RON MADER'S UNUSUAL MEXICO LINKS
(Mexico on the Web)Journalist and savvy webmaster Ron Mader sifts through the web to find the most interesting and unusual Mexico-related websites. Ron is the webhost of the popular Planeta.com: Eco Travels in Latin America website -- http://www.planeta.com -- and has written about the internet since the early 1990s.
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THE BEST OF 2002
Each year "Mexico on the Web" pays tribute to innovative, content-rich and visitor-friendly websites that illuminate Mexican culture. We've witnessed the Web-mania and Dot.com euphoria as well as the crash-and-burn of dozens of websites that lacked solid business plans or an understanding of online communities. In 2002 no-nonsense websites matured. The following is our select list of the best websites of the year. These are regularly updated and provide forums for interaction.
Mexico -- Lonely Planet Thorn Tree
http://thorntree.lonelyplanet.com/thorn/topics.pl?Cat=&Start=mexico
/5 Stars
Australia-based Lonely Planet publishes THE best-selling guidebook to Mexico. The publishing giant was one of the first to establish its own website, and one its most useful (not to mention entertaining) features is the Thorn Tree bulletin board. Travelers post questions about upcoming trips and tell others about things to see ... or miss. The Thorn Tree provides a unique glimpse into backpack travel. On any day, messages range from serious inquiries to questionable spam and insults. The vox populi attracts travel gurus and idiots to the virtual soap box. Travelers seeking information about out-of-the-way places are well served by participating in this forum.
Artes y Historia de Mexico
http://www.arts-history.mx
This Spanish-language website covers all the bases of cultural attractions in Mexico. You'll find architecture, dance, movies, museums, theater and much more with a single click from the home page. The website -- created by Manuel Zavala y Alonso -- is regularly updated and provides the highlights for the week on the home page (look for "Semanario Cultural"). The search engine <http://www.arts-history.mx/2001/buscador/> locates information on this content-rich website. And if you don't want to go to your local museum to buy a holiday present, you can make your purchase via the museum's online store -- http://www.tiendadelmuseo.com.mx
Bicitekas
http://www.bicitekas.org
Two-wheeled activists take over Mexico City streets on a regular basis to show that eco-friendly transportation is possible in the world's largest metropolis. The Spanish-language website details the organizations noctural bike rides <http://www.laneta.apc.org/bicitekas/paseonocturno/> and workshops -- http://www.bicitekas.org/talleres -- in Chilangolandia. A plus, the site archives the print magazine Velo -- http://www.bicitekas.org/velo -- and has established an online forum on urban biking in the Americas -- http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/cicloamerica. Perhaps the only thing that is missing is an English-language translation of a few pages.
Traditional Mexican Markets
http://www.earthfoot.org/mercados/mer_menu.html
The Earthfoot website has long been one of our favorites. It features tips for independent travel around the world, yet Mexico is obviously one of the favorite destinations for webhost and author Jim Conrad. The market page has been online for several years, but it has been well maintained this past year. Readers will find a director of more than 75 mercados as well as 275 handicraft-producing towns. For non-Spanish speakers planning to visit Mexico City, there are step-by-step instructions on how to reach two spectacular mercados in the Mexico City area.
** Honorable Mentions **
Philately Museum of Oaxaca
http://www.mufi.org.mx- Here's a tribute to the national postal service. The website is clever and provides virtual postcards you can send to friends without using a stamp.
Mexico Rugby Federation
http://www.mexrugby.com- Mark your calendar for the 2003 World Rugby Cup. Mexico isn't participating, but the country is well on its way in becoming a leader in Latin American rugby.
Torre Mayor
http://www.torremayor.com.mx/camera.htm- Billed as the tallest structure south of the U.S. border, the skyscraper is monitored by a webcam which allows the public to watch live feeds from the construction site .
Ron Mader (ron@planeta.com) is a journalist
and author of Mexico:
Adventures in Nature.
He also hosts Planeta.com (http://www.planeta.com) which in
1999 was awarded the "Lente de Plata" award from The Tourism
Secretariat (Sectur) for best Mexico-related website.
