For Russians in Mexico, the Fruit Aisle Is a Fairy Tale Come True

Russian travel blogger Marina Yershova, currently exploring Mexico, was struck by a simple but vivid contrast between life there and back home. In a post on the platform Zen, she described how Mexican children don’t wait for seasonal apples or pears to appear in stores. Instead, they grow up surrounded by mangoes, papayas, pineapples, and guavas. For them, these tropical fruits are everyday snacks, not exotic treats or encyclopedia photos. Yershova noted that mangoes are sold as casually as potatoes in Russia, and some fruit trees just grow in people’s yards. “You step out, pick one, eat it, and go about your day. For visitors from Russia, it looks like a small miracle,” she wrote. The blogger acknowledged that Mexico has its own problems, but called the year-round warmth and abundance of fresh fruit a “pleasant bonus” from nature. “Better this than my own childhood, hauling buckets of ash. When I compare that to Mexican kids growing up among palm trees and mangoes, I feel a bit sad,” she admitted. In an earlier post, Yershova said locals often greet her with smiles and kind words about Russia, adding that “Mexico loves Russia even more than some Russians do.”