Mexico is so much more than fine sand, warm seas and great resorts. Here’s what American novelist and social historian, Waldo Frank, said:

“Perhaps Mexico is unlike any other place in the world, the cradle of genius. From the first Mayans to the modern peasant artisans, Mexico has done no more then lavish incessant beauty. The songs, the dances, the sculptures, the pictures, the ceramics, the tapestries, toys, jewellery, all testify that these people, from the immemorial time, have somehow known the truth.”

Fishing
Los Cabos in Baja California Sur, Manzanillo in Colima State and Huatulco in Oaxaca State offer great fishing. Go for yellowfin tuna, mahi mahi, sharks, sailfish and blue marlin, depending on the season.

Huatulco hosts the longest running international sport fishing competition in Mexico in May, with three days of intense fishing.

For a more relaxed environment, go to La Paz on the Sea of Cortez or the Mexican Caribbean.

Diving
Top spots include Los Cobos on the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula and several places on the Sea of Cortez, with waters teeming with blue, black and striped marlin, sailfish, dorado, sea lions, blue fin whales, hammerhead sharks, moray eels and tropical fish.

Cozumel, Mexico’s largest island, is renowned for its underwater clarity and the second longest coral reef in the world.

Canyoneering
Canyoneering (also known as canyoning) involves travelling down narrow waterways in canyons by repelling, jumping, scaling slippery surfaces, swimming – and praying!

Visit the Copper Canyon in Chihuahua and the Matacanes and Potrero Chico Canyons in the Sierra Madre Oriental mountains in Nuevo Leon.

Excursions vary from day trip to weeklong adventures.

eating
Mexican cuisine is much more then tacos, quesadillas and guacamole. Local foods are linked to the culinary heritage, with a vast blend of prehispanic, colonial and modern-day influences.

They celebrate food in Mexico with festivals such as the Mushroom Fair in Chhua, the Chile Festival in Puebla, the Food of the Gods Festival in Coahuila and the National Tequila Fair in Jalisco. At the Radish Festival in Oaxaca, the food is not eaten but sculpted.

A festival that is fun, regardless of the name, is The Day of the Dead on November 1 and 2. It combines elements of Remembrance Day and Halloween, with song and dance, decorated graves, flowers, candles and even a special bread of the dead!

drinking
The country’s national drink is tequila, made from the agave plant. As tastes have become more sophisticated, so has its production and marketing. In fact, sales of tequila in the U.S. are growing faster then those of any other spirit.

Check out the liqueurs, such as Kahlua as well as anise-flavoured Xtabentun and others made from local fruits and spices.

You may be surprised at the quality of the wines in Mexico. Oddly, Russian immigrants are to thank for the proliferation of winemaking dates all the way back to the Spanish conquest. The Spaniards were surprised to find how well the vines brought from Spain adapted to the New World climate. Today, Mexico’s leading wineries have collected an impressive array of accolades.

WHALES AND NUDISTS
Everyone loves Mexico, but humans aren’t the only mammals that get the urge.

Grey whales abandon the freezing waters of the Bering Sea near Alaska each November, and make a 8,000 kilometre (5,000 miles) trip to the Baja California Peninsula. Tourists love to watch the migration of the 10,000 whales as it hugs the pacific coastline and continues day and night with top speeds of 8 kilometres (5 miles) per hour. When they arrive, they mate, bask in the lagoons and give birth.

It’s also a paradise for nudists. Mexico’s nudist resorts are bursting at the seams, such as Hidden Beach, a five-star boutique hotel just south of Playa del Carmen.

Sport lovers, those who want to experience another culture, and those who go in search of sun and beach all head to Mexico.

SPRING/SUMMER 2005