Literary-minded travel writers describing Puerto Vallarta as an “island of tourist delights” probably don’t realize that their words are closer to the truth than they might imagine. At present, Puerto Vallarta has plenty of tourist facilities but is certainly not an island. The Pacific Ocean may swish against Vallarta’s beaches on one side, but there […]
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In the early years of the twentieth century, the nature of warfare changed dramatically. The deployment of aircraft unleashed a powerful new weapon for warring factions, previously forced to rely only on their land and sea forces. The earliest attempt to incorporate air power into fighting is thought to have been when an Italian pilot […]
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To Part 1 Cabo Pulmo We arrive in Cabo Pulmo as the sun is setting, relieved to finally find the end of the initially paved, then dirt access road, which has been bounded by barbed wire ever since we caught our last clear views of the coast near La Ribera. At intervals behind the barbed […]
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To Part 2 La Paz La Paz was almost unrecognizable. I’d enjoyed the small town atmosphere when I first visited it in 1980 but it now has the big city pretensions that I find far less appealing. Despite my reservations, the family enjoyed several days in La Paz in December 2007, wandering about the downtown […]
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The status of World Heritage site is a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) denomination. The status is conferred on selected sites under the terms of “The Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage”, adopted at UNESCO’s 17th General Conference in November 1972 and subsequently ratified by 186 member […]
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One of the prettiest towns in the state of Jalisco is Mazamitla, set high in the pineclad mountains near the Michoacan border. Among its many attractions are some fine restaurants specialising in Mexican food, more of which later, as well as waterfalls and gardens. Mazamitla is definitely a very old town, dating back at least […]
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For an unusual winter break, how about a Mexican train ride? The Reader’s Digest called Mexico’s famous Copper Canyon railroad trip, “the most dramatic train ride in the western hemisphere”. Even that description fails to do justice to the spectacular scenery and sightseeing along the line. The railroad was originally built to give southern Texas […]
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Several ancient civilizations developed astonishingly accurate calendars. Even so, occasional adjustments were needed to bring the calendar back in line with solar events. Archaeologists studying the site of Xochicalco, just outside the city of Cuernavaca in central Mexico, believe that a major conference of astronomers was held there in the eighth century A.D. in order […]
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Several small towns in northern Mexico offer a welcome respite and interesting overnight stop for tourists bored by the long and monotonous stretches of desert driving on their way south. One such destination is Sombrerete, mid-way between the cities of Durango and Zacatecas. According to some, there was so much silver in this area that […]
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Here is San Miguel de Allende – the town, its people, its fiestas – celebrated through the eyes of thirty talented photographers, in a visually exciting book published by Dean and Luna Enterprises. “Foundations of Greatness”, the first of four sections, opens with a wonderfully atmospheric untitled black-and-white photo (Bill Begalke) showing the town center emerging from […]
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