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Culture Meets an Architectural Gem at Guanajuato’s 36th Cervantino Festival
 Guanajuato, capital of the central state of the same name, is a highly cultural city with marvelous architecture and lots of history and traditions, making it a proper home to a celebration of the Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes, author of “Don Quixote”, a founding work of modern literature.
This event has grown into the most important artistic and cultural event in Latin America: the Cervantino International Festival (Festival Internacional Cervantino), an annual two-week event. Last year, 2,500 musicians, artists, and performers from all over the world joined half a million visitors from different countries attending the Festival.
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| Durango: a Paradise for Movies and Other Must-See Attractions
 With spectacular natural backgrounds and unique beauty, the state of Durango has attracted actors, producers and directors since 1898 when the first take was filmed for Train Hour in Durango. Since then, the Celluloid Capital of Mexico has been home to Academy Award winners Kevin Costner, Jane Fonda, Clark Gable, Charlton Heston and Paul Newman, not to mention John Wayne, who made seven films there.
Today, Durango offers destinations with 500-year old missions, trade routes and natural backdrops, it also offers its guest the opportunity to make their own cinematic creations. Durango City, the capital, is a mellow country town founded in 1563 by conquistador Don Francisco de Ibarra as part of the gold and silver trade route.
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Food of Gods, Body Treatment: Chocolate, from Mexico to the World
 Just imagine for a second, a world without chocolate. This single thought will erase the smiles of thousands of kids and a lot of adults around the globe. Chocolate, an essential element in primordial societies later turned into an indulgence of the European sophisticated epochs, and has now become an inevitable treat for modern societies.
Cocoa comes from the original world cacao, one of the oldest and sweetest beans in the world. Just recently, Mexican archeologists found chocolate residues in a pot dated
3,750 years old in the state of Veracruz! It’s difficult to imagine that the origins of a chocolate bar can be found so far back in time. What would the ancient Olmecs, Mayas or Aztecs think knowing his “food of the god’s” is now the food of the common people?
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Celebrate October Fest Guadalajara Style
 Book your flight, make the hotel reservations and head out to Guadalajara this month to celebrate “Fiestas de Octubre” or better yet: October Fest- Mexico Style! From October 3rd thru November 3rd, Guadalajara will welcome thousands of visitors and host a 32-day long festival full of events, exhibits, delicious cuisine, a fairground, concerts, beauty pageant, Palenques- also known as concerts-- in a popular arena, and much more!
Upholding this year’s theme of “Fantastic Myths,” Fiestas de Octubre aims to enlighten and showcase some of Mexico’s most amazing cultural and exquisite traditions. With a capacity of receiving 17,000 guests, the Benito Juarez Auditorium will be the center location of the festivities.
Guadalajara is the proud state capital of Jalisco and the second most populated city in Mexico. Blessed with excellent temperatures ranging from 52º F to 79º F, Guadalajara ranks among Mexico’s three most important cities and it is home to some of the nation’s most important cultural symbols (mariachi, tequila, the hat dance and Mexican rodeos).
Near Guadalajara is Zapopan, the most important religious center in Mexico’s western region. Or you can visit nearby Tonalá, the pottery capital of Jalisco and the only city in the nation where more than 10 traditional techniques are used to make various crafts.
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Contests, Music, and Ballet in the Nacho Festival of Coauhila
 The history of one of America’s most popular snacks, the nacho, dates back to 1943 during the Second World War when maitre Ignacio “Nacho” Anaya, working at the Victoria restaurant in Piedras Negras, in the northern state of Coahuila, came up with a creative solution to satisfy the appetite of the wives of some U.S. soldiers from Eagle Pass, Texas, just across the border, who were in a shopping trip in Mexico.
Anaya cut some tortillas into triangles, fried them and then added yellow Wisconsin cheese, calling this Nacho´s Speciality. Now, this dish is served as an appetizer at bars or restaurants in the United States, with toppings of meat, refried bean or shredded melted cheese.
A traditional Nacho Festival will be held this year from October 24th through the 26th in birthplace of nachos, Piedras Negras, Coahuila in the Plaza de las Culturas (Town Square of the Cultures). The festival is a free open air event where there will be ballet performances, musical groups and contests.
One of the biggest contests to be held is the making of a gigantic three-meter nacho. Made with 88 pounds of dough, 44 pounds of cheese, six gallons of canned sliced chile pepper, known as jalapeño (it is always in the Mexican version of this recipe now), and more than one gallon of oil, this nacho gets bigger and bigger each year!
Two other interesting contests are the world’s tiniest nacho, which can only be seen through an ophthalmologist microscope and a contest to see who can eat the most pickled jalapeños in two minutes. The record is 38 jalapeños.
For more information please visit www.ocvpiedrasnegras.com. |
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Enjoy the Mexican Caribbean at the Mall of America® in Minnesota
 During “Experience the Caribbean in Mexico”, visitors to the Mall of America® in Minnesota will be able to take pleasure in the sights, sounds, smells and adventures of one of the top tourist destinations in the world. This sense-gratifying event will take place from October 2nd through the 12th.
“Experience the Caribbean in Mexico” presents five of Quintana Roo’s greatest treasures, all which lay along the Caribbean Sea, including thedeeply uniqueCancun region, the islands of Cozumel and Isla Mujeres, the history-filled Grand Costa Maya area, and the awe-inspiring Riviera Maya strip. All have much to offer.
For 10 days, this land of rich history and beauty will fill Mall of America®, the largest mall in area in the United States, allowing guests to experience a taste of the Mexican Caribbean through a sampling of song, dance, cuisine and more.
Throughout the event, the Mexican Folkloric Ballet will perform alongside other cultural artists. With a host of hands-on experiences including spa massages, a climbing wall, breaking a piñata and cooking classes with renowned Mexican chefs and more, the event promises to be an adventure to remember.
For more information on the destinations of Quintana Roo visit:
www.cancun.travel, www.islacozumel.com.mx, www.caribemexicano.travel, www.rivieramaya.com. |
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Marvelous Concert Paid Homage to Anniversaries of Wonder of the World
Chichén Itzá celebrated its first year anniversary as a New Wonder of the World and its 20th anniversary as a UNESCO World Heritage site by hosting an extraordinary concert for ten thousand people by the legendary Spanish opera singer Plácido Domingo and the Yucatan Symphony Orchestra under the direction of American conductor Eugene Kohn, on October 4th, 2008.
“The Concert of the Thousand Columns, Plácido Domingo Chichén Itzá” included other international talents such as Yucatecan composer Armando Manzanero at the piano and Puerto Rican soprano Ana Maria Martinez.
The money collected for this truly majestic event was donated to the Social Archaeological Fund of Chichén Itzá.
For more information please visit:
http://cancun.travel/events/
http://www.ticketmaster.com.mx/search?tm_link=tm_homeA_header_search&keyword=placido+domingo |
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Mexico’s Religious Offer at the International Tradeshow for Faith Tourism
 The faith tourism industry is one of the fastest growing segments of the travel industry with 300 million travelers and 600 million trips taken annually. It is an $18 billion industry that is catching the eye of more and more planners and tour operators from around the world.
The Mexico Tourism Board will be part of the fist-ever International Tradeshow for Faith Tourism to take place from October 29th to November 1st at the Gaylord Palms Resort Hotel & Convention Center in Orlando, Florida.
The cities of Monterrey and Jalisco will attend the expo to promote their religious centers and beautiful sanctuaries, as well as the entire religious architecture and art, kept in the monasteries and baroque churches throughout their territory.
In Jalisco there are three sanctuaries that are the most visited by national and foreign tourists: San Juan de los Lagos receives seven million pilgrims a year with the Virgin’s pilgrimage; Talpa’s Virgin is visited by more than two million devotees every year and Zapopan’s Virgin pilgrimage that receives more than two million people.
The tradeshow is expected to attract 500 attendees comprised of sellers, group planners, agencies and trade organizations. Approximately 130 exhibitors representing more than 30 countries will be part of this show.
http://www.religioustravelexpo.com/ |
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MEXICO TOURISM INDICATORS UP FOR THE FIRST SEVEN MONTHS OF 2008
 During the first seven months of the year, there was an influx of $8.475 million dollars from spending by foreign tourists, signifying a 6.3 percent increase compared to the same period in 2007, reports Rodolfo Elizondo Torres, Secretary of Tourism of Mexico (SECTUR).
According to the most recent data from the Bank of Mexico’s International Visitor Count, Secretary Elizondo said that during the January to July 2008 period, the country received 13.620 million tourists, a total that represents a 5.2 percent increase compared to the same period in 2007.
Likewise, the head of SECTUR said that the average spending of tourists who traveled further than the border - those who have the longest stays and greater spending – amounted to $788 dollars per trip, which represents an increase of 3.8 percent from 2007.
Secretary Elizondo emphasized that the airline industry transported 26.5 million passengers between January and July 2008; 6.1 percent more than in 2007.
Lastly, he said that as of July 2008, the Mexican Social Security Institute has a registry of 2.234 million workers in the tourism industry representing a 2.3 percent higher rate than the number registered for the same month in 2007. |
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Tourism Ministers Sign Agreement to Promote Cruise Industry
 On October 1st, Mexico’s Secretary of Tourism Rodolfo Elizondo Torres signed an agreement with six Central American countries to give a boost to the cruise tourism industry.
The agreement was also signed by the tourism ministers of Belize, Michael Singh; Costa Rica, Carlos Ricardo Benavides; El Salvador, José Rubén Rochi; and Honduras, Ricardo Martínez as well as the Tourism representatives of Guatemala, Guillermo Novielli, and Nicaragua, Michael Navas.
Elizondo Torres explained that the treaty will allow the participating countries to have better information in order to achieve the harmonious development of the cruise industry. It is important that competitiveness be quelled during this time of high fuel prices and that consideration for the protection and preservation of the environment is mutually agreed on.
The Mexican minister reported that some Caribbean countries, such as Jamaica and Saint Lucia, are thinking of joining this agreement. |
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| Interested in writing about Mexico? Learn more about our upcoming Fam trips and see how you can experience Mexico first-hand. |
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The following FAM trips are available for the remainder of the year: |
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- Guerrero
- Riviera Nayarit (Golf)
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- Durango
- Sinaloa
- México City
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