There are many common stereotypes of the Mexican culture that our held by today’s Americans. Most of them are false; however there are some stereotypes of the culture that I still hold, most of them not being negative. For the most part, I look at the culture as a whole as being diligent labor workers. This may be because many of them have immigrated to the United States and excel in manual labor positions such as construction and landscaping. I also view them as being highly religious and family-oriented. I gained this stereotype from traveling to Mexico last spring, meeting many Mexicans and learning a lot about their way of life. I don’t know if I would feel that way if I wouldn’t have gone there and gotten the chance to experience the culture first hand. I learned this about their lifestyle in a matter of only four days. I can’t imagine how much my image of the country will change after being there for ten weeks.
I am very excited to spend this winter quarter in Mexico. I don’t really know what to expect other than to be surrounded by a culture that I am unfamiliar with. I know it will be a totally different atmosphere than here in the United States. I went to Mexico this past May for four days for my father’s wedding and was pleasantly surprised with the kindness of the native people. Everyone I talked to was very nice and interested in American culture as was I in their culture. This being the case, I expect that most the Mexican people I talk to will be inviting and full of good conversation. I also expect to pick up on Spanish quicker than I have any other language since I will be immersed in the language and culture for so long. I don’t know exactly what to expect of the family I will be living with but I hope that their home is nice and welcoming. Overall, I have high expectations for this trip in general and I hope that my expectations are exceeded.