the Ivory Coast. Mexico ranks 89th. Out of 34 countries reporting, the U.S. ranks #1 in divorce rates, rapes, physical assaults and burglaries above all other nations. The U.S. also outranks Mexico in murders by firearms, executions and jails. If our media spent more of its time reporting images and pictures of our own violence, we might have more balanced views of other countries.
With all the hype about dangerous conditions and hostilities, we wondered if traveling would be a more tense and dangerous experience. Having been my first visit back in nearly a decade, I was astounded by the comparisons to the United States; they were stark. Here are just some of the examples:

Airport Security and Customs

None of us experienced the x-ray machine, nor the physical pat-down search, but, the demeanor and tone of the the TSA state-side was mostly cold and brusk. If you have never tried to undress while shoving your belongings into plastic bins and running next to a conveyor belt—let me just say—it’s not a process that is made more simple by having a TSA agent yelling, “You need to move along!”

Upon arriving in Mexico, Airport Security and customs agents were relaxed and friendly. They spoke a variety of languages. Everywhere, foreigners from the rest of the world were greeted in their native languages. TSA were not rushed, did not require shoe removal and actually helped us carry our belongings through their airport security machines. No somber faces were to be found. All were welcoming and extremely polite.

U.S. customs re-entering the country was a piece of cake; but only for Americans. The customs agents looked like they had the personality of Brillo pads, but they were very expedient. The many Mexicans on the flight were treated quite differently.  They were rudely interrogated by armed guards, fingerprinted and photographed. Airplane stewards as well as airport staff became instantly annoyed when dealing with broken English or non-English speakers. From what I could hear, most visitors were tourists here to spend their money or business people intent on investing in America. I felt ashamed as an American that visitors to our country were not given the same warm and friendly reception we received in Mexico.

People and Perceptions

There have always been large communities of ex-patriot Americans (and other foreigners) living in Mexico. In fact, some towns like San Miguel de Allende are almost entirely American ex-patriot artists. Canadians, Russians, Germans and many other foreigners are buying up real estate and enjoying the lack of American competition for Mexico’s land. It was amazing to see the increase in ex-patriot numbers, their views on America’s policies and their perception of Mexico’s treatment of foreigners.

Take for example Tom and Filiberto, a gay couple living in Puerto Vallarta (one ex-patriot and one Mexican national), who are diligently planning their wedding in Mexico City. This is, of course, something they cannot do in the U.S., where gays are not allowed to marry. Fili has been denied a visa to the U.S., even though the couple is independently wealthy, and he was treated so rudely he has decided he’d rather not visit the U.S. nor contribute his money to the U.S. economy. His partner Tom can’t really blame him. Tom said there is more acceptance and equality for gays in Mexico and he deals with less homophobia than he ever did living in the U.S.

Mexico’s tourism industry is world famous. Everywhere we visited the vendors spoke in several languages, which goes to show that just because the U.S. has scared its populace into avoiding her, it hasn’t stopped the rest of the world from luxuriating in Mexico’s beauty.

With our ailing economy, we should find ways to work with our neighbors to the south instead of against them. Why spend thousands more for a vacation in Florida or Hawaii when you can experience paradise on the cheap right across the Rio Bravo? Americans spend more on entertainment during hard economic times than during times of prosperity—and they seek to do it cheaply. There is no better bang for your vacation buck than Mexico.

And we need to begin seeing Mexicans as tourists. My aunt Paulina regaled us with her latest trip to Rome and her private audience with the Pope. My cousins spoke of their recent European and Canadian vacations. In my Mexico family alone, over the last decade, there have been trips to Canada, Rome, Italy, Russia, China, Japan, Egypt and all over Latin America. And, that’s just on my dad’s side of the family.

Our perception that all Mexicans are impoverished, dying to work for us and only come to this country to suck off the social service teet—is ignorant and costly. None of my relatives have come to spend a centavo in the U.S. I always beg for them to visit, but they refuse. Why? Because of restrictive visa policies. Most have been denied visas to visit the U.S., despite their wealth and world-wide travels. Those who haven’t been restricted have refused to visit out of disgust for the rude and racist treatment they receive when they have come.

America can’t afford its cold-war separatist attitudes. We need to swallow our pride, and jump off our terror-alert high horse. Mexico is our neighbor, and Mexicans travel extensively. Their tourism pesos spend just fine in other countries who—by the way—don’t treat them like lepers. We’re in a deep depression and we’re missing out on billions of dollars that Mexicans could be spending here!

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