Miami time. When you're on Miami time, that means things don't start on time. This is one of the things about this Latin city that wounds my German soul. I was warned early on that I should show up to parties at least 30 minutes after the start time. This is not natural for me; right now I deal with it by getting ready to go, and the parking myself on the couch for 30 minutes to wait until I'm allowed to leave. This even applies to more planned events, in my experience. This week I went to my first concert at my new university which was, presumably, not the first concert ever stage there. The performers were excellent, and the hall was beautiful. But the organizers didn't seem quite so, well, organized. When I bought my ticket a half an hour before the concert started, they told me that they were running a little late with the soundcheck and that the house wasn't yet open. They opened the door ten minutes before the start, but they were still figuring out who should collect the tickets and where this should be done.
People kiss when arriving and leaving events. (Not at work, thank goodness.) This takes more coordination than one might expect, because I haven't quite figured out whether the on-the-cheek kind of kiss or the more in-the-air kind of kiss, and which people I'm supposed to kiss.
They eat late. I'm originally from the Midwest, where we eat the evening meal around 6pm. (What we call that evening meal is a whole other story.) When I lived in DC, it seemed like restaurants would get crowded around 7 -9pm. So, when I wanted to make a reservation at a nice restaurant for our anniversary, I reserved several weeks early, to get the 8pm time I wanted on a Friday night. I needn't have worried: when we arrived, the restaurant was mostly empty, and it wasn't until 10 pm, when we were leaving, that it was getting full.
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I was going to spend the weekend thrifting and hanging out at the beach, but my plans changed quite suddenly today. At 1pm I figured out that the car was overheating, and Andrew helped me diagnose a malfunctioning radiator fan. At 2pm he bought a plane ticket, and he'll be arriving tonight for a two-day visit. This seems just a little absurd to me, but it's actually cheaper to fly him in than to take the car to the mechanic.
5 comments:
A man of many talents - the job will be well done - and the bonus - you get to spend time together.
I kind of like the sound of Miami - appeals to my francophile/latin soul.
I want a fly in mechanic!
would we could fly in loved ones for all our mechanical needs and it were less expensive than just schlepping it to the shop.
LOVE these tidbits of Miami culture, so facinating to see what a big difference there is. Re: late dining, are the days longer or is it just that it is warmer in the evening there?
Alexis, I think the days are actually shorter, at least in the summer. Since we're closer to the equator, the days (i.e. periods of daylight) are closer to twelve hours year-round. I guess I assumed that it was the latin cultural influence that made people eat later, but I guess that would originally stem from days that are too hot, making you do more living after dark.
Great idea flying in your free mechanic! I bet it would be cheaper to fly me down there to exercise with, than to hire a personal trainer. What do ya say?
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