I've been in Mexico almost 9 years now. And I wouldn't trade the experience of living here for anything! But there are still those moments that are so unbelievable you just have to laugh.
For example, I don't particularly stand out in a crowd in Queretaro. Yeah, I'm "blonde" (read: "don't have dark brown or black hair"), and I'm a little taller than a lot of women, but haven't reached the magic 5'9" that makes you "freakishly tall." People generally know that I'm not a native-born Mexican once I start talking - my grammar isn't perfect, and people tell me I speak Spanish with a German accent (what's with that?) Anyhow, in general, people don't focus on the fact that I was not born here.
But a few times per year I'll get a totally different response from people. I may be going to a small store that I'd never been to before, or using a service that I haven't used before (new dry-cleaner, etc.) And it's like the person attending the business sees me coming, and they must think ahead of time that I am a foreigner so they won't be able to understand me. Because when I walk in and ask a question (and it always seems to happen on a "good Spanish day," when I know I spoke grammatically correct, AND without much of a foreign accent), they give me a blank stare and say in Spanish, "I'm sorry, I don't understand." I'm confused as to why they didn't understand "how much do the tomatoes cost," so I repeat myself. I know they understood this time, but they still kind of stare for a moment before responding, "Esteeee ("um" in Mexican Spanish) 12 pesos per kilo." It used to really bother me that people would like mentally freak out upon having to deal with me. But now it's just funny. I still don't understand why this happens. Especially when people from other parts of Mexico assume that I'm from maybe Northern Mexico, or somewhere that isn't where they're from. This has only happened in Queretaro. In fact, no one bats an eyelash in Mexico City when I'm asked where I'm from and say "Queretaro." They just know that I'm not from Mexico City.
It's just a funny thing that comes with the territory of living in a country that you weren't born in!
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