In today’s world, where massive factories churn out goods at breakneck speed, it is hard for many people to imagine that there are still devoted artisans tucked away in remote villages of Mexico who dedicate days, weeks and even months to creating one exquisitely crafted piece. These artisans, toiling away in their secluded studios, are […]
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Dale Hoyt Palfrey © 1995 Her face is unforgettable and she goes by many names: La Catrina, la Flaca, la Huesuda, la Pelona — Fancy Lady, Skinny, Bony, Baldy. A fixture in Mexican society, she’s not some trendy fashion model, but La Muerte — Death. Renowned writer Octavio Paz observes that, undaunted by death, the […]
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It should come as no surprise that in Mexico, a predominantly Roman Catholic country, Easter — Pascua — is the most widely celebrated and important religious holiday of the year. Observances that would be of interest to visitors from abroad may be witnessed in virtually every village, town and city in the Republic beginning with […]
Continue ReadingFor five centuries, North Americans have been fascinated and intrigued by stories of the magnificent Aztec Empire. This extensive Mesoamerican Empire was in its ascendancy during the late Fifteenth and early Sixteenth Centuries. The Aztec Empire of 1519 was the most powerful Mesoamerican kingdom of all time. This multi-ethnic, multi-lingual realm stretched for more than […]
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Among the fertile volcanoes of Michoacan Lumholtz came across the Purepecha people, who were called Tarascan by the Spanish. Enemies of the Aztecs, the Tarascans flourished from 1100 A.D. to 1530 A.D. Their origins are still a puzzle, along with their stirrup-shaped, long-necked bottles and round temples called Yacatas. The center of the Tarascan Empire […]
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According to the reports of the first Europeans to visit the New World, slavery was almost universal in what is now Mexico and Central America. Theoretically, with the arrival of Europeans, that should have changed. In 1493 Pope Alexander VI, while granting Spain the right to colonize the New World, mandated that the indigenous people […]
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Día de Muertos: Tradición de siglos que perdura Sin cantos ni rezos, los cucuchenses (estado de Michoacán) solo aguardan junto a las tumbas del panteón, adornadas con flores de cempasúchil y cirios encendidos, no faltan las ofrendas en comida para los difuntos. Se reconoce que en México el culto a los difuntos existe desde la […]
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Interactive Map of Guanajuato The land-locked state of Guanajuato is in the Central Highlands region of Mexico, along with the states of Querétaro, Hidalgo, México, Mexico City, Morelos, Tlaxcala and Puebla. The state of Guanajuato has an area of about 30,600 square kilometers and a population of 5.8 million (2015 estimate). The state’s capital city […]
Continue ReadingI rented a small house in La Gloria, in the hills between Rosarito Beach and Tijuana. It was a cozy place. I had painted inside and out and landscaped the yard. A willow tree shaded the back patio and there were a couple more trees. The architectural design was pretty neat and there was a […]
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Several destinations on Mexico’s central Pacific coast are now well known to tourists looking for fantasy honeymoons and vacations straight out of travel agency brochures. Puerto Vallarta to the north, Ixtapa and pricey Acapulco to the south swell with tourists from December through March eager for the gilded-cage-pampering of the resort vacation. Experienced, independent, and […]
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