Back in the previous century, at about the time Albert Gore was inventing the internet, clean air, space stations and probably diet Coke, we got hooked on Lake Chapala. This was an era when Gordon Weaver had his literary license in the name of Michael Scott Long and used the word “paradise” to describe the […]
Continue ReadingFirst written in the spring of 1994, this story has been revised several times as dictated by subsequent events. It has generated more responses than any other. Most of them have been at least somewhat rational. Every Norteamericano who reads a newspaper or watches 60 Minutes knows that an armed political/economic struggle has been going […]
Continue ReadingOverview (by Tony Burton): Dr. Stephen Banks lived in the area for a couple of months (October and November) in 2002, and had a follow-up visit the next year. He recorded 26 in-depth interviews (1.5 – 3 hours each), as well as 40 shorter “informant” interviews and over 100 “ethnographic” interviews. He attended numerous local functions […]
Continue ReadingIn this holiday season, I want to share an experience that truly demonstrates the spirit of Christmas. You wouldn’t believe the inventiveness, perseverance, kindness and generosity of Mexicans when somebody is in trouble. While recently traveling through Mexico, my friend Hart Cowley and I, Gerry Green, had stopped my van at the side of the […]
Continue ReadingDateline – Tlaxco, Tlaxcala, Mexico August 3, 1998 Night-shadows play over the weathered stone markers in the small abandoned graveyard. A soft breeze rustles the leaves of the tall camphor trees like spirits whispering in the darkness. Last night the ghost of Don Miguel was sighted again on the other side of the ravine. He […]
Continue ReadingMexicans are land conscious. The last revolution was largely about land ownership. Women like to own their own home. They usually start out by buying a lot, or someone gives them a lot, and then they take forever finishing their house. At first the family may be living in a two-room shack, such as you […]
Continue ReadingFollowing a policy of keeping the boys and the girls seperated, Martita and Vidal seldom saw each other at school. It must have been some comfort just knowing that the other was close by. Marta’s dormitory was upstairs in a long building along the side of the complex. The bottom floor served as classrooms. There […]
Continue ReadingA Balloon in Cactus Great rain clouds filled the sky over Lake Chapala as my friend, Tomas, turned the curve where you first spy Scorpion Island en route from the airport. “You’ve brought good weather,” he said, grinning, “The beginning of rainy season.” Perhaps the rain was actually to honor not me, but three others […]
Continue ReadingLa Ceiba is a small town in the state of Puebla on the highway between Mexico City and Poza Rica, Veracruz. It’s about 45 minutes from Poza Rica. The town was named after a large ceiba tree that once grew in the plaza. The name of the town has actually been changed to that of […]
Continue ReadingA couple of years ago I wrote a booklet about the Central High Plains with the idea that I would offer my services as a guide. This idea, as a lot of my other ideas, fell flat. However, I was asked if I would present the material, in a series, to be included in Mexico […]
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