Interesting People

Hello again,

As I mentioned, there was more to my Saturday than what I included in my previous post. During our journey around the city, we came across two very friendly people...

The first was a woman, probably late twenties, who overheard Sasha and I talking in English at one of the stands. As we began to walk away, she came running after us and began to talk to Sasha. After a minute, they both come up to me and Sasha simply says that she wants me to give her English lessons. I have to admit that it was a little weird that this woman would just ask a stranger for lessons, but she continued explaining to us that she can read well, but has no one to practice speaking with. She then takes out a piece of paper and pen and asks for us to write down our phone numbers and e-mail addresses so she can contact us.

The second encounter took place on the metro back home. Someone was selling bubbles (the kind that don't pop) on our car, so Sasha and I decided to buy some. The woman standing next to us saw us joking around, and asked where Sasha was from (at first, she thought I was showing him around). We explained to her that we were both exchange students from Russia and the United States respectively. Her eyes lit up: apparently her daughter always wanted to study in the united States. She went on to ask us about grade requirements to study at our Universities, and how we liked Mexico City.

So, we go to get off at our station and she followed us off, and wanted to know if we could give her our e-mails and phone numbers!!! Before we know it, she pulls out her cell phone to call her daughter. Even though she had no credit left on her phone, she was quick to explain to us that we had about ten seconds to talk to her and ask for her e-mail as well. It was kinda funny; she woman first yells "tu correo!" and then hands the phone to Sasha. not knowing what to say, he hands the phone to me, where I hear a quick "who is this?" before the phone dies. Even though we didn't get her address, the woman said that we could get together one weekend. Her family owns a house outside of the city and told us that they could take us out there to experience life outside of the city. We finally managed to go our separate way, where immediately Sasha and I ran out of the station before someone else asked us for our contact info.

One side note: During our initial discussion the woman asked if we had to pay to attend our home universities. I was honest and told her that we do have to pay, and immediately she said never mind. Apparently her family could not afford to send their daughter to the US. Although I explained to her that there are scholarships available to students, she still said it was unlikely it would be enough. Little things like that make you really appreciate the opportunities that you have the fortune to have, and to take advantage of them while you can.