I’ve learned that no matter what culture you are in, people love fairs. No matter how grand or small, fairs somehow seduce individuals to join a throng of people to eat overpriced food and buy items that we really don’t need. After we return home, with our wallets much smaller, our feet aching and in a general state of exhaustion, we look back at the day and think, “Can’t wait for next year!”  After surviving a variety of fairs my entire life in the US, I was curious to see how the Feria Milenaria (the annual fair here in Cholula) would be.

Boarding the bus on Saturday afternoon, our group headed to San Pedro, the downtown section of Cholula. Downtown Cholula on any given day is colorful and beautiful. However, with la feria, it became more vibrant than ever. Young and old mingled among the roller-coaster rides and endless stands of clothes, masks, shoes, pictures of saints, fruits, candies, bread and beer. Just imagine: only in Mexico could you go to a fair where one of your friends somehow manages to consume two micheladas while you are drinking a delicious pina colada and eating the best fish taco your palette has ever experienced. All this time, you listening to the sounds of Chino y Nacho (please look them up on YouTube!) as they proclaim their love for “niña bonita” and admiring pictures of revered saints-all in the blazing Mexican sun. Somehow the opposites, whether in age or activities, seem to function and flourish here in Mexico.

Despite the fact that la feria was different from the fairs in the US in terms of food and such, there was one thing that was the same: the reactions of people. There were people that were tired from the heat and from one too many Coronas and others were excited as they bought their new shoes that they will probably wear only once. However, my favorite? The reactions of children:  watching the niños as they laughed their way through various rides and eating food that their mothers allow only during this time of the year. It’s a simple truth: no matter where you go in this world (in this case, when it comes to fairs), despite differences in language, food, and general way of doing things, people still get frustrated with the weather and too many people but somehow manage to smile, laugh and create memories. Hmm, I guess we are more similar than we think.

Saludos (and with a delicious fish taco)!