Throughout my life I’ve been fortunate enough to travel outside of the country to Puerto Penasco multiple times. In the first trips I never thought about the people or the conditions surrounding the place I was traveling to. I was naive and unable to understand my surroundings. However, as I matured the way I viewed Puerto Penasco changed as did my worldly perspective. I was able to understand the divide of wealth in Mexico, how the drug trade is affecting those who don’t want anything to do with it, the beautiful culture and people of Puerto Penasco and how U. S. A is benefiting and improving this amazing country.
Upon entering the town of Sonoyta the chasm between the wealthy and poor is apparent. However, as a 7-year-old kid you don’t realize that’s the situation of the people who live there. The slums of the towns I traveled through looked like forts for playing in, not actual homes. The homes on top of mountains look as if they’re created to kiss the sky. As I matured and became more aware of the world I lived in each trip to Puerto Penasco opened up my eyes to the true world the people of Mexico lived in, not some fairy tale land that I once pictured as a child.
As I travel into Mexico now the true reality of the place is lear to me. Families fight day to day for survival. Finding food and work is a constant struggle for many of these families. Now the most interesting thing to me is no longer the houses of the rich and poor but the materials they are made out of. In Mexico it becomes apparent that cinder blocks and concrete are the cheapest building materials available and are used extensively in the building of homes. It gives towns a dull and dead vibe.
While the rich in these towns build their homes elaborately and in vivid colors. Not to mention every single one is gated and has a private security detail. A certainly strange sight to see. As a child when we drove through towns you would see military people and big intriguing machines you think it’s one of the coolest things in the word. The thought and realization of the reason of them being there was far from my mind, the innocence of my childhood was truly a blessing as I look back.
I began to realize something was wrong when we stopped traveling to Puerto Penasco and my parents wouldn’t tell me why. There was a 3-year period where we did not travel to Mexico because of the cartels and drug wars happening in and around where we would usually travel. It was during those three years that I started to become more aware of the world I lived in. That there were people living in extreme poverty, that there was evil in the world. During our first trip back to Puerto Penasco the standoff between the military and Narcos was a real concern to us.
The military and police personnel where everywhere along the highway and littered all the towns we traveled through all carrying fully automatic weapons at the ready. I distinctly remember the frequent and random checkpoints along the highway and each one was made like a bunker ready for war with two giant . 50 cal machine guns ounted facing the entrance and exit of the checkpoint always being manned. I realized in that moment that life outside of Chandler, Arizona and the United States of America was more complex and scarier than my naive mind once believed.
The reality of the world we live in started becoming apparent to me. It didn’t however scare me or worry me, it gave me hope for the future of the country, because the people and innocent bystanders involved in this drug war were always positive and not set in the moment but looking toward the future. It was during that first trip that my view on the world started transforming into one that was optimistic. The people of Mexico have an extraordinary amount of optimism. Although as a child what I saw was happy faces and a good attitude.
As I walked through the small seaside market on our first trip to Puerto Penasco. Little me was taking in all the new experiences and not really understanding the commotion and busyness of the market. As I reflected and longed for Puerto Penasco during the three-year period we didn’t travel there. I began to understand more about the people who worked there. While noticing the effect that these people had on the local economy was impossible even at a more mature age now. Seeing the effect hat what they did meant more than just a source of money was apparent. The people of Puerto Penasco were always optimistic.
Constantly trying to create new ways of getting money and to provide a better life for their children and families. During the first trips we took down to Mexico when I was around 7 or 8 there weren’t many activities to do on the beach other than play in the waves and build sand castles however as I grew up more and more activities came to be. Before long there were banana boats, jet skis, ultralights, and so many more activities one could now do on the beach without leaving or traveling anywhere. The people of mexico had brought everything they knew tourists would like and brought it to their finger tips.
The ingenuity of bringing more activities to the tourists started to change the city. Driving more and more American tourism and wealth into Puerto Penasco. My family first started going down to Puerto Penasco in the early 2000’s. Then the city was a small town with very little infrastructure and little employment opportunities. There were no resorts, spas, or beach activities. Yet as I grew up so did the city, I got to witness a town become a city, and it watched me transition from a kid to a young adult. Through this unique relationship I became more optimistic about the future.
Like a plant that needs nourishment to grow a town needs money. I saw a town go from a little population to a big one, saw dirt roads become asphalt highways, saw turmoil and destruction become success. All through the power of tourism. As the city grew to new success I followed suite. I set about to understand and comprehend the world we live in. As I matured and grew much like Puerto Penasco my worldly perspective changed from a naive child to and optimistic adult. Puerto Penasco has grown up just as I have, and by growing up we begin to see the world in a new ight, from a new perspective.
I’ve been lucky enough to witness the growth and struggles of a city and I’ve realized that the world is a very complicated and complex place. Where people struggle from day to day and others relax in luxury everyday without thinking of eachother. Throughout my travels to Puerto Penasco my perspective on the world has changed. It is not a small, secluded, peaceful and relaxing place like I thought it was when I was young, but a system that has very complex and elaborate issues. That can be understood better with and fixed quicker, with an optimistic perspective.
