Guerrero

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 […]

We take the coastal road south as it winds through the tree-covered Sierra Madre del Sur mountains and past vistas of the blue waters of the Pacific far below, traveling to Zihuatanejo, pronounced Zi-Wat-En-Ay-O, as anyone who has ever heard the song of the same name knows. Often called Zihua for short, the name comes […]

Greg knows the old way—or so he says—but all I can see is an empty stretch of sand and water where the southern tip of Playa Quieta ends at a rocky outcropping of rocks jutting out into the Bahia de Palmar. When I lived here, he explains, this is where we caught the pangas going […]

This is quick, easy, delicious, and best accompanied by plain white rice. Although the original recipe calls for lard, I much prefer olive or vegetable oil. Ingredients: 2 pounds medium size shrimp 3 tablespoons olive (not extra virgin) or vegetable oil 1 red onion, peeled and sliced into thin crescents (” lunitas“) 4 large cloves garlic, […]

Ingredients: For the broth: 2 ½ pounds bones from mild white fish, such as snapper or bass, with 1 or 2 heads juice of 1 lime 3 sprigs parsley 1 small onion, roughly chopped 2 large cloves garlic, roughly chopped water to cover For the stew: 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 medium onion, chopped 2 […]

This recipe is adapted from La Cocina Familiar en el Estado de Guerrero, published by Editorial Océano. It is a typical regional game dish. Ingredients: 4 quail, washed, dried and split down the middle 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 4 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped 1 medium onion, peeled and coarsely chopped 4 guajillo chiles, seeded, deveined […]

Pumpkin seeds, the characteristic ingredient of green pipian, add an appetizing textural dimension to this pozole, and the poblano chiles and chard that are blended with them provide a bright combination of color and flavor. Ingredients: One recipe Basic White Pozole 4 poblano chiles, seeds and stems removed 8 large Swiss chard leaves, roughly chopped 8 large romaine […]

Along the Costa Alegre, numerous restaurants serve filets of whatever fish is freshest, stuffed with different combinations of seafood. Shrimp is nearly always used, along with squid or octopus. The almond sauce is a reflection of the Spanish influence on Mexico’s cuisine. Ingredients: For the sauce: 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 6 cloves garlic, chopped 1 […]

Fresh fish filets from Mexico’s Pacific coast are lightly marinated in tequila and lime juice, then grilled or sauteed and topped with a fresh salsa, for a delicious, low-fat entree. Acapulco style fish filetsgo well with a side dish of arroz blanco, Mexican-style white rice. Ingredients 4 firm-fleshed fish filets,1″ thick (grouper, sea bass, shark, etc.) 1/3 […]

Sweat dripped down into a little pool at my stomach, which had been enjoying too many chilaquile breakfasts. The stifling heat and humidity of Zihuatanejo had stupefied my friend Kim and I into submission until we glimpsed a chalkboard scrawled with the words “Snorkeling Trip Today” in the Hotel Paraiso’s lobby. We had gawped at the crocodiles […]

In the current edition of Guinness, the Mexican responsible for most records is Sergio Rodriguez Villarreal from the northern state of Nuevo León. He specializes in creating giant Christmas figures and holds five records at the moment for the “biggest” ornaments which are (respectively) an angel, silver bauble, bell, candle and wreath. Rodriguez first designs […]

Cogan’s Reviews If you’ve ever entertained thoughts of opening a restaurant in a popular beach resort in Mexico, here’s the book for you. The story is related to us by Jeff Farrell who, with his wife, Mia, purchases a property high above the rooftops of Zijhuatanejo, overlooking the famed Playa de la Ropa beach with […]

If you have heard of the picturesque, old colonial Mexican town of Taxco at all, you probably associate it with that precious metal so characteristic of Mexico – silver. If you had asked Cortés about Taxco almost 500 years ago, he would have made the same association. In fact, the silver and other minerals from […]

By common consent, the history of blacks in Mexico is a long one. The first black slave to set foot in Mexico is thought to have been Juan Cortés. He accompanied the conquistadors in 1519. It has been claimed that some natives thought he must be a god, since they had never seen a black […]

The agent is a point that shifts position. No choice but to run, hide, drift: bus after bus, one last run and goodbye to this country for good – but never the nightmare that encapsulates it. J2191948… J2191948… I’d slurped down some tacos of dubious origin in Magdalena, flipped a coin and called it for […]

New World Women is a native women artisan group in Tecalpulco, Guerrero who decided to form a production cooperative. These skilled artisans are the original designers and producers, creating beautiful jewelry. Theirs is a cottage industry with a goal of perpetuating the region’s craft tradition and creating a source of work that can keep their […]

This is probably the most famous dish from the Guerrero coast, and another one that is wonderfully easy to prepare. The traditional fish to use for this dish is snapper, but bass or grouper would also be good. Ingredients: 4 medium-size firm, white fish, cleaned, butterflied and boned juice of 2 limes 4 ancho chiles, […]

This page is number 7 of seven pages on MexConnect which come originally from the website of CEDEX (Center for Historic Studies of Public Works and Town Planning) in Madrid, Spain. (Links to the other six pages are provided at the end of the article). The pages reflect an exhibition organized by CEDEX in 1988, […]

Adriano is a sixteen-year-old surfer who helps his mother run one of the many small beachside palapas in the resort community of Playa Azul, north of Ixtapa. You won’t read about Playa Azul in most guidebooks as it is a resort that for the most part has yet to be “discovered” by anyone other than the […]

The purpose of these web pages is to introduce you to the culture and unique experience of Mexicans of African descent. If you are like most people, you probably have never heard of Afro-Mexicans and are completely unaware that they exist. If you fall into this category, these pages will hopefully be quite a learning […]

To begin a discussion of the Black Experience in Mexico, it is important to establish the quantitative significance of the black slave population in the colonial era. One of the most frequent responses I get when discussing my research with Mexicans, or Americans for that matter, is “there couldn’t have been more than a handful […]

This is a list of 17 sources in Spanish and English dealing with black Mexicans from a variety of perspectives. I chose these few sources from a large bibliography that I have been compiling since 1992, hoping that these works will not be too difficult to find. A good university library should have most of […]

(populations based on 1990 census) GUERRERO Cerro del Indio 615 Cuajinicuilapa 8439 Maldonado 964 Montecillos 880 El Pitahayo 2186 Punta Maldonado 1109 San Nicolás 3359 Copala 5772 Azoyú 3718 Huehuetán 1662 Juchitán 3409 Marquelia 6305 38,418 OAXACA El Carrizo 1752 El Ciruelo 2393 Collantes 1967 Corralero 1039 El Chivo 868 Lagunillas 449 El Azufre 320 […]

This seems like a good time of year to talk about the culinary specialties of Guerrero, the Mexican state whose coastline is home to some of the country’s most popular winter resorts, including Acapulco and Zihuatenejo. Chilly northerners flock to their beaches to enjoy sunbathing, water sports, and the area’s abundant seafood. But although the […]

My guide book tells me that it’s exactly 1,000 kilometers from Guadalajara to Oaxaca. That’s about 660 miles. I know of people who say they’ve driven the distance in one day and I have to concede that it’s possible. The only way you can do it is to take toll roads the whole way, start […]

The Costa Chica (“Short Coast” in Spanish) is one of two regions in Mexico with significant Black communities, the other being the state of Veracruz on the Gulf coast. The Costa Chica is a 200-mile-long coastal region beginning just southeast of Acapulco, Guerrero, and ending near the town of Puerto Angel, Oaxaca. The shaded area […]

Map of Guerrero Map of Guerrero SCT, 1999.

Acapulco easily can boast of some dynamic, talented and interesting women residents. Among these is Dolores Olmedo Patiño, a foremost patron of the arts of Mexico and a tremendous promoter of the culture of her beloved native land. Diego Rivera, Mexico´s most celebrated artist and muralist, first met Dolores Olmedo when she was only 11, […]

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Acapulco is world-renowned for its lovely beaches and year-round sunshine. It is the most popular tourist resort on the west coast of Mexico. For sure, more celebrities visit this charming city than any other in Mexico. Its reputation is well deserved. But today, a first-time visitor to this Mexican “Jewel” might well pose the question, […]

The Cacahuamilpa Caverns (Grutas de Cacahuamilpa) in the state of Guerrero have attracted curious visitors for several centuries and were the first major cave system in Mexico to be opened up for regular tourism. In the early days of tourism, the Cacahuamilpa Caverns near Taxco (Guerrero) were a popular place to visit. The English traveler […]

My suegra (mother-in-law) decided that she wanted to sell vegetables from her front porch in rural Guerrero. I asked her how much profit she would like to make and we would work the numbers backward from there. “Fifty pesos per day would be great,” she says. So I do some back-of-the-envelope calculations taking into account the cost […]

I have had a vacation home in Acapulco since 1991, and love the city. There are many unknown opportunities there, and some pitfalls to avoid. There are things you can assume, and things you should not assume. YOU CANNOT ASSUME THAT ACAPULCO IS JUST AN OLDER VERSION OF CANCUN Cancun was created about thirty years […]