An American Expatriate’s Guide Guanajuato, Mexico
I get these sorts of correspondences often since the bulk of my writing is about Mexico and what it is like to live here as an American expatriate.
He went on to say that he called the University of Guanajuato to inquire about maybe teaching part-time when he and his wife moved here. They wanted to know about his Spanish proficiency. That totally through him for a loop. He never considered that he would have to know Spanish in order to teach in a Mexico institution of higher learning.
Then he asked me, in his email, “Can you tell me about the American Sector in Guanajuato?” He went on to say that he didn’t want to have to live in a Mexican neighborhood with the Mexicans.
This was absolutely repugnant to me and I took his question as a 100% solicited opportunity to tell him of the uniqueness of Guanajuato. Actually I was not so nice and was very direct about what I thought of American Sectors. I never heard from him again.
Spanish Spoken in Guanajuato
Sometimes, when I relate this issue in my writing, I simply am not sure that I can once again cover this issue. That is how astounding it is to me that college- educated professionals think that English is so widely spoken in Mexico that, in the case of the college professor looking to teach here part-time, they would not have to know any Spanish. At times, I cannot seem to wrap my mind around that concept.
In the resort areas of Mexico and San Miguel de Allende, there is a high degree of English fluency. Need has forced the locals, especially those in the service industries, to learn English because the tourists, and the American expats won’t speak the language. The locals who, for the most part, cannot afford language lessons or to study in America, become fluent in English while Americans who can afford to learn Spanish don’t. You could live in San Miguel de Allende or Puerto Vallarta and never have to utter one word of Spanish. This is the salient testimony of the expats we know who live in those cities.
What is unique about Guanajuato is that Spanish is spoken here! You will not find a large section of the population who have a high degree of spoken fluency in English. If you want to learn Spanish , and I mean be forced to speak it constantly, Guanajuato is the perfect place to live. You will find very few doctors, dentists, lawyers, nurses, store employees, waiters, etc� who can converse in English.
In order to function in Guanajuato you have to, unlike Gringo enclaves elsewhere, speak Spanish.
Now, having said that we are noticing that this is beginning to change. Since we move here in 2003, more and more gringos are moving to Guanajuato who cannot string two words of Spanish together. They are having to do what the original expats to other “Gringo Landias” and “Gringo Gulches” have done and that is find those who do have some fluency in English and hire them to do their bidding. We fear what Guanajuato will be like in twenty years.
As it stands now, speaking Spanish is still uniquely Guanajuato and if what you want is to live in a genuine Mexican town still untouched by Americanization, then this is your place.
No American Sectors in Guanajuato
One of the most wonderful and inviting things about living in Guanajuato is that there is no American Sector. The American gringo translation of this hideous term is this: “there are no areas that are Americans only. There are no gated communities, exclusively American-style stores with American brands, or whatever else you can conceive to appeal to American tastes.”
You will find this rampant in the American Enclaves. They will have neighborhoods fenced and locked down, stores that carry just American brands, and God only knows what else. You will not see this in Guanajuato-thank God!
In Guanajuato you live in Mexican neighborhoods with Mexicans. You shop in Mexican stores with Mexicans. You go to the Mexicans doctors with Mexicans. You are in Genuine Mexico when you live in Guanajuato.
The Mexican stores do carry some American brands for which you will pay more than if you purchased Mexican brands. You can get American brand prescriptions and will pay through the nose for these. But why do that when you can get Mexican prescriptions that will do the same thing the more expensive American drugs will.
In Guanajuato you will live, breathe, and eat Mexican.
When we moved to Mexico the biggest culture shock we experienced had nothing to do with Mexicans. It had everything to do with the expat community in the areas I’ve mentioned and the fact they would move here to create “Little Americas” in the areas they had chosen to live. In doing so, they have changed these Mexican towns. We hope and pray that never happens to Guanajuato.
The Downside of Guanajuato Living
Guanajuato is largely a pedestrian town. People walk here. However, since we moved here the car traffic has increased. At least subjectively, it appears that more Mexicans are obtaining cars and driving in a city where you can live your entire life and never have to drive. This was one of the draws for our moving here. The idea was appealing that we could live somewhere on the planet where we would never, ever, have to drive again. And we don’t. We don’t have a car.
My wife recently told me of a woman contributing to one of the Internet forums in which she said Guanajuato was confining and the car traffic was horrendous. This is a perfectly legitimate complaint that we ourselves often voice.
Of the many things that confuse me this is one of them. Guanajuato is a town that you could live and never have to drive. Everything is conveniently located. We can walk 20 minutes and buy all that we need. If you feel you must shop at the Supermarket, you can walk there, take a cab, or a bus. The public transportation is very cheap. But, more and more Mexicans are obtaining cars. This is creating a multitude of problems. People, for example, are sicker with respiratory illness from the car exhaust.
I have my suspicions that the Americanization of Mexico is at least partially responsible for convincing the people of Guanajuato that they have to have a car. The thing is that there is no where to put them. Parking is rare and at a premium. I know Mexicans and American expats who think they need a car and have to pay a fortune to park them in private lots.
The fit people are those who are car-less and walk. My wife and I have dropped 40 pounds apiece and kept it off because we walk everywhere.
