checker, i think your problem was the way you phrased your questions. to me they sounded like accusations/ anyway, most of these people, from my observation, are quite poor. i would almost feel bad taking an invitation if i got one. that said, i have had many conversations with locals, even tho my visits were brief. i talked to a little girl and showed her how to treat her puppy, i let a bunch of kidsd play with my camera. they asked me what things are like for kids in the US, we talked for maybe 45 minutes. i had fabulous conversations with the resort staff on their views of marriage, childrearing, relationships, etc. i even met several of their children.

so, what exactly is your definition of interacting with locals?