As of a couple weeks ago I had never really been in a bar. I had been in restaurants with bars but never actually sat at a bar. It's nothing personal; I just haven't made a habit of it. I think my biggest fear is related to the fact that I know almost nothing about liqueur and am certain to embarrass myself, since the only phrases I know is "on the rocks." I don't particularly enjoy ice, so it is an almost useless expression for me.
As my roomies and I were walking around San Miguel a couple weekends ago, we walked by a bar that was particularly empty. We entered and sat down at the bar. Now Matt recommended that we all get "Disarronno" so we all did. It is not a very strong drink and later on I found that my consumption of it could cause my masculinity to be in question. The tasty drinking (and emasculating) beverage was not the highlight of the night. We ordered our drinks in broken Spanish only to discover that the bartender spoke English perfectly well.
He shared with us that at one time he had been an illegal immigrant to the United States. When he was 18, he snuck over the border in a truck of some kind. The truck apparently had a false bottom enabling him and others to hide in the few inches of space that the fake floor created. He asked about who we were and what we were doing in Mexico and it was an enjoyable conversation. He even gave us some free French fries.
The next night we returned, pretty much just to talk to this guy. He told us his story and how he eventually came to be a legal immigrant in the states and lived there for about 9 years. We stopped back one last time on Sunday just to say goodbye. I'm glad that we were able to meet him and spend some time talking and hearing about his experiences. He is just one of the many interesting people I have been able to meet on this trip and I certainly hope to meet more.
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