I should have guessed this was the case when Carlos was here, and we were getting ready to make our trip. I kept asking him what the temperature was there, and he would always say the same thing- "I don't know. Hot." I can see now that he may have been serious, and not just being difficult. No one here pays attention to things like that. I guess since it is always about the same, no one cares. Most everyone just opens their windows and hopes for a breeze. I don't watch local tv, so I don't know if they talk about the weather, but you don't see weather information anywhere here. In Cincinnati, you drive past any number of billboards, and it says what the temperature and time is. Here that is not the case. Since there isn't really central air conditioning here, houses don't have thermometers inside. All we have here is a unit that blows air, but doesn't have any regulation.
I don't know how many times I have wondered what the temperature in the house is, but there is no way to know.
Another thing that threw me off a little is the lack of measuring in cooking. The first time that I made pancakes with Johana, i watched horrified as she just eyeballed everything and threw it in the mixing bowl. I don't know if that is the traditional way to do it here, or if Johana just likes to eyeball it. We did not have any measuring cups here so I had to buy one.. Carlos' mom was with us, and when she heard that we were going to buy a measuring cup, she steered us into Pepe Ganga. (This is an import store that is primarily kids stuff, but they have all sorts of US imports. And you pay at least double the price for everything.) I said, "no no, I just need a cheap one.." And she again recommended we get it there because that is the only place that would def have what I was looking for. This leads me to believe that maybe not everyone uses them.
A last thing to touch on now that it doesn't seem like people care about here is weight. We don't have a scale, and I didn't notice one at Carlos' parent's house when we got the tour :) I guess Americans are just more obsessed with weight?? I haven't noticed any scales in stores here (though I haven't really been paying attention). I feel like I have lost weight since I got here, so I want to know for sure!!
On another note- we went to Carlos' parent's house yesterday for a grill out. It was a holiday so everyone was off work! We had a delicious lunch, and then for "dinner" we had hot chocolate, cheese, and an assortment of breads. I think it's kind of odd to be drinking hot chocolate in the "summer" since we usually only have it when it's cold out.. But I guess by the time we drink it, it is late enough that it is getting chilly out :) It is traditional to but a soft white cheese (queso fresca) into the hot chocolate, and that is just delicious! Below are the pictures!
I don't know how many times I have wondered what the temperature in the house is, but there is no way to know.
Another thing that threw me off a little is the lack of measuring in cooking. The first time that I made pancakes with Johana, i watched horrified as she just eyeballed everything and threw it in the mixing bowl. I don't know if that is the traditional way to do it here, or if Johana just likes to eyeball it. We did not have any measuring cups here so I had to buy one.. Carlos' mom was with us, and when she heard that we were going to buy a measuring cup, she steered us into Pepe Ganga. (This is an import store that is primarily kids stuff, but they have all sorts of US imports. And you pay at least double the price for everything.) I said, "no no, I just need a cheap one.." And she again recommended we get it there because that is the only place that would def have what I was looking for. This leads me to believe that maybe not everyone uses them.
A last thing to touch on now that it doesn't seem like people care about here is weight. We don't have a scale, and I didn't notice one at Carlos' parent's house when we got the tour :) I guess Americans are just more obsessed with weight?? I haven't noticed any scales in stores here (though I haven't really been paying attention). I feel like I have lost weight since I got here, so I want to know for sure!!
On another note- we went to Carlos' parent's house yesterday for a grill out. It was a holiday so everyone was off work! We had a delicious lunch, and then for "dinner" we had hot chocolate, cheese, and an assortment of breads. I think it's kind of odd to be drinking hot chocolate in the "summer" since we usually only have it when it's cold out.. But I guess by the time we drink it, it is late enough that it is getting chilly out :) It is traditional to but a soft white cheese (queso fresca) into the hot chocolate, and that is just delicious! Below are the pictures!
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