Mexico and Ireland: a lasting relationship forged by potatoes. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

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Mar 152017
 
Mexico and Ireland: a lasting relationship forged by potatoes. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, we offer this short list of references highlighting some of the more significant connections between Ireland and Mexico. Séamus Ó Fógartaigh in his “Ireland and Mexico“, published in Irish Migration Studies in Latin America by the Society for Irish Latin American Studies (based, curiously, in Switzerland) looks at the […]

Geography, residence patterns and architecture in the mining town of Santa Rosalía, Baja California Sur

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Mar 092017
 
Geography, residence patterns and architecture in the mining town of Santa Rosalía, Baja California Sur

In a previous post — The re-opening of the giant El Boleo copper mine in Santa Rosalía, Baja California Sur —  we looked at the repeated boom-bust-boom history of the copper mining center of Santa Rosalía on the Baja California Peninsula. The arid peninsula did not offer much in the way of local resources for […]

No wall necessary: the USA-Mexico border at Nogales in 1915

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Feb 232017
 
No wall necessary: the USA-Mexico border at Nogales in 1915

There are almost fifty places where people can legally cross the Mexico–United States border, but only one where the cities on either side of the border have the same name: Nogales. The fascinating history of the two Nogales (Ambos Nogales), twin cities on either side of the border, is related in this detailed 2010 blog […]

The world’s largest crystals and strange microbes grow in caves in Chihuahua, Mexico

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Feb 182017
 

The Naica caves, in the northern state of Chihuahua are home to the world’s largest natural crystals. The crystals are selenite, said to enhance sex drive. The formation of the crystals caves is described in more detail below, but in February 2017, Penelope Boston, head of Nasa’s Astrobiology Institute announced that “bizarre and ancient microbes” […]

Feb 122017
 
1964 Mexican postage stamp features unusual map projection

One of the more beautiful, unusual and useful map projections ever devised was created by cartographer Bernard Cahill. The butterfly projection was first published in the Scottish Geographical Magazine in 1909. Cahill (1866-1944) later applied for a US patent to protect his creation. I first came across Cahill’s projection on a stamp issued in Mexico […]

The development of Huatulco, the tourist resort in southern Oaxaca

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Jan 302017
 
The development of Huatulco, the tourist resort in southern Oaxaca

Huatulco is best known as one of Mexico’s leading tourist resorts, one of several similar large-scale, purpose-built developments partially funded by federal funds. In 1967, responding to bullish predictions of US demand for beach vacations, Mexico’s central bank identified the five best places for completely new, purpose-built tourist resorts. Top of the list, as part […]

Population change in Jalisco, 2000-2010

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Jan 242017
 
Population change in Jalisco, 2000-2010

During the ten years between 2000 and 2010, Jalisco’s population increased by over a million from 6,322,002 to 7,350,355. Suburbs around Guadalajara dominated demographic change increasing by 887,301 (43.2%) to 2,940,118 (see Population change in the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area). The greatest growth was in the southern suburb of Tlajomulco which grew 237% from 123,619 to […]

The pattern of Catholicism in Mexico

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Jan 162017
 
The pattern of Catholicism in Mexico

The map shows the percentage of the population of each state who profess themselves to be Catholic. Mexico’s population is predominantly Catholic but Mexican Catholicism is extremely varied in practice. It ranges from those who support traditional folk religious practices to those who adhere to the highly intellectualized liberation theology. While the population remains predominantly […]

Is Jalisco the most “Mexican” state?

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Jan 092017
 
Is Jalisco the most “Mexican” state?

Tapatíos (residents of Guadalajara) and Jaliscienses (residents of Jalisco) often brag that they live in the most “Mexican” area of the country. Are these boasts truthful? This is not an easy question to answer. It involves looking at a broad range of evidence. Jalisco’s climate and natural ecosystems are very diverse like the country as […]

Changing customs in Mexico: children forgo Three Kings Day in favor of Christmas Day

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Jan 022017
 
Changing customs in Mexico: children forgo Three Kings Day in favor of Christmas Day

Unlike in the USA and Canada, where gifts are exchanged on Christmas Day (25 December), the original tradition in Mexico over the Christmas season was to exchange presents on Three Kings Day (Día de los Reyes, 6 January). In the Christian calendar, 6 January marks the Feast of the Epiphany, the day when the magi […]

Dec 172016
 
Altitude zones of Mexico

Most of Mexico is above 1000 m (about 3300 ft) in elevation; as a result most of Mexico has a more temperate climate than might be expected given its latitude. The famous explorer Alexander von Humboldt, one of the founding fathers of physical geography and meteorology, was the first to describe the vertical differentiation of […]

Dec 082016
 

Corn (maize) has been the principal food of the Tarahumara Indians since long before the Spanish arrived in Mexico. There are several precolumbian varieties that are still grown, including the ancient and delicious “blue corn”. Maize is the source of a wide variety of foodstuffs and drinks including flour (pinole), a non‑alcoholic drink called esquiate, […]

The geography of tequila: where is tequila made?

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Nov 142016
 
The geography of tequila: where is tequila made?

The production of (genuine) tequila is tightly regulated because tequila has denomination of origin status. This status (sometimes called appellation of origin) sets specific standards for producers in terms of how a product is grown or produced, processed and presented. Equally importantly, it defines the geographic indication, the specific places or regions where the product […]

Nov 072016
 
Mexico’s footwear industry: intra-urban clustering for shoe retailing

In a previous post – Mexico’s shoe (footwear) manufacturing industry: regional clustering – we looked at the concentration of the shoe-manufacturing industry in three major areas: León (Guanajuato), Guadalajara (Jalisco) and in/around Mexico City. We have also taken a look at Mexico’s international trade in shoes – Mexico’s footwear industry: imports and exports. We now […]

Basalt columns and prisms can be seen in various places in Mexico

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Oct 252016
 
Basalt columns and prisms can be seen in various places in Mexico

Basalt is a dark, fine-grained, basic (low silica) igneous rock, often extruded as molten lava from volcanic fissures. Its low silica content means it can flow easily, often building up over the years to form large plateaus. As the basaltic lava cools, it contracts and solidifies. An extensive network of cracks often develop in basalt, […]

Oct 202016
 
Mexico's most livable cities in 2016

Mexican market research firm Gabinete de Comunicación Estratégica polled 30,400 people across the country to compile its 10th annual survey of the most livable cities in Mexico. The survey was carried out by telephone between 30 June and 19 July this year. Respondents in Mexico’s 60 most populous municipalities and Mexico City’s 16 delegaciones were […]

The deepest water-filled sinkhole in the world is in Tamaulipas, Mexico

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Oct 122016
 
The deepest water-filled sinkhole in the world is in Tamaulipas, Mexico

As vertical shafts go, this is a seriously deep one! Long considered to be “bottomless” (because no-one had ever managed to find the floor), we now know it is precisely 335 meters (1099 feet) deep, making it the deepest water-filled sinkhole anywhere on the planet. The El Zacatón sinkhole is on El Rancho Azufrosa, near […]

Oct 062016
 
An early ascent of Mexico's highest mountain, El Pico de Orizaba

El Pico de Orizaba, or Citlaltépetl (= “star”), is Mexico’s highest peak, rising to a summit 5,610 meters (18,406 feet) above sea level. The third highest peak in North America, it is also that region’s highest volcano, responsible for major eruptions in 1569, 1613 and 1687. The mountain was first explored by scientists as long […]

Mexican architect proposes city straddling Mexico-U.S. border

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Oct 032016
 
Mexican architect proposes city straddling Mexico-U.S. border

This proposal sounds a lot more 21st century than Trump’s plan for a wall along the Mexico-U.S. border. Will either proposal ever actually happen? Most likely not. But that does not prevent us from considering the former project one more than worthy of mention here. Young Mexican architect Fernando Romero has long believed that “building […]

Alexander von Humboldt’s visit to Mexico, 1803-1804

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Sep 292016
 
Alexander von Humboldt's visit to Mexico, 1803-1804

Alexander von Humboldt‘s visit to Mexico began in Acapulco on March 22, 1803, and lasted for almost a year. (He left Mexico via Veracruz for the USA on March 7, 1804.) In his year in Mexico, Humboldt had been incredibly busy. He had measured, recorded, observed and written about anything and everything, with remarkable industry […]

Sep 262016
 
How Lake Chapala, Mexico’s largest lake, was formed

Lake Chapala is Mexico’s largest natural lake. On the geological timescale of millions of years, all lakes are temporary features on the earth’s surface. Once formed, natural processes begin to fill them in and/or to drain them. Lake Chapala resulted from drastic earth movements, accompanied by earthquakes and faulting which occurred some twelve million years […]

Which are the best states in Mexico for doing business in 2016?

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Sep 232016
 
Which are the best states in Mexico for doing business in 2016?

A study just released by the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation, Doing Business en México 2016, compares Mexico’s 32 states for the paperwork, time and costs associated with four major indicators: opening a new business, obtaining construction permits, registering industrial property rights and the resolution of commercial disputes. The report concludes that the […]

Sep 192016
 
San José Purua, once Mexico's most luxurious spa

In its day, the San José Purua spa-hotel in Michoacán was world-famous. Opened in the early 1940s, it was the epitome of luxury living. European chefs cooked for the guests. Cabaret and touring acts from all over the world performed in its small night club. An on-site bowling alley provided some entertainment for the younger […]

How long is Mexico’s coastline?

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Sep 122016
 

This might seem like a very simple question to answer, but actually it is a question which has no definitive answer! According to the CIA World Factbook, Mexico has 9,330 kilometers of coastline. According to Mexico’s National Statistics Institute (INEGI), it has 11,122 kilometers of coastline, and that figure apparently excludes the coastlines of Mexico’s […]

Novelist who loved geography set a story in Mexico, which his publisher labeled South America

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Sep 082016
 
Novelist who loved geography set a story in Mexico, which his publisher labeled South America

Several famous writers wrote about Mexico despite having no direct geographic experience of the country. One of the most famous was  Jules Verne. Verne (1828-1905) popularized geography and was one of the pioneers of travel stories and science fiction. Many his works have undeniably strong connections to geography, including: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, […]

The geography of Mexico City: index page

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Sep 052016
 
The geography of Mexico City: index page

This index page has links to our more important posts about Mexico City. Other index pages include: Mexican migrants and remittances: an introduction (last update Jun 2016) Maps of Mexico on geo-mexico.com (Nov 2015) The geography of Mexican farming, agriculture and food production (Jun 2015) The geography of Mexico’s drug trade (Sep 2016). Mexico’s Indigenous […]

Hidden Beach, aka Beach of Love, reopens

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Sep 012016
 
Hidden Beach, aka Beach of Love, reopens

Mexico’s famed Hidden Beach (Playa Escondida), aka as the Beach of Love (Playa del Amor), has reopened for limited tourism following a three month closure  for cleaning and restoration work. The beach is on one of the small, uninhabited Marieta Islands, in the Marieta Islands National Park, off the west coast of Mexico, and relatively […]