Ah, even in the US, I miss Mexican food since moving to the East Coast! Still dream about the meal I had once in a place that no longer exists in Austin, TX! And I guess I’ve been lucky and haven’t spotted many guns at the grocery store, until, that is, last week at Aldi’s, and we quietly ducked into another aisle! That said, I do work in a NY State government building that has “no guns permitted” signage. Hopefully better days are coming!
Years in Europe now, and I don't think I can ever trade in my attachment to life in a civil society. People can lose their tempers a little bit in Italy because no one's packing. (Organized crime aside.) Nerves in the US are frayed. Burnout is cool. More more more. Push more, make more, because it's impossible to forecast how much you'll need. Otoh I too miss authentic Mexican food, and on sad days would even be happy to take a plate of cheesy Tex-Mex. Happily we now have an authentic taqueria here in Tuscany around the corner from us, run by one Tommaso, who spent years in the Bronx and fell in love with the taco truck, passing thence on to the DF to pick the recipes apart. Tommaso just received an important award from the Mexican Embassy in Rome for his work - I reported at https://www.theflorentine.net/2026/07/14/tosco-tacos-brings-home-mexican-seal-approval/
Where I lived (Colorado growing us, and central Oregon before moving to Ireland), there are real Mexicans. So it was possible to pass on American Mexican and find the real deal.
Ireland, New Zealand, Portugal - I wonder if missing Mexican food is what unites all of us.
Ah, even in the US, I miss Mexican food since moving to the East Coast! Still dream about the meal I had once in a place that no longer exists in Austin, TX! And I guess I’ve been lucky and haven’t spotted many guns at the grocery store, until, that is, last week at Aldi’s, and we quietly ducked into another aisle! That said, I do work in a NY State government building that has “no guns permitted” signage. Hopefully better days are coming!
Years in Europe now, and I don't think I can ever trade in my attachment to life in a civil society. People can lose their tempers a little bit in Italy because no one's packing. (Organized crime aside.) Nerves in the US are frayed. Burnout is cool. More more more. Push more, make more, because it's impossible to forecast how much you'll need. Otoh I too miss authentic Mexican food, and on sad days would even be happy to take a plate of cheesy Tex-Mex. Happily we now have an authentic taqueria here in Tuscany around the corner from us, run by one Tommaso, who spent years in the Bronx and fell in love with the taco truck, passing thence on to the DF to pick the recipes apart. Tommaso just received an important award from the Mexican Embassy in Rome for his work - I reported at https://www.theflorentine.net/2026/07/14/tosco-tacos-brings-home-mexican-seal-approval/
Another nation weighs in on Mexican food!
Same in Portugal. Lovely to have no guns. I miss Mexican food (or really, the American equivalent). Mexican restaurants are few and far between.
Where I lived (Colorado growing us, and central Oregon before moving to Ireland), there are real Mexicans. So it was possible to pass on American Mexican and find the real deal.
Ireland, New Zealand, Portugal - I wonder if missing Mexican food is what unites all of us.