After over 30 years of not visiting our relatives in Mexico I made the decision to visit. I wanted to do this trip to learn about where my dad came from, build a relationship with my family, learn about my family and genealogy and break the stigma that Mexico is dangerous. The only reason I was able to get away with this was because I was living in Utah and my dad had no idea about the trip until the day I was leaving! He was so upset because the reason why he left Mexico was because thought it was too dangerous. I planned to spend a week with my aunt touring all over my dad's home state of Jalisco. Realizing my Spanish had gotten a little rusty I relied on my cousins to make any transactions because as soon as people found out I was American they would raise the prices. At first I was really nervous that I had made the wrong decision. Maybe they felt like my dad abandoned them or maybe they would think I was too American. Each relative I met no matter where we went they welcomed me with open arms. I didn't just learn more about my family who lived there I learned about why my dad is the way he is. By the end the trip after several phone calls of relatives he hasn't spoken to years and pictures of places he thought he forgot about he was homesick. I am glad I went on the spontaneous trip because now it feels like my family has doubled even though we have always been family.