Blogs from Tamaulipas, Mexico, North America

Hoo Boy! I'm into it now! The officious border crossing business wasn't fun but it went smoothly enough. They weren't busy because there aren't a whole lot of people crossing the border and heading for the interior these days. I found my way out of Matamoros easily and hit the open road on a wing and a prayer. Driving isn't as hard as I thought it was going to be. I think it's important to yield to the masked army troops manning 50 caliber machine guns mounted on their trucks but that goes without saying. I'd do the same in the USA if it ever happened. I also learned that it's safest to drive on the shoulder. The road is effectively 3 lanes wide in most places so that one can usually pass if the car ... read more

Friday, July 16, 2010 Taxco is a popular town for buying silver jewelry. It's a beautiful, Spanish colonial town that has stone streets and bright white buildings near the town plaza. Every colonial town has a plaza with a church and a "city hall." Near the center of town, it's touristy with lots of shops and restaurants. I wasn't much interested in buying things (if you've seen one basket, you've seen them all; but to each his own), so I ventured to the huge Jesus statue at the top of the mountain. Our guide said it would be a 2-hour walk. I thought I'd see how far I could get in an hour. On my way up the mountain, up countless windy and hilly streets and stairs, I saw how the majority of the people live ... read more

When I finally got off the bike at the hotel in Tampico, I was on the verge of dehydration and drenched in sweat. The temperature had been in the high 30's since my departure from La Pesca at 8 AM. I refuse to ride without my gear on so I am quite an oddity out here. I will admit that when riding to dinner or somewhere local, I refrain from wearing my riding gear (other than my helmet of course which is always on my head). After I got checked in, I quickly removed heavy jacket and riding pants and headed straight for the pool. I then got myself a drink and retired to the room to catch up on my email, etc. As I lay in the comfort of my air conditionned room, I looked ... read more

México has a variety of places. Some are very tropical, while others are very dry. But in southern México you’ll find very amazing places, such as Cancun in Quintana Roo where you definitely will forget all pressures or any kind of problems. Its beaches are really gorgeous in which you could spend a lot of time with your friends. For example, you can take a rest, play sports in the sand like volleyball or football, do aerobics in water, ride in a boat and even practice extreme sports. Also, it has a beautiful vegetation with colorful flowers and large and old trees. In addition, if you visit Cancún you should try typical dishes like guacamole, steak, seafood and of course tacos. There are many places to go eat; in some places food is too expensive but ... read more

TRIP TO GUANAJUATO (Final draft) One year ago, I traveled to Guanajuato with my partners from the school. It was the best trip of all because I went with some of my best friends. This trip was organized by the Engineer Georgina, and the objective was to visit some of the most important mines in this city. Guanajuato is a city situated in the middle of the country in Mexico; it is beautiful and is a important city of Mexico’s history, and it has some of the most important mines in the country because these mines exploit a lot of minerals like carbon. In this city the people can do many things like visit the museum of mummies, the Cristo Rey of Cubilete. Another place that people can to visit is the viewpoint of the monument ... read more

lf you are thinking of taking a vacation to forget the stress and leave your job for a while, you can choose a quiet city full of history and beautiful places around it. I can recommend you a place where the weather ¡s fresh and sunny all day and where you can visit a great zoo. This city is Morelia. Morelia is in Michoacan state located in the Pacific coast of Mexico. This city is full of old buildings in its downtown and, although it has a lot of churches with amazing paintings, the principal breathtaking building is the cathedral that is located in the middle of the principal square. However there are other buildings that you should visit if you come to Morelia, such as the public library, the Nicolaitas University, the Roses Road and ... read more

It is already the end of our third week here in Nuevo Laredo and I must say that the last few days have flown by. Just a week ago, we were still unsure which inmates would prove the most interesting and which events the most exciting; but now, after following an inmate release, a couple preparing to be married, and a mentally unstable American trying to return home, I truly feel that we have found some incredible stories. But before signing off from Nuevo Laredo for good, I would like to discuss a very important aspect of this shoot that has thus far gone purposefully unmentioned. Referring to it as a “pink elephant” would probably be a bit misleading since its presence, though constantly felt, has actually rarely ever been seen. I am referring, of course, ... read more