Look past stereotypes. A smile is a smile in any language!
CAN’T GO WRONG BAJA PRIMER
Originally Published in Western Outdoor News the Week of Aug. 10, 2011
Been down here long enough and had several thousand folks pass through our care either directly or indirectly here in Baja. Over the years, I’ve compiled a list of things that you can do that will always work no matter what. What got me started many years ago was listening to two gringos talking on the beach.
“I’m really disappointed in Mexico. The golf course here is not even close to being as good as Pebble Beach!” (how many are THAT good?)
“We were fishing and the boat didn’t even have an electronic fish finder on it. We caught fish, but it’s like fishing in the stone ages down here.”
Y’know, sometimes expectations are just a little too high. Folks forget. This is still the Baja. Until a few years ago, things we take for granted like electricity, running water, phones and ice were non-existent in many places, let alone complaining because you can’t find a McDonald’s for the kids.
Anyway, here’s my two-cents primer on things that are 100 percent guaranteed if you plan to visit us:
- Never forget you’re a guest here. Act accordingly as if you were visiting a friend or neighbor and you will never go wrong.
- Stereotypes work both ways. You are consciously or sub-consciously judging your hosts as Mexicans. It’s inevitable. You are also being judged as a guest American. Americans are also stereotyped. Remember, you’re being watched and judged. Be an ambassador of goodwill.
- No one will every laugh at you for trying to speak the language. It’s appreciated. By the same token, don’t get impatient if a local doesn’t speak or understand English as fast as you would like.
- “Please” and “Thank you” in any language is always understood.
- An unspoken smile or a laugh is a powerful communicator
- A dollar left on a dresser of your hotel room or pressed into a palm for a small favor goes further than any dollar you ever spent
- You will never go wrong eating at a place that has a crowd or a line around it. It’s worth the wait.
- Make a friend forever by complimenting someone’s child or asking about their family. Ask to see a photo.
- Shopping is always better the further you get away from the tourist areas.
- Never be afraid to negotiate. It’s expected. It’s fun. It never hurts to ask if there is a lower price for anything…from taxi cabs to day tours and from margarita glassware to blankets. If they say “no” smile. If they say “yes” smile even bigger!
- Ask a taxi driver to “show you HIS favorite places.” Or take you to HIS favorite restaurant or where the locals go or eat. Often you will discover things you would never find in the travel brochures.
- Even if you get a bargain, tip nicely. You’ll be remembered.
- Take a photo of someone and, if there’s any way, give them a copy. They will treasure it and you always. We take photos for granted. We have thousands of photos of ourselves. Many folks down here have their photo i.d. and sometimes not even that.
- Tell your captain you just want to catch fish. He really wants to. Let him do his job. Try tipping AHEAD OF time or showing him his tip ahead of time. See what magic that works!
- Our throw-aways are someone’s treasure. A used t-shirt. Old fishing line. Some hooks. A worn baseball hat. A out-of-fashion pair of shoes or slippers. Hand them off with a smile. Get a smile in return.
- Don’t be afraid or too lazy to walk through a park, beach or shopping area where families are gathered.
- Visit a local bookstore or listen to some local music.
- No matter how much of a hurry you think you are in, stop and sit. Watch and listen. Absorb. Revel in the slower pace, even for just a moment. You’ll be amazed. Don’t forget that you might not be passing this way again, even if you’re rushing to catch the glass-bottom boat tour or the mariachi dinner show. Those will always be there. That magnificent sunset over the Sea of Cortez might not.
That’s my story!
Jonathan
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Jonathan Roldan has been writing the Baja Column in Western Outdoor News since 2004. Along with his wife, Jill, they own and run the Tailhunter International Fishing Fleet in La Paz, Baja, Mexico www.tailhunter-international.com. They also run their Tailhunter Restaurant Bar on the famous La Paz malecon waterfront. If you’d like to contact him directly, his e-mail is riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com or drop by the restaurant to say hi!
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Jonathan Roldan’s
Tailhunter International
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Website: www.tailhunter-international.com
U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Drive, Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745
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That's My Story 
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