On the Trust of the Mexican Street Vendors

One of the many things I miss while living in the U.S. is the delicious Mexican street food, a large portion of the informal Mexican economy and a livelihood for many families. Street vendors here in Ensenada and México in general do their best to keep the locals in their service area coming back for more. To do this, they not only try their best to serve the most delicious and affordable food in their area, but also take care of making sure nobody gets sick. One ill neighborhood customer and the family business is done for.
Other weapons on their customer retention arsenal include, instant camaraderie and friendship, humor and most importantly trust. After being away from the country a while, when I first got here at the beginning of the month, I had forgotten the cultural norms. Initially, I tried to follow the U.S. etiquette, by attempting to pay for my order as soon as I placed it. Before eating it. One vendor lady kindly reminded me "Honey, how can you pay me, you haven't eaten yet?"
After a month here, I have noticed, no matter how busy a food stand gets, the local etiquette remains the same. When one is done eating, one walks up to the vendor, list what was consumed and pays accordingly. All based on trust. Sometimes the distance makes me forget how beautiful my people are. From now on, I won't.