Life in the United States isn’t the same as life in Mexico.

It was my first time going to Mexico and also my first time traveling with my parents.

Everything seemed unreal.

My first experience in Mexico was unbelievable.

I still remember being so nervous and anxious to see my grandparents and the rest of my family for the first time.

My parents were excited when we arrived because they finally had the chance to visit their country again and were able to bring me for the first time.

As soon as we arrived, we visited the Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de Dolores Hidalgo, the church in the city of Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato where both my parents are from.

What stood out to me was the statue of Miguel Hidalgo because it’s unique, and it being located in front of church makes it stand out even more.

Once the church service was over my parents took me on a small tour so I could know where stores were located and also experience the Mexican food they have.

While in Mexico, I also had the chance to experience the museum, Museo Casa de Dolores Hidalgo. It was a great adventure because statues with information were spread throughout the museum and that’s something that I found interesting. For example while walking in the museum we looked at the years of Jose Alfredo Jimenez’s career as a singer between the years of 1948 and 1973 summarized in photographs, objects and paintings.

Although Mexico was beautiful, I saw people without money, houses and food. While passing through roads I saw many kids asking for money on the corners of every street and even inside the buses which was heartbreaking to see.

I was so impressed by the houses because they weren’t similar to the building structure of houses in the United States. The houses in Mexico were made of adobe and block with sheets on top of the roofs.

Multiple families in Mexico live in poverty. I saw several mothers and fathers do anything in order to provide food to their children and work so diligently to see them happy with smiles on their faces, which makes me think we have to value everything we have.

Everything was so unusual and hard to believe, like the living environments, methods of transportation and clothing.

Mexico wasn’t how I imagined it at all; I used to think it was different. I thought life over there was much easier than life in the United States. By visiting I have realized people in Mexico go through plenty of danger because of bad people and gangs.

I never thought Mexico would be an 18-hour drive. Even though it was far, the trip was worth it because all these years I had never experienced something like this.

In spite of everything, I’m glad I had the chance to spend time with my family from Mexico after years of not seeing them.