Latin lovers

Ay, Colleen I know the perfect guy for you! I hear it all the time. For the past eight months my friends here have been trying to find a Honduran boyfriend for me. Their philosophy- if I fall in love, I'll stay here always. It's flattering, but for all of this time I've remained more or less focused- on learning to live in another country, improving my Spanish, being a good teacher and healing my heart. And, all GRINGAS here get their fair share of male attention, so it’s not like I've felt unattractive to men. Still, all women who move to a Latin American country ought to have a mini-orientation before quickly being swept off their feet by a Latin lover. The Latino men are suavecitos and even when they're not the sharpest looking catch on the street, they're almost always smooth, charming and incredibly convincing. It's also way too common for men here to have love affairs, children out of wedlock or be seeing several women at one time. The Latina women know this too, so in the super society of mamacitas competition is often catty. Since I've moved here, I've been pursued by men married with children, whistled at by 12-year-old boys, had kisses blown to me by 85-year-old great grandfathers and called amorcita, lindita and guapita more times than I can keep track of. Knowing all this, I've done a good job of steering clear of Honduran men altogether. Until Noel.

Noel and I met the day after I arrived to Honduras. He came over to my house with his brother to build a closet in my then sparse bedroom. Noel was a little shy, very charming and there was an immediate connection between us. On later occasions, we went dancing together, rode around Juticalpa on his motorcycle and talked until the wee hours under the stars. I later found out that Noel had a girlfriend. In the beginning, I couldn't get over how this gave him the liberty to flirt and begin to fall for a Norteamericana, but that was when I was just learning. Now, I understand that this is the way it is here. The romance, the passion, the excitement of secrecy- this is part of the web woven by the telenovela culture that broadcasts from every television set in Latin America. Time passed and Noel and I managed to avoid each other, despite the fact that we work in the same circle of people. But- we have once again found each other and Noel continues to pour out his undying love, despite the fact that his girlfriend is still in the picture. I am clear headed and realize the insanity of the situation. In the States, it would take me two seconds to close the door and avoid all phone calls. Still, I have adored Noel all this time and here, this behavior is considered acceptable. Therefore, this is a bit more complicated. When would this have EVER happened to Colleen in her other life? Never. Soy una mujer bien prudente! It's just that these days, I find myself live on the set of a dramatic telenovela.