Precerpt from My 20th Language: L3 Spanish - Mexico: Baja California
Mexico: Baja California I had the opportunity to learn, practice, and use real Mexican Spanish (not the typical Salinas Spanglish—though that, too, is Mexican in origin) on our 30th anniversary trip. My husband Carl and I packed up the car, visited our kids in San Diego, rented a Mexico‑insured car, and crossed the border at Tijuana. There I finally got to do some bartering. I didn’t need anything, and nothing truly excited me, but I wanted the experience of bartering. I was not very good at it. I ended up paying nearly full price—well, the full tourist price anyway. I decided the language practice was worth the extra pesos. After Tijuana we drove straight down the coast, and that’s where a bit of marital discord surfaced. I was looking for local color; Carl wanted American “nice.” And that’s when it hit me how different we were. I like living abroad at home. Carl prefers living at home abroad. Slight difference in syntax; immense difference in meaning. He ultimately wo...