Hiper Lider

Gladys warned me not to go to Hiper Lider (see photo) on the weekend, but I didn't listen! Not to mention it's Back-to-School week, and every family in Arica was there buying school supplies and school uniform clothing (it appears to me that most schools have a uniform dress code). The first astounding thing was how many small children were there; the whole family comes - Mama, Papi, infants, toddlers, teens - no one's left at home! This made for a rather crowded store, to say the least. One thing I love, though, is the level of patience people have. I waited in line for about half an hour to check out, and people were so slow, sending kids back to exchange items, etc. I know that in the U.S. someone would have been complaining pretty quickly, or at least rolling eyes. I looked in back of me in line to see if anyone seemed exasperated (I was getting there!), and people just smiled, not bothered in the least. When it was my turn, the person behind me noticed how quickly I got my items out of my cart and onto the counter. I think it's an automatic "people are waiting" response in me. It's kind of nice to feel that no one's rushing you. I was rather pleased that I got nearly everything on my list, given my lack of precise vocabulary for some items. Do I want my hair to be "liso" or "sedoso"? Is my skin "seca"? Do I have "caspa"? (dandruff - new word!) I thought I would never get out of that aisle! I cannot imagine what people go through if they don't even use the same alphabet or don't have any previous study of the language. I had not gone in with wine on my list, but by the time I left, there were two bottles in my cart. An interesting experience, but next time I'll listen to Gladys! :)