About Piropos
A piropo is a catcall. Back home it is the cry of the construction worker and greasy latino men. In Honduras and all Latin America, the piropo is everywhere. Those of all ages, backgrounds and marital statuses are subject to them, either giving or receiving them. Second graders do it. Old men in cowboy hats do it, Even women sometimes do it. Those on the receiving end may be 10 years old, or elderly, or pregnant, or ugly as hell. Nobody is safe from the piropos.
This is much more common in big cities where the piropo-givers can hide in the cloak of anonymity; this was the case during my year in San José, Costa Rica. But even in THIS San José, where everyone knows everyone, piropos are ubiquitous. And being the token gringa I am never far from a piropo or two wherever I go. They come in the following forms:
-the subtle high-pitched dog whistle
-the less subtle “tss-tss” sound
-the very obvious kissy noise
-the attempts at speaking English: “goosbye my lub,” “i lub yoo” “wer jew from”
-the elongated, sleazy-sounding “adiossssssssssss”
-the pet name (the mayor’s 12-year-old son prefers calling me “mi corazoncito,” my little heart, which I think is the nicest of them all)
-the occasional yucky comment—the other day I heard “Todo es mío” (That’s all mine), but luckily it was meant for my 14-year-old friend and not for me
Supposedly there’s a history behind the piropo. I heard once that it dates back to colonial times when the only public space was the plaza, and for fun the women walked in one circle around the plaza and the men walked in another circle in the other direction, giving the men one turn around the circle to think of something really good to say to get a lady’s attention. Regardless of the history behind it, many women are not bothered by them, but rather consider them compliments. People are baffled as to why I get upset over the piropos. If there´s one thing I appreciate more about my life in the States, it´s anonymity. I´m nothing special, I don´t cause any attention, and that´s just how I like it. This piropo business will be a continuing issue, I´m thinking…. Stay tuned…
This is much more common in big cities where the piropo-givers can hide in the cloak of anonymity; this was the case during my year in San José, Costa Rica. But even in THIS San José, where everyone knows everyone, piropos are ubiquitous. And being the token gringa I am never far from a piropo or two wherever I go. They come in the following forms:
-the subtle high-pitched dog whistle
-the less subtle “tss-tss” sound
-the very obvious kissy noise
-the attempts at speaking English: “goosbye my lub,” “i lub yoo” “wer jew from”
-the elongated, sleazy-sounding “adiossssssssssss”
-the pet name (the mayor’s 12-year-old son prefers calling me “mi corazoncito,” my little heart, which I think is the nicest of them all)
-the occasional yucky comment—the other day I heard “Todo es mío” (That’s all mine), but luckily it was meant for my 14-year-old friend and not for me
Supposedly there’s a history behind the piropo. I heard once that it dates back to colonial times when the only public space was the plaza, and for fun the women walked in one circle around the plaza and the men walked in another circle in the other direction, giving the men one turn around the circle to think of something really good to say to get a lady’s attention. Regardless of the history behind it, many women are not bothered by them, but rather consider them compliments. People are baffled as to why I get upset over the piropos. If there´s one thing I appreciate more about my life in the States, it´s anonymity. I´m nothing special, I don´t cause any attention, and that´s just how I like it. This piropo business will be a continuing issue, I´m thinking…. Stay tuned…
posted by Maureen at 5:47 PM
1 Comments:
Maureen! You are so too something special! While the piropos can indeed get annoying, you can use them to get a bit of an ego boost as well!
Lauren
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