Our Cultural Experience

1. Email: Poornima.dsouza@k12.sd.us
Twitter: @pord_33

2. First Impression
 The store was dark and crowded.
 There were no shopping carts or shopping baskets.
 Employees were not in view. We were there quite
awhile before we did see an employee.
 Employee spoke to us in English, but I heard him
speak to another customer in Spanish.

3. My first impression
 I wasn’t sure what to think about the store.
 I have been to Mexico many times so I thought it
would be like any other store I have been into lately.
 I was in for a surprise.
 No one talked to us for about 10 minutes…or it seemed
that long!

4. Mexicana Store
 The food is colorful
 The store is very
cramped & crowded with
small aisles
 All the shelves are filled
to the max!
 It is very dimly lit in the
store

5. First Impression
This is hard to read, but
the sign says $49.99 and
$85.99. I was so confused
trying to figure out how a
muffin can cost that
much! Then I realized it
was the pots on top that
were that much.

6. Making Our Way
 As we began down the aisle, I noticed that some
products were in English, most were in Spanish, and
others had both Spanish and English on them.
 We were very dependent on pictures.

7. The arrival
 The first thing I noticed was that we were the only
‘white’ people in the store.
 No one asked if they could help us when we walked
into the store.
 Dark and packed! That was my next impression of the
store. So dark and so much….STUFF everywhere from
floor to ceiling! I also didn’t notice shopping carts.
 The prices seemed reasonable but I wasn’t quite sure
what everything was at first.

8. Reliance on Pictures
Many of the beverages
had pictures of things ,
such as apples, that we
could easily tell what
they were. With this
particular product
not even a picture
helped.

9. This was a drink mix but not sure
what Tamarind tastes like!

10. Making a call home

11. Very confused
I had no idea
what these
were, but a
friend
explained that
they are for
international
credit cards. I
certainly would
not know how
to use these!

12. Phone Call
 I think you could buy an international phone card and
then use this phone to make your call. There must be
an operator on the other end to help you. No one was
around to ask how this works.
 How would I feel if I was in a different country and this
was the only way I could talk to my family or friends?

13. Radish iodine?
This was part of the small ‘pharmacy’ aisle.
I was still not sure what you would use
this for as a medicine.
If I was sick and in another country, how
would I know what to buy?

14. My favorite aisle in the store!
I love the St. Martin candle
and the rest of them too. Religious Candles

15. A new one for me!
Who doesn’t pray for a holy death but I have never seen a candle for it.

16. Mayonnaise
Lime mayonnaise?
A regular size jar too!
I am not a huge fan of mayonnaise but we buy
this brand. So tiny! Must not be popular.
Our Brand

17. Gorilla Snot? Really?
Thank goodness my friend
figured out it was HAIR GEL!
The store had what
appeared to be laundry
soap, dish soap, and hair
products. This appears to
be a strong hair gel. The
picture on the product
helped, but I also had to
rely on WHERE it was. It
was with other hair
products, such as
shampoo, so deduced it
was hair gel.

18. Items for Sale
 The breads and pastries
looked like works of art
 They seemed like they
would be very dense and
heavy
 They also looked dry

19. Sweets
 The cookies were very
colorful and large in size
 One had the colors of
the Mexican flag
 They also looked dense
and dry
 The muffins were all one
flavor

20. COOKIES!
So at least this was easy to figure out.

21. Candy

22. Not a chocolate sucker!

23. Not my Lollipop
 That was a chili flavored sucker! My first thought was
that it was chocolate. I would have purchased that and
been in for a big surprise!
 I thought why would you give a child a chili flavored
anything? Shouldn’t candy be sweet? Or is that how I
was raised? Is that my culture?
 The more I walked through the store the more I
thought this would be difficult to do my shopping
here. I can read some Spanish but they didn’t carry the
items I use.

24. Dried Items
 Corn husks for tamales
 Chilies of all
temperatures
 Beans
 Seeds

25. Fresh fruits, vegetables, & meats
 The left part of the store was filled fresh fruits.
 Has more bananas than a full size grocery store!
 Had delicious looking mangoes, papayas, and
coconuts.
 The vegetables were not as varied; some corn,
beans, and tomatoes.
 The meat was all behind glass at a meat counter.
 The meat was the only item that customers
could not get themselves.
 They sell tongue and intestines!

26. Appearances
 I would have figured out what the apples were just by
looking but there were some other types of peppers that I
had not seen. I looked for avocados and didn’t find any.
 They had both bananas and plantains but no grapes or
cherries. They didn’t have much of a selection of fruit but
plenty of veggies! Many of which I did not recognize. I
know realize I should have taken more pictures but it felt a
bit awkward when I did.
 As we walked up and down the aisles we could figure out
what the items were but some of them took some time.

27. Fresh Produce
What
is
this?

28. Fruit

29. Fresh Produce
Upon
approaching the
fresh produce, we
saw boxes of
these. They
appear to be
rotten bananas.
They did have
fresh bananas as
well. They aren’t
really rotten
bananas, are
they?

30. Frozen Section
 A lot of frozen fish
 Other frozen meats
 Some frozen vegetables
 No processed frozen foods, such as Chicken Nuggets

31. Nikki’s Burrito Express
 Great timing as tacos are only
$1.25 on Tuesdays – any
choice of meat!
 Regular taco price is $2.00 a
taco or 4 for $6.25.

32. Delicious Food!
 Chicken taco
 Chips with queso
blanco fresco
 Chicken quesadilla

33. Thumbs up!
 Fresh guacamole is so
good and something we
rarely make at home
 My daughter was very
happy with her lunch!

34. You can send money to
Mexico at Nikki’s!
This beer means two X (like
twice the refreshment?)

35. Our first stop of the day was for some lunch at Puerto Vallarta restaurant. This is
a favorite stop for my family. My daughters love the bright colors and art work. I
appreciate the gluten free options (a must for my daughters). We had a
wonderful server who was willing to answer a few questions for me.
She is from Mexico. She moved to the United States for a better job and better
pay. She moved to South Dakota because she has family who live in Watertown
and Aberdeen. Her native language is Spanish. She speaks a little English.
I asked her what things have been different here in Sioux Falls than what she
expected. She said that everything is different from Mexico. She said that the
pay per hour she gets here and the weather are two big differences. When I
asked her what has helped her learn English she said that customers, friends,
and her family helped her.

36. Our first stop of the day was for some lunch at Puerto Vallarta restaurant. This is
a favorite stop for my family. My daughters love the bright colors and art work. I
appreciate the gluten free options (a must for my daughters). We had a
wonderful server who was willing to answer a few questions for me.
She is from Mexico. She moved to the United States for a better job and better
pay. She moved to South Dakota because she has family who live in Watertown
and Aberdeen. Her native language is Spanish. She speaks a little English.
I asked her what things have been different here in Sioux Falls than what she
expected. She said that everything is different from Mexico. She said that the
pay per hour she gets here and the weather are two big differences. When I
asked her what has helped her learn English she said that customers, friends,
and her family helped her.

37. Dakota International Mart
325 North Minnesota Ave
Our second stop of the day was a little shopping at Dakota
International Mart.
My daughters were amazed at how small the store was,
but how many different items were in there.
I was amazed at their reaction when they spotted the
bottles of Coke in the refrigerator. I had told them they
could pick out a treat, and was disappointed at first that
they picked out a soda. After we left I asked them about
their choice. They told me that was the only thing they
recognized.
I thought that was very interesting. I wonder how true that
is for people who come to South Dakota from other
countries.

38. Philippine Oriental Food 1105 North
Minnesota Ave
Our final stop of the day was to visit the Philippine Oriental Food grocery store.
Here we found all sorts of new vegetables that we had never seen before. We
also found some food we wanted to try to make at home. My daughters were
more comfortable exploring foods from different cultures by this stop. Here they
were pulling things off the shelves and asking lots of questions.
I am so glad we took the time today to explore a few of the different cultures in
our city. It was really interesting to watch my daughters in each setting. When
first exposed to a different culture, they were timid and looked for anything
familiar. Although I sent the girls to an elementary school rich in diversity,
changing the setting changed everything.

39. Meat Counter
 The meat was in big chunks rather than the pre-cut
meat I am accustomed to seeing.
 Much of the meat I did not know what it was.
 I was unable to read the labels so I still did not know
what it was.
 There was not ground beef. My first thought? How do
you make tacos without ground beef?

40. Baked Goods
The baked goods
looked really good, but
much different than
what I am familiar
with.

41. Liquor

42. Medication
This was the most
frightening to me.
Most medications do
not include pictures, so
how would you know
what you are buying
and for what purpose?
There was one that
appeared to be like
Pedalyte. That made
me think about how
scary it would be if you
had a sick child.

43. European grocery store
Shelves were aligned along the perimeter of the store.
first shelf had many different types of cookies, crackers, and chips on it.
 There were also some cooking rubs and powdered sauces
cooking oils of different kinds in large glass jars
many different kinds of pastas displayed.

44. European grocery store - Cooler
fresh fish displayed; some that were clean and filleted, and others that
were frozen just as they were caught, complete with scales and heads.
 lamb and veal in the cooler.
stuffed pastas- vegetables like spinach, but most were stuffed with a
variety of meats or cheeses.
Many of these pastas were in the shape of tortellinis, raviolis, or
perogies.
On the next wall was a large display of specialty chocolates and candies.
In a display case next to the cash register, there was many different kinds
of beef and pork in long tubes.

45. Ethiopian Coffee House
Ethiopian Coffee is one of the best I've tasted. I brought pastries from Manna bakery
– Great combination…love Manna pastries. Reminds me of India!

46. Manna Bakery
I tried a couple of their pastries but did not like either one. I guess I am
used to our more sweet tasting rolls and donuts and I do like a lot of
frosting.

47. Hakim’s Clothing Store
He does alteration and Tailor Made to Your
Measurements – Check sign ;)

48. Mexican Restaurant
intrigued by all of the colors and the welcoming atmosphere.
initially spoke Spanish and then switched to fluent English
chips and salsa were served free of charge as we waited for our main
entrees. impressed with our food ~it was delicious.

49. African theme at St.Olaf - Stations
Jesus nailed to the cross and Jesus meets his mother

50. African Art at St.Olaf
Jesus – The good sheperd

51. African theme at St.Olaf
St. Joseph the Carpenter with Jesus and Mother Mary

52. Ethnic market

53. Ethnic market

54. Ethnic market
Ganesha — the elephant-deity

55. Ethnic market

56. Japanese Garden

57. New Spanish words I learned
 Tortas = hot sandwich
 Gringas = grilled burrito
 Arroz = rice
 Frijol = beans
 Picadillo = ground beef
 Desebrada = shredded
beef
 Horchata = rice drink
 Quesco blanco fresco =
white runny cheese dip

58. Two Anonymous Interviews of
workers at Nikki’s:
Grandmother:
Arrives by 5:00 a.m. and
begins cooking meats
Makes all the tortillas fresh
everyday
Chops all the veggies by
hand
Hand washes all dishes in
giant sink
Granddaughter:
Arrives at 10:30 in the
summer to help with lunch
rush; sometimes comes
back at 4:30 to help with
dinner
Works “the line” preparing
meals or the till (rings up
meals & collects money)
Cleans the dining room
tables and trays
Sweeps floors

59. Questions I have:
 What is the difference between tostadas and tostados?
Using the Spanish to English dictionary, I find that they
both mean “to toast” or “to roast” or “to brown”, yet it is a
hard flat corn tortilla topped with anything!
 What is enchilada banderas? Separately, enchiladas are
meats rolled in tortillas, baked, and covered with sauces.
Using the Spanish to English dictionary, banderas is a flag
or banner.
 How can picadillo be both minced meat and chopped
vegetables?

60. Questions I have:
 how this entire experience has helped shape them into
the people they are today
 how it has affected their children and what it is they
want them to become.

61. Conclusion
 I enjoyed the trip.
 I learned I probably couldn’t shop there for a week’s
worth of grocery. They didn’t have any hamburger
meat!
 After looking at your list of places to go I was quite
surprised and the number of diverse stores.

62. Conclusion
 During the rest of the summer, I plan to spend time
visiting different ethnic grocery stores, bakeries, and
restaurants in Sioux Falls.
 I’m also planning on reaching out to the Nepali family
that I mentored last year and asking for suggestions of
Nepali restaurants and grocery stores that they go visit.
 I’ve learned that it’s a neat experience to go visit ethnic
stores

63. Closing Thoughts
 I could cook a meal by shopping in this store.
 I would struggle to shop for a week’s worth of groceries for
my family.
 Pictures are extremely important.
 I understand the importance of using pictures with my
students to help them understand what is being talked
about.
 Sometimes you are so clueless you don’t even know what
questions to ask.
 Therefore, my students may not ask questions because they
are that lost in the topic.

64. Closing Thoughts
 I love to broaden my horizons with different cultural
experiences.
 I am constantly looking for places that I have never been to.
 It is important in a constantly changing society that we
immerse ourselves in a variety of experiences.
 Initially I judged the restaurant by looking at the outside. I
try not to "judge a book by it's cover," but it is hard to
control sometimes.
 It is the people that do not experience other cultures that
become ignorant and judgmental of other people and
cultures.
 I enjoyed this field trip experience and thought that it was
one step in enriching my cultural perspective

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