The Naked Stage, Ajijic’s biting and sexy new minimalist theatre, has another successful reading sceduled for November — Rabbit Hole. Winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for drama, the play premiered as a film this past September (2010) at the Toronto Film Festival starring Nicole Kidman. Its next performance will be Psychopathia Sexualis by John Patrick Shanley, directed by […]
Continue ReadingAnglo and Mexican sayings are often subtly different. For starters, consider your pet cat. In Canada or the U.S., cats are considered to have nine lives; in Mexico, however, cats only have seven (siete) lives. Perhaps they used up two lives as kittens just getting to be old enough to be a cat? Or perhaps the difference […]
Continue ReadingMexico once tried hard to prevent Americans from migrating to Texas. In recent years, considerable attention has focused on the U.S. government’s efforts to stem the flow of Mexicans migrating north of the border in search of jobs. But there was a time in history when the boot was, so to speak, very much on […]
Continue ReadingTwo sites within an hour’s drive south of Zacatecas make it well worthwhile to linger at least an extra day when visiting this splendid colonial treasure, described in a previous Mexico Connect article. ( Zacatecas) The two sites in question are La Quemada (The Burnt) and Jerez (Sherry). La Quemada grew into the largest pre-Columbian settlement […]
Continue ReadingDid you know that one of the highest, most elegant and sumptuous arts of pre-Conquest Mexico was arteplumaria, the art of feather painting? Used to decorate headdresses, standards, staffs, lances, fans, bracelets, and sandals, arteplumaria was also employed to cover every one of the pre-Cortez ceremonial shields ever recovered or recorded. This rare type of ornamentation was […]
Continue ReadingThere is a way to protect yourself from currency fluctuations that may increase the cost of your property. The worldwide foreign exchange market is huge, with average daily turnover totaling approximately $3.2 trillion. In this industry, around 95% of all currency transactions are purely speculative, with the majority of trades being made by banks and […]
Continue ReadingI think that it is time to cover some of the Spanish terms used in construction. There isn’t room in the space I have for this column to cover all the terms but perhaps a brief primer is in order. First, the proper term to use to address any worker is not “usted” but “tu”. If you use usted you send […]
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There is magic in the wind and change in the air. The historic pueblo of Alamos, Sonora, like most Mexican silver towns, has descended to bust from boom more than once in its fitful existence. As long-suffering as a campesino, the community nevertheless has survived those roller coaster rides. Craggy hills clad in variable foliage […]
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Mazatlan has the virtues and vices of any tourist destination. But all the bad stuff – or good, depending on how you plan to spend the evening – is buffered by the decency and solidity of a working town. Unlike the hotel cities dreamed up by governments beholden to tourist dollars, Mazatlan, the second city […]
Continue ReadingWe try to travel to Mexico twice a year, for a week or two at a time, packing just one carry-on bag each. This limitation is absolutely necessary when our two kids go along, because more than four carry-ons won’t fit in a taxi. We head directly to a bus station, and take off for […]
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