Eating from the bike-cart man

The locals, as well as interns we have had throughout the year and half we have been down here, tease me all the time because I don't enjoy eating at the local taco stands or from the little men's that bike their carts up and down the streets. "Oh come on Rebecca don't be such a baby their food is so good." "The dirt makes it taste better." So the other day I took them up on it and bought A shake like drink called Machacados de platano.

I don't know if it was the old banana that was way to ripe, or if it was the fact that he piled the banana and then touched it with his dirty hands, the same hands that have been touching his bicycle handlebars all day. Or if it was the fact that he then picked up a dirty knife a cut the banana in half, the same dirty knife that has been out all day sitting in the sun for the bacterial to breed on, that was sticky looking with black flex on it from I don't know what. I am not sure if it was because after he was done with the knife he scraped it on a plastic clear garbage bag that had, and I am not exaggerating flies coming in and out of it. Once again he scraped the knife "clean" I am positive this is a sanitising ritual he does every time after using his knife because their was lots of residue sticking to the bag in the same area as where he scraped mine which leads me to believe the residue is from former cleanings. I am not sure if it was the plastic cup that was selected from the bottom of the pile, of course rim side down touching the cart and resting every so nicely in sticky syrup from other fruits. Or if it was the fact that he got out a wooden smasher that had chucks of something on it, not sure what it really was I will assume it was the left overs from other peoples shakes just like mine. Then he proceeds to smash my banana into my immaculatly clean plastic cup. I am not sure if it was the fact that he used one hand to hold the cup while he scooped with the other hand the ice that would be a mixer in my shake. Maybe it was the fact that he poured sweet and condensed milk onto my drink the milk itself was not what was so gross, it was the fact that the milk had something brown stuck in it. Probably from the dirt that comes from riding a bike-like-cart in the streets. It could have been when he poured the vanilla into my cup not harmful right; wrong he had to place half of his thumb across the top so that just the right amount would pour out. The only thing that did not make me sick to look at it was when he put the cinnamon on top. It was normal, he just sprinkled on top. Our cultures where the same at that moment. But maybe it was none of that at all, maybe it was when he then licked his fingers grabbed my stray and stuck into my new delicious banana shake.

And because of my pride when he was all done I handed him the 30 pesos and walked away with my new shake and I ate it.

I am not sure just what of all these events that played out before me did it exactly but what ever it was for the rest of the day I was reading my new book in the bathroom.