Author Archive

Secret Spots – Tacos, anyone?

“At this taco stand, they are known for preparing all kinds of meats, and all parts of animals.” OK, Listen up: tacos, Mexican style, are not what you think they are. Forget Taco Bell, Old El Paso Taco Shells and anything resembling a curved fried tortilla. To a Mexican, tacos are flat, non-fried, tortillas topped with varying kinds of meats, veggies and spicy...

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Traveling Mexico – Oaxaca City

“Do not miss strolling around the many markets of Oaxaca, so many foods and smells and crafts to delight any traveler.” Mexico is a country that is so diverse, one could spend a lifetime trying to see all the places and peoples and still not know the country completely. Oaxaca City is just another example of the diversity...

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Traveling Mexico - Mayan Ruins

Traveling Mexico – Mayan Ruins

“Like the pharaohs of Egypt, he built a pyramid tomb as though it was his direct gateway to the underworld.” “Noble white robed ladies draw blood from their tongues next to pot-bellied dwarves.”   The Maya have eluded scientists and researchers for years. Their language, their religion, their societies, basically their entire way of life,...

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Our Lady of Guadalupe – Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe

The image is one of the Virgin surrounded by the light of heaven and the stars of the winter solstice sky.”   December 12th is traditionally known in Mexico as the Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe (Día de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe) celebrating the manifestation of the Virgin Mary appearing to the Aztec Native...

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The Secret Spots – MARISQUERIA LOS CUATES

“As for your friendly restaurant reviewer, the stuffed avocado with shrimp was one appetizer that vanished quickly from my table. Delicioso!”   I realized as I was thinking of places to review this month that I like seafood. The last restaurant I reviewed was a seafood place and the restaurant review from April 1999 also...

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The Music of Mexico - Mariachi Bands

The Music of Mexico – Mariachi Bands

…born of the traditions of the states of Sinola and Jalisco, where the countryside is rough and the people rougher.” To understand and love Mexican culture you must know the music of Mexico. Contrary to popular belief, the music you hear from the strolling musicians is not mariachi music, Mariachi is a term used to describe...

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Secret Spots – Cevichería el Güero

…the pulpo is cooked the way it should be, the texture is right on and the taste is not overpowering.”   When we write our restaurant reviews, we try and let you know about those hidden tucked away spots that give you a true sense of discovering a real feel for our little community here....

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Beach Reading – Cruising Paradise

“Mr. Shepard, tackles the recklessness of relationships and the minute memories we all have that seem to define our past.” Cruising Paradise: Tales by Sam Shepard   Remember Dolly Parton’s husband in the movie Steel Magnolias? Well, that quiet grumbling cowboy was Sam Shepard. He has appeared in bit parts in movies such as The Right...

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Travel – Shopping Lake Pátzcuaro

“Never send three women traveling on a shopping excursion with an empty Suburban.”   I was asked to go on a scouting/shopping expedition to Michoacan, specifically the area in and around Pátzcuaro, with a friend. I have been to Pátzcuaro before and thought a return to the city I had become so enchanted with would be a wonderful...

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Secret Spots – Del Mar Al Paladar

Todo de Hoy. Nada de Ayer” (Everything from today, Nothing from yesterday). This month we journeyed off the beaten path and went to a very secret spot. A restaurant hidden up in the hills overlooking Zihuatanejo offering the freshest fish available, Del Mar Al Paladar, is a true find. Don’t write the name down and...

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Travelling Mexico – Taxco

“Small thoroughfares twist and turn, lined with silver shops and cafes. It is a wonderful place to lose yourself.” A true gem of Mexico, the old silver mining town of Taxco, is an excellent example of a Spanish Colonial town. The town is up in the mountains and the ride there is a long and windy...

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On Leaving Paradise…

“The market here in Zihuatanejo had become for me, very common. The smells and the arrangement went unnoticed.” Two years is a long time to spend away from home. Home being your home country, your native language, your native customs, and your own bed. But I have been in paradise for roughly two years, and the time...

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