Review by Elizabeth Mistry After reading Faces in the Crowd by the Mexican writer Valeria Luiselli (in the superb English translation by Christina MacSweeney) I had to go and sit very quietly for a while. I couldn’t imagine talking to anyone immediately afterwards because this slim but devastating volume demands so much of the reader. It is the sort of …
In 2005 the Vallarta Botanical Garden was established to create “Mexico’s foremost botanical garden for the propagation, study, discovery, conservation, and display of Mexican native plants for the enjoyment of Puerto Vallarta’s residents and visitors”. The gardens provide a wonderful and unprecedented opportunity to share the vast diversity and wonder of Mexico’s plant species with the world. Bob Price, who is …
Chloë Sayer is a mine of information about Mexican traditions, textiles and popular art. Since her first visit to Mexico in 1973 she has become a recognised authority, as evidenced by her many books, and by the prestigious Ohtli medal that she was awarded in 2016 by the Mexican government because of her long-standing commitment to Mexican culture.
Image © Matt Beard Review by Elizabeth Mistry It was thanks to British author Katie Hickman that I first fell in love with a Mexican circus. Hickman’s ‘A Trip to the Light Fantastic’ is a beautifully observed homage to the skill (blood, sweat and, frequently, tears) of the artistes who formed Circo Bell’s, a traditional touring circus named in honour of …
Many books have been written about the artefacts in museums and the histories behind them. Fascinated by how some of these treasures have survived and the often tortuous routes by which they ended up in a museum, John Hessler, Curator of the Jay I. Kislak Collection in the Library of Congress, takes this one step further. Almost unknown in the UK …
Elizabeth Mistry sees Mexican actress Gabriela Garcia sing her heart out at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre. Pictures © Richard Davenport / The Other Richard That there is a genuinely Latin American flavour to the new production of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s 1957 musical West Side Story – currently showing at Manchester’s innovative Royal Exchange Theatre – is a testament …
Juega y Aprende Mexico A.C. (Asociación Civil – non-profit) is a basketball charity working with a number of associates to improve life through sports. It was founded in 2014 by Mario Aaron Guzman Lamas, who had previously managed the New Life Mexico Chidongongo basketball programme in Puerto Vallarta. Juega y Aprende promotes the child welfare through sports and recreational programmes by providing …
New Life Mexico initiated a “clean drinking water” programme in the City of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for children in 2010. The first “Water House” was built at the offices of Child Protection and was quickly followed up by the construction of another at Centro Salud, the Health Department in Pitillal. The City has two hundred and ninety-five schools, all of …
A wonderful surprise to see the Mexican Navy’s Mariachi band on Sky News today. In the UK to promote Mexican culture and encourage people to choose Mexico for their holiday destination.
Mexican poet Octavio Paz once wrote, “Our cult of death is also our cult of life.” Those words capture the spirit with which Mexicans celebrate Día de Muertos. Families in Mexico honour those who have departed, setting up colorful altars at home and in public places with the images of loved ones. These ancestors are greeted with their favorite foods, …