To experience a local aspect of Hispanic culture I visited the Tienda Mexicana La Guadalupana, a grocery store in Chapel Hill. Once inside, the term that came to mind when looking around was bodega. The store was small, but made clear use of its space, with items on the walls, shelves, and even the ceiling. This is in contrast to most “American”, or english speaking, grocery stores I have been to, as they are often wide and spacious, with plenty or room to showcase products. They commonly have bright lights; light, colorful walls; ads and signs everywhere with directions and promotional deals; and music playing over loudspeakers. Tienda Mexicana La Guadalupana had none of these. It was darker and more cramped, with few signs, and no ads or
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Many of the signs around the store were in Spanish, but some smaller descriptions or notices were written in English. Many of the products sold appeared to have been made in Spanish speaking countries, and as such had their names, ingredients, and nutrition facts written in Spanish. The interesting facet about these particular products, however, was that each of them had a long sticker over their nutrition facts, giving them in English over the original Spanish ones (I peeled the sticker off of items I bought, not the ones in the store). This switch from Spanish to English brings up several questions about the products and their role in America. It it can be assumed that these products would remain in their original condition in Spanish speaking countries, then why were they changed for America, when they are sold in a store primarily catering to Spanish speaking people? This question depends on the circumstances of the product, and whether the same practice occurs in other Hispanic stores in America. If so, it may be a required step by the FDA, or another countrywide institution. If not, it may be the Tienda Mexicana La Guadalupana’s way of reaching out to a wider range of customers, or else to provide ease to Hispanic (or other) customers who do not speak Spanish. No matter the reason, this detail was incredibly intriguing to me, and really seemed to highlight the
Many of the signs around the store were in Spanish, but some smaller descriptions or notices were written in English. Many of the products sold appeared to have been made in Spanish speaking countries, and as such had their names, ingredients, and nutrition facts written in Spanish. The interesting facet about these particular products, however, was that each of them had a long sticker over their nutrition facts, giving them in English over the original Spanish ones (I peeled the sticker off of items I bought, not the ones in the store). This switch from Spanish to English brings up several questions about the products and their role in America. It it can be assumed that these products would remain in their original condition in Spanish speaking countries, then why were they changed for America, when they are sold in a store primarily catering to Spanish speaking people? This question depends on the circumstances of the product, and whether the same practice occurs in other Hispanic stores in America. If so, it may be a required step by the FDA, or another countrywide institution. If not, it may be the Tienda Mexicana La Guadalupana’s way of reaching out to a wider range of customers, or else to provide ease to Hispanic (or other) customers who do not speak Spanish. No matter the reason, this detail was incredibly intriguing to me, and really seemed to highlight the