Editor’s Comment
Mexico’s Day of the Dead – resource page
November 1, All Saints Day, and November 2, All Souls Day, are marked throughout Mexico by intriguing customs that vary widely according to the ethnic roots of each region. Common to all, however, are colorful adornments and lively reunions at family burial plots, the preparation of special foods, offerings laid out for the departed on […]
Travel
Mask making in the Magic Town of Huejotzingo, Puebla
Javier Alvarado Saloma carefully cuts a piece of leather on which he’s traced an outline using a template. “I use either cow or pig skin,” he says, as he concentrates. Cutting the leather is the first step of several needed to make a mask. Two weeks after cutting the leather, he’ll have a finished mask, […]
Sneak preview of updates to Mexico City’s historic Chapultepec Park
It would be hard to overstate the symbolic importance of Chapultepec Park, not only to Mexico City, but to the country as well. It has played a key role in Mexico’s history since the Mesoamerican era, with emperors and presidents eager to leave their mark on it. But its recent history also includes neglect. To […]
Food & Cuisine
Mysteries of the Simple Tortilla
You’re at your favorite Mexican restaurant and decide to enjoy a great tortilla with salsa and cheese. You palm the warm disc and spoon chili along the middle bend. That looks great, especially after you sprinkle cheese over the filling. You fold your masterpiece and take a bite. Great, but a second later, your tortilla […]
History & People
Chapala’s rich architectural heritage: here today, gone tomorrow?
The small lakeside town of Chapala in Jalisco had more buildings designed by notable architects in the first half of the twentieth century than any other location of its size in Mexico, perhaps even in North America. In 1900, Chapala was little more than an overgrown fishing village with one major hotel and 1753 residents. […]
Love affair began when President Díaz met President Taft at Mexico/US Summit
October 16th 2024 marks the 115th anniversary of the first summit meeting, in 1909, between the presidents of Mexico and the United States. Mexico has had a long tumultuous history from the ancient Maya to modern day events. Like any personal relationships, it hasn’t always been pleasant. From wars and human sacrifice in pre-Columbian days, […]
The Path of Most Resistance: the Top Yucatán Caste War Sites
For far too long the history of 19th Century Mayan free rule in the Mexican Yucatán has been largely ignored. But local Maya are working to put it on the map. Through museums, ruins, guided tours and more, they are preserving the legacy of this largest post-colonial indigenous revolution in the Americas, commonly known as […]
What was Mexico like 70 years ago?
G. M. Bashford’s Tourist Guide to Mexico was first published exactly seventy years ago in 1954. It was one of a spate of motoring book guides written after World War II as Americans began to hit the open road and drive south in search of sunshine and adventure. How much has Mexico really changed in […]
Mexico this month – November
Index to Mexico this month (all 12 months) 1, 1542 The Fourth Expedition to Asia departs from the Pacific coast port of Navidad (now known as Barra de Navidad) under the command of Ruy López de Villalobos. This expedition reaches the Philippines. 2, 1810 In the opening chapter of Mexico’s fight for independence from Spain, […]
Lake Chapala: A Postcard History (review)
Tony Burton’s most recent book, Lake Chapala: a postcard history, is an interesting pictorial romp through the Lake Chapala area from just before the twentieth century to about 1960. Over 150 postcards mostly taken from Burton’s private collection give a broad overview of what life was like around the lake from the time when the […]
Living, Working, Retiring
Why is Mezcal so important to the future of Oaxaca?
Alvin Starkman, M.A., J.D. Last year I participated in a panel discussion in Oaxaca about a new book entitled La E del Mezcal: Exportación, by Dra. Blanca Esther Salvador Martínez. While the other panelists essentially praised the author for writing such an important book and explained how it thoroughly covered all the bases regarding the […]
Best medication prices for expats in Mexico
Many of us are old, need medications, and are far from our accustomed US medical care resources. Often we do not know the best ways to obtain medicines securely, legally, efficiently, and at the best price while living in Mexico. I have researched this matter and have found the answers to our dilemma quite complex. […]
I swear the laws concerning size are suspended when Driving in Mexico
Mexican driving continues to astonish me even after cruising the country for over fifty years. Like most newcomers, I used to be amazed by driving differences ranging from speed to taking stop signs with a wink. Most of those alternative driving methods have not just grown on me, but I’ve adopted them and even prefer […]
Recipes
Books & Authors
Aztecs & Maya
The Path of Most Resistance: the Top Yucatán Caste War Sites
For far too long the history of 19th Century Mayan free rule in the Mexican Yucatán has been largely ignored. But local Maya are working to put it on the map. Through museums, ruins, guided tours and more, they are preserving the legacy of this largest post-colonial indigenous revolution in the Americas, commonly known as […]
Visiting Dzibilchaltún: an ancient city in an ancient land
Once a vast city of 40,000 spread across 8 square miles or so of jungle and meadows, Dzibilchaltún was a long-lived Mayan city, a major player in the salt trade, and the ultimate survivor. Founded around 300 B.C., Dzibilchaltún lasted until the arrival of the Spanish in 1540. An architectural marvel even now, as it […]
The Maya civilization, cities of the Maya
The material splendor of the Maya culture is appreciated, more than in any other field, in the architecture and ornamentation of their cities. These city-states were the center of power for the king-priests who administered the obedience, the tribute and the manpower of the people who believed in them. Many Maya cities and ceremonial centres […]
The Maya civilization and cities: a resource page
To the foreigner, the words ‘Maya’ and ‘Mayan’ conjure up images of archeological ruins and a lost society and culture. Currently, the word ‘Chiapas’ brings to mind rebellion, Sub Commandante Marcos and a sense of confusion. What many do not understand is the relationship between the historical Maya and today’s living expression of that culture […]
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About Mexican Food
A Mexican Christmas dinner: tamales, turkey, tejocotes
Mexican Kitchen The usually bustling Mexican markets become even more so in December, when the mountains of fruit for ponche navideño (Christmas punch) compete with a wild array of tinsel-y decorations for shoppers’ attention, and the excitement leading to the posadas and pastorelas builds up. The culmination of all this preparation is, of course, Noche […]
Culture & Arts
Chapala’s rich architectural heritage: here today, gone tomorrow?
The small lakeside town of Chapala in Jalisco had more buildings designed by notable architects in the first half of the twentieth century than any other location of its size in Mexico, perhaps even in North America. In 1900, Chapala was little more than an overgrown fishing village with one major hotel and 1753 residents. […]
Modern street art in Mexico City: concrete walls transformed into vivid social statements
Mexico City has some of the best street/urban art murals in the world, but almost all the attention in the press is focused on work done in the center of the city. In reality, much of the best work is being done on the east side of the Mexico City Metro Area (MCMA). The muralism […]
Adventure Tourism
Cultural Customs
EARLY MORNING, SAN MIGUEL (poem)
We left town early, just before la madrugada. Up and down the deserted streets the soft glow of lamplight turned cobblestones into golden ingots in the dark. This radiance bathed everything in a spectral beauty and I could see ghosts hurrying along in the shadows of the Inquisition: women wrapped in rebozos, priests in […]
Should You Walk with a Friend in Mexico?
After numerous forays into Mexico over the past six decades, I’ve learned a few things about Mexico and Mexicans. Most of our southern neighbors are honest, trustworthy and friendly to a fault. However, do not trust a Mexican amigo when it comes to accurate walking distances. I don’t care if you’ve known the person for […]
Linguistic and cultural language puzzles in Mexico
Pat Hall On one of our first trips to Mexico, my husband asked a perplexing question: “Why are Mexicans using the Welsh word, oi?” My husband is from Wales and, at that point, spoke no Spanish. The British use the word oi as an interjection to call attention, or as a challenge, depending on its […]
La Quinceañera: a celebration of budding womanhood
The transition from childhood to womanhood is a significant passage for adolescent girls in almost all cultures. In Mexico, it is marked with the celebration of the Quinceañera, or 15th Birthday. From a north-of-the-border viewpoint, it may be seen as a cross between Sweet Sixteen and a debutante’s coming out party. The celebration is a […]
