La Candelaria In Tlacotalpan, Veracruz
Mexico City's Palacio de Bellas Artes
While perfect storms have been ravaging parts of America north of the Mexican border, Mexico itself — and especially Mexico City — is currently enjoying idyllic weather, a veritable Indian summer a...
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Our Lady of the Rosary, beloved patroness of Talpa de Allende
The real Mexico: Antiques roadshow South of the Border
An American acquaintance of mine, who believes himself to be quite astute about such things, is in the habit of asking whether San Miguel de Allende is the real Mexico and, if it's not, where can it be...
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Hanal Pixan, Maya Day of the Dead in Pac Chen, Quintana Roo
The monkeys, they tell me, are asleep in a cave across the lagoon. But other than that disappointment, my trip to Pac Chen, a micro sized Maya village in the jungle of the Yucatan Peninsula, is the per...
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May in Mexico: Fiestas galore
It actually begins on April 30 with the Dia del Niño, when children are honored with gifts and treats, and classes are canceled for a day of fun. Labor Day — May 1 — follows immediately with parades in every city and town. May 3 is the feast day of the Holy Cross. The Battle of Puebla is commemorated on the 5th — el Cinco de Mayo, perhaps a bigger event in the U.S. and Canada. May 10 is always Mother's Day... read more
Silver, saints, and sinners™: Semana Santa in Taxco, Mexico
The City of Silver
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...
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Mexico's Dia de Muertos celebration: Is it dying?
"Every year there are more and more tourists. They're not coming to see our tradition, they just want another reason to have a fiesta. It gets worse later, when they start urinating on the candles."
read moreTabacalera Alberto: What's smoking with Mexico's leading cigar maker?
Driving to Yucatan, I made a wrong turn and wound up in the town of Catemaco. A shady beach drive along a huge lake provided a tranquil setting reminiscent of Hollywood's 1930s America. I pulled to the...
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Pilgrimage from San Miguel de Allende to San Juan de los Lagos in 1967
Founded in 1542, San Juan de los Lagos is set in the Los Altos region of Jalisco, an area distinguished by its devotion to the Roman Catholic faith. The Cathedral there is home to the diminutive image of the Virgin of the Immaculate Concepcion. Late in January, pilgrims on foot can be seen thronging toward the town for the celebration of Candlemas on February 2.
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San Juan de Los Lagos: The Virgin, her basilica, her pilgrims, and their exvotos
Exvotos are both very public and extremely personal -- like "thank you notes to God."
read moreLake Chapala through the ages, an anthology of travellers' tales
There is something for everybody in Tony Burton's, Lake Chapala through the ages. Whether you are fascinated by the early history of the place where you now live or visit (or would like to visit), or whether you are interested in early accounts of the natural history of the region, or of the lake itself.
read moreFirst Stop in the New World by David Lida: an interview with the author
Mexico City has long exercised a fascination for writers of varying foreign stripes — Graham Greene, Aldous Huxley, Jack Keruoac, D. H. Lawrence, William S. Burroughs, B. Traven; not to mention Latin American writers such as Roberto Bolaño, Carlos Fuentes, Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Alvaro Mutis — and while some of them have stopped here for brief periods and others have made it their home, the erstwhile megalopolis (now 'hypermetropolis') remains an elusive quarry to pin down in words. Its trawling immensity may be a well of inspiration or a veritable Oak Island of futile excavation in search of treasures that refuse to be unearthed.
read moreBuilding a foundation to live in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca
Our world in Teotitlan operates on the trust of a handshake and commitment to personal agreement. We operate on the premise that it will all work out by the strength of our relationships.
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Did You Know? Most "bark paper" comes from wild fig trees
Besides being used as a kind of rough paper for records and correspondence, amate was also cut into human or animal forms as part of witchcraft rituals after which it would be buried in front of the pe...
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Did You Know? Quetzal Dancers in Puebla, Mexico
The Quetzal Dance is one of the most colorful folkloric dances anywhere in the country. It is also thought to be one of the most ancient. Both the dance and the spectacular headdresses worn b...
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Did You Know? Famous artists pioneer art community in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
A young couple who became famous artists pioneered the San Miguel de Allende foreign community.
San Miguel de Allende's vibrant art and music scene is deservedly famous. Among the early pioneers respo...
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Cuernavaca's Muros Museum: There's Heart within These Walls
Muros, which means "walls" in Spanish, opened to the public in May of 2004. It is the only museum in Cuernavaca, Morelos originally designed to be a museum. The space is flexible with movable lighting,...
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Did you know? Oaxaca is the most culturally diverse state in Mexico
The inter-census population count in Mexico in 2005 found that more than one million people in Oaxaca spoke at least one indigenous Indian language. Close behind came the state of Chiapas with about 95...
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Atayde Hermanos Circus
Against the backdrop of the dome of the Palacio del Arte in Morelia, Claris Leydi, a Cuban gymnast swings on a high trapeze in the opening act of Atayde Hermanos Circus.
...
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Marianne Carlson and the Maestros del Arte
"In Mexico I have found an outlet for creative talents never tapped before. You can do what ever you want. Pick up a plastic bag and make something out of it. Pick up a seed pod, paint it and add legs,...
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Kimball Gallery In Chapala
A rtists from the Ajijic-Chapala-Riberas area of Jalisco joined together June 6, 2003 to meet one another, renew collaborations and celebrate the upcoming rainy season at the new Kimball Gallery in Chapala.
read moreTalavera - Mexico's earthly legacy from the City Of Angels
There is no more glorious an experience or heightening of the senses than to walk through Puebla's exquisitely beautiful downtown on a sun drenched afternoon. Every building is a work of art. And every...
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Alfredo Guati Rojo. Painting With Light - Museo Nacional De Acuarela
"Without watercolors we wouldn´t know nearly what we know about the ancient Mexicans," said the gentleman across the expanse of polished desk with a sweet smile.
"All of the codexes were painted...
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Raising The Dead
The attitude towards death evidenced in the quintessentially Mexican holiday of Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) might be puzzling for some. It isn't difficult for foreigners to interpret dancing skel...
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