Raucous cheers, whistles and shouts of “Yes he could!” by medical personnel greeted a centenarian as he was discharged from a government hospital in Veracruz after recovering from the coronavirus.
As Ignacio Cano was being wheeled out of the hospital on a stretcher before being taken home by ambulance Sunday, his daughter, Maribel, thanked a doctor for his help in saving her 100-year-old father’s life.
“Thank you, doctor, I am very happy, thank you for the attention you gave my dad, very grateful,” she said in a video posted to social media.
“Don Nacho” Cano is the oldest patient at the hospital to recover from the virus, and the staff was understandably enthusiastic to see him being discharged.
In the state of Veracruz, 19,535 cases of the coronavirus have been reported, with 2,525 deaths.
Dr. Grajales, arrested in Chiapas after a patient died from the coronavirus.
The leaders of several medical associations have written to President López Obrador to complain that they are being blamed by authorities for deficiencies in Mexico’s health system.
The letter signed by more than 10 medical association presidents was sent after a doctor in Chiapas was arrested in connection with the death of a coronavirus patient.
The association presidents said the hospital where the detained emergency doctor worked, a facility in Tuxtla Gutiérrez run by the Chiapas government, didn’t have the medicine required to treat the deceased patient.
The arrest of Gerardo Vicente Grajales Yuca by state authorities was “violent, abusive and illegal,” the letter said, rejecting the claim by the Chiapas Attorney General’s Office that the doctor was guilty of abuse of authority.
“We’re not opposed to incorrect professional conduct [by doctors] being investigated and sanctioned … but we don’t agree with being used to shift responsibility … for a chronically deficient health system,” the medical leaders said.
They said the detained doctor had asked the deceased patient’s family to purchase a medication that wasn’t readily available in the hospital. Asking the family to purchase the medicine did not make the doctor guilty of any crime, the medical association presidents said.
Acting on a complaint by the deceased man’s daughter, Chiapas authorities nevertheless took the doctor into custody, announcing that his arrest occurred “within the framework” of the fight against corruption.
A protest to demand Grajales’s release is planned to take place in front of the National Palace in Mexico City this Friday.
In their letter to López Obrador, the medical association presidents reminded the president that they have already denounced – on numerous occasions – the lack of medications and supplies with which to treat coronavirus patients.
They said it was “paradoxical” that doctors are being blamed by authorities and the general public for shortcomings in the health system while they are fighting to save patients’ lives. They demanded a halt to the persecution and harassment against medical personnel on the front line in the battle against Covid-19.
Guerrero hospital director Mélida Honorato was murdered last Friday.
Some medical personnel have been attacked with bleach in apparent attempts to “disinfect” them and thus stop the spread of the virus.
Now, the head of a health workers’ union in Guerrero says the murder of a hospital director in that state could also be part of the baffling backlash against medical personnel working with Covid-19 patients.
Beatriz Vélez Núñez, general secretary of section 36 of the National Health Workers Union, said the murder of Mélida Honorato Gabriel, who was the director of a hospital in the Montaña region municipality of Huamuxtitlán, could have been committed by disgruntled relatives of a deceased coronavirus patient.
She said that family members have threatened violence against health workers in Guerrero hospitals if they don’t save the lives of their sick loved ones.
Vélez called on López Obrador and Guerrero Governor Héctor Astudillo Flores to modify their discourse about doctors’ obligations when treating coronavirus patients.
“They shouldn’t always say that we have to look after them with all we’ve got because we don’t always have the medicine, material and equipment [we need],” she said. “The case of the doctor [Honorato] occurred precisely because of that situation.”
The hospital director was shot dead last Friday by two men who intercepted her vehicle while she was traveling on the Tlapa-Puebla federal highway in Guerrero.
Her colleagues at the Huamuxtitlán hospital stopped work on Saturday to demand justice and the provision of security for health workers.
Doctors, nurses and administrative staff said in a statement that they would only attend to urgent cases until authorities provided them with a safety guarantee.
At left, an earlier photo of El Mencho and a more recent one.
Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes has reportedly built his own hospital to attend to the ravages of kidney disease, a medical problem which may be hindering his ability to avoid capture.
The 54-year-old crime boss known as “El Mencho,” the most wanted criminal in both Mexico and the United States, allegedly built the medical center in El Alcíhuatl, Jalisco, just 50 kilometers from the cartel’s stronghold in Villa Purificación.
According to the newspaper El Universal, the hospital is located in a wooded area off of dirt roads and is meant to provide medical treatment to the cartel leader and cartel members — and the agricultural town’s 200 residents as a gesture of good faith.
Cartels have seized on the economic crisis created by the coronavirus to garner public support, offering money and food to those in need in Jalisco, Michoacán, Veracruz, Colima and Tamaulipas.
It was from El Alcíhuatl that authorities say the CJNG shot down a Mexican army helicopter during an operation to capture him in 2015.
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Over the past six years, law enforcement officials say they have tracked El Mencho to several towns in the area but the fugitive has managed to stay one step ahead of the law.
The construction of the hospital is a bold move for the man who tops the United States Drug Enforcement Administration’s list of most wanted subjects, and billboards in the United States have been used to advertise a US $10-million reward for information leading to his arrest.
The U.S. has called the CJNG “one of the five most dangerous criminal organizations on the face of the Earth,” and claim it has operatives in Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Central America, the United States and 24 Mexican states.
In Mexico, the reward for similar information was upped to 30 million pesos (about US $1.37 million) in 2018.
El Mencho’s world may be closing in on him, especially if he is in failing health.
His son, Rubén “El Menchito” Oseguera was extradited to the United States on drug trafficking charges earlier this year. El Mencho’s daughter, Jessica Johanna Oseguera González, alias “La Negra,” was arrested after traveling to the United States to attend her brother’s court hearing. Both siblings are thought to have played a major role in the cartel’s finances.
Free masks will be distributed, particularly at bus stops to encourage their use by transit passengers.
The wearing of face masks in businesses and public spaces has been deemed mandatory in Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, municipal health director Adán Monroy Justo said after the popular tourist destination saw a spike in coronavirus cases.
In Cabo San Lucas, one government hospital is 81% full and the other is at 30% occupancy, but authorities fear a severe outbreak could test the limits of medical personnel.
The initiative was approved by municipal council members with a vote of 11 to 1, with a lone Morena councilor objecting to what he called an “authoritarian” measure.
It is unclear if there will be sanctions for those who refuse to wear a mask, but warnings will be issued.
The mandate, which went into effect Monday, will last for 15 days and has the support of union leaders and businesspeople in the popular tourist destination.
Los Cabos Mayor Armida Castro urged residents to follow health protocols and stay home as much as possible, warning that a return to lockdown could be possible if cases continue to surge.
“We need to raise awareness among citizens. A few days ago we talked with doctors, and they told us that we had to make an extra effort, that they were receiving between 15 and 20 patients a day and if something was not done, we could be like La Paz, with 110 patients a day,” the mayor said.
Councilors cautioned that many people who have contracted coronavirus are asymptomatic. Last week Los Cabos Police Chief Celso Filemón Lázaro Pérez died of coronavirus.
Some 40,000 free masks will be made available, especially at bus stops so that those who use public transportation can be protected in an initiative backed by state and municipal authorities.
Distribution of the masks began over the weekend in the 10 most vulnerable neighborhoods of San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas, among them Lomas del Sol, Los Venados and Auroras where high rates of infection have occurred.
Los Cabos coordinating council executive president Julio Castillo Gómez said that despite the increased rate of infections and deaths, around 20% of the population still does not believe in wearing masks as a preventative measure, and he hoped that the free mask distribution program will help raise awareness.
“We are going for a small sector, 10% or 20% that have not yet caught on, but I am sure that with this they will understand, and they will join, even if they do not believe, out of respect for others,” Castillo said.
The government of Tamaulipas has called on residents to redouble efforts to stop the spread of coronavirus as some hospitals reach critical occupancy levels due to the growing number of new infections.
The state Health Ministry reported Monday that it had registered 319 new cases in the preceding 24 hours and 16 additional Covid-19 deaths.
Tamaulipas has now recorded 15,249 confirmed cases since the start of the pandemic and 931 Covid-19 fatalities, according to state government data.
The municipalities with the highest number of cases in the northern border state are Reynosa, Tampico, Matamoros, Altamira, Victoria, Valle Hermoso, San Fernando, Río Bravo, El Mante, Soto La Marina, Aldama, Hidalgo and Xicoténcatl.
Tamaulipas Health Minister Gloria Marina Gamboa said Sunday that three IMSS hospitals and four ISSSTE hospitals are completely full due to a spike in admissions of coronavirus patients.
The three IMSS hospitals that have reached capacity are in Ciudad Victoria, Nuevo Laredo and Matamoros, while the four saturated ISSSTE hospitals are in Tampico, Reynosa, Matamoros and Ciudad Mante.
Gamboa urged citizens to continue staying at home and to “step up” other preventative measures to limit the spread of Covid-19 in Tamaulipas, one of 18 “red light” maximum risk states, according to the federal government’s “stoplight” map that denotes the infection risk level on a state by state basis.
“Tamaulipas is still suffering the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Cases aren’t decreasing, the [epidemic] curve hasn’t flattened and unfortunately deaths are still occurring,” she said.
“Given that we’re close to saturating the hospital system, I once again call on the population to step up the preventative measures to avoid exposing yourself to infection. The most important thing is to decrease transmission of the virus. Look after yourself and your family.”
On the other side of the country, authorities in Baja California continue to grapple with the coronavirus and calls for a wider reopening of the economy.
The federal government switched the northern border state from red to orange on its most recent “stoplight” map but the state government didn’t agree with the change, stating that it was not possible to ease restrictions due to high case numbers and Baja California’s proximity to the United States, where new coronavirus infections have surged in recent weeks.
The daily tally of coronavirus cases and deaths. Deaths are numbers reported and not necessarily those that occurred each day. milenio
The decision to keep strict coronavirus restrictions in place angered hundreds of owners of nonessential businesses such as bars, reported the news outlet Telemundo.
Governor Jaime Bonilla said authorities would reexamine case numbers in Baja California and consult with the federal government in order to determine where restrictions could be eased.
However, he dismissed calls for bars to be allowed to reopen, asserting that permitting them to welcome back customers could lead to a situation in which the spread of the coronavirus could not be controlled.
Baja California Health Minister Alonso Pérez Rico said authorities will in fact seek to reduce citizens’ mobility because case numbers are on the rise in Tijuana and Ensenada, creating a “dangerous situation.”
Baja California has recorded 13,051 confirmed coronavirus cases since the beginning of the pandemic and 2,538 Covid-19 deaths, according to state government data. Health authorities said Monday that fatalities are continuing to occur at an average of 18 per day.
Meanwhile, the federal Health Ministry reported Monday that new case numbers have spiked in Colima and Jalisco in recent weeks.
Director of Epidemiology José Luis Alomía told reporters at Monday night’s coronavirus press briefing that new infections in Colima began to trend upwards in epidemiological week 23, which ran from May 31 to June 6.
Between weeks 28 and 29 – July 5 to 18 – case numbers spiked 36%, causing the state’s epidemic curve to become “practically vertical,” he said.
Colima has recorded 1,605 confirmed cases since the start of the pandemic – fewer than any other state in the country – but the Health Ministry estimates that a high percentage of those cases – 30% – are currently active.
Manzanillo has the highest case tally among Colima’s 10 municipalities, with 674 as of Monday.
In Jalisco, new case numbers declined between epidemiological weeks 24 and 26 – June 7 to 27 – after reaching a “first peak” in week 23, Alomía said. However, new infections began to trend upwards again from week 27, or June 28, he said.
New cases “are on the rise,” Alomía said, explaining that they increased 6% in week 29 – July 12 to 18 – compared to the previous week.
Jalisco has recorded a total of 27,711 confirmed cases, according to state government data, but federal authorities have only registered 12,235 because they don’t accept results from private clinics or rapid Covid-19 tests.
Six municipalities in Jalisco have recorded more than 1,000 cases, according to state data, five of which are in the Guadalajara metropolitan area.
They are Guadalajara, 9,838 cases; Zapopan, 5,250; Tlaquepaque, 2,336; Puerto Vallarta, 1,743; Tlajomulco, 1,712; and Tonalá, 1,556.
Alomía also reported that new case numbers in Nayarit declined by less than 1% in epidemiological week 29 after increasing during numerous consecutive weeks.
He said that 17% of cases in the Pacific coast state – which has recorded 3,219 confirmed cases – are estimated to be active, meaning that the local epidemic continues to show “good activity.”
About half of all confirmed cases in Nayarit were detected in state capital Tepic.
At the start of Monday night’s press briefing, Alomía reported that Mexico’s coronavirus case tally had increased to 395,489 with 4,973 new cases registered. Confirmed case numbers declined in epidemiological weeks 28 and 29, data shows.
About 7.5% of confirmed cases – 30,108 – are currently active, according to federal data, while there are 85,986 suspected cases across the country.
Alomía reported that Mexico’s Covid-19 death toll increased to 44,022 on Monday with 342 additional fatalities reported.
National data showed that 47% of general care hospital beds set aside for coronavirus patients are currently occupied while 38% of those with ventilators are in use.
La Entrega Beach in Huatulco, which has seen few virus cases compared with other destinations.
Interested in a Mexican beach holiday? Huatulco looks to be the safest bet for those hoping to steer clear of infection by the new coronavirus.
Located in the southern state of Oaxaca, the Pacific coast resort town has recorded just 47 confirmed cases of Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic and just one case is currently active, official data shows.
According to a local tourism organization, Huatulco, Oaxaca has recorded the lowest number of coronavirus cases among Mexico’s 14 most important beach destinations.
Among the popular coastal destinations where the coronavirus has taken a much stronger hold are Acapulco, Guerrero, which has recorded 5,414 confirmed cases; Cancún, Quintana Roo, 3,520; Mazatlán, Sinaloa, 1,998; Los Cabos, 1,123; and Puerto Vallarta, 1,029 cases.
Municipal tourism official Ricardo Pacheco told the newspaper El Universal that hotel occupancy was just 6% last week.
However, it’s predicted that hotels will reach 20% occupancy in August and 70% by the end of the year as long as coronavirus case numbers remain low, he said.
An increase in visitor numbers is sorely needed in order to begin to recoup the losses incurred in recent months.
According to the Huatulco Tourism Observatory, more than one million fewer tourists and cruise ship passengers than normal visited the resort city in April, May and June. The economic cost of the tourism downturn is estimated to be just under 5 billion pesos (US $227.8 million).
In addition, some 8,000 tourism sector workers lost their jobs and more than 20,000 other workers were affected by the virtual disappearance of tourism revenue.
As the sector slowly begins to recover, those lucky enough still to have jobs are determined to do all they can to keep the coronavirus at bay.
Dreams, one of several beach resorts in Huatulco.
One such person is Glafira Ríos Soriano, an employee at a restaurant located at Huatulco’s La Entrega Beach.
Despite the heat, she wears a face mask and protective glasses throughout her shift and ensures that the restaurant is kept squeaky clean.
Ríos told El Universal that friends of her daughter, a nurse in Acapulco, have died of Covid-19 and that some of her relatives have been infected with the virus.
“I’m scared because the risk is big, that’s why I wear protection all day, not just for me but for the customers as well,” she said.
Ríos said that her restaurant currently has just 15% of the customers it would normally have at this time of the year but added that she and her colleagues were still hopeful that they can earn some tips to supplement their weekly wages.
Carlos Javier Cárdenas Ortega, owner of the Camarón Gigante (Giant Shrimp) restaurant, said that closing for three months while continuing to pay a wage to his employees was difficult, although he managed to keep his business afloat. However, surviving another shutdown wouldn’t be possible, he said.
One positive of the enforced shutdown was that it gave the natural environment a chance to recuperate, Cárdenas said.
“Nature cleansed itself, the beach in this area [Maguey Bay] is different; the area with clams recovered, dogfish and turtles were seen again,” he said.
“Today, Maguey Bay is more oxygenated and cleaner, and we want it to stay that way because it’s attractive for tourism.”
Coronavirus restrictions were eased in Guerrero three weeks ago but one municipality in the state is still refusing to let outsiders in.
And the strategy is working: Cualác is one of just three municipalities in the southern state that hasn’t recorded a single case of Covid-19.
When the Guerrero government gave the green light for the resumption of several economic and recreational activities on July 2, authorities and residents in Cualác, located in the state’s Montaña region, decided that their best option was to continue with the same coronavirus prevention plan already in place.
As they have done since March, they continue to deny entry to outsiders even if they are delivering (debatable) essentials such as beer and Coca-Cola.
Suppliers of those products, and other more bona fide essentials, are only allowed as far as a checkpoint located at the entry to the municipality, where residents and shopkeepers are permitted to buy directly from the trucks.
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All other outsiders are also prohibited from entering Cualác whatever the reason for their visit may be, while the vehicles of returning residents are thoroughly sanitized by the checkpoint volunteers.
“To avoid infections, we’ve asked people who are from here but live elsewhere, and those who have family here, not to come,” René García Arburto, a doctor and checkpoint volunteer, told the newspaper El Universal.
Municipal employees, police, self-defense force members and ordinary residents have all worked at the checkpoint, which has operated night and day since March.
The prohibition on the entry of outsiders has allowed Cualác to maintain its virus-free status during the five months since Covid-19 was first detected in Mexico.
There are only two other municipalities in Guerrero that haven’t recorded a single confirmed coronavirus case – San Miguel Totolapan in the Tierra Caliente region and Iliatenco, which like Cualác is in the Montaña region.
The state’s other 78 municipalities have recorded just under 10,000 confirmed cases, and 1,314 Covid-19 deaths, between them.
No festivals or celebrations have been permitted in Cualác and wearing a face mask is mandatory.
García told El Universal that local residents believe that Guerrero authorities decided to ease restrictions in the state for economic reasons even though the health risk hasn’t gone away.
“If we open the municipality, people will start to come and they could arrive infected [with the coronavirus],” he said.
Strict mitigation measures have also been implemented within the municipality, García said, explaining that local authorities decided to suspend all festivals and celebrations and made the use of face masks mandatory. People who flout the rules face fines or other sanctions, he said.
García said that residents of Cuatlaco and Chiaucingo went ahead with traditional celebrations in their towns and as a result were forced to go into quarantine and barred from entering the municipal seat.
In the name of stopping a virus that apparently hasn’t even arrived, burials in Cualác are being completed as swiftly as possible – even though the deceased didn’t die of Covid-19 – and vigils for the dead are not currently allowed.
García conceded that the coronavirus restrictions are not to all residents’ liking but was unapologetic, asserting that they are the only way to keep people safe.
If the coronavirus were to sneak into Cualác, the consequences could be devastating as half the population lives in extreme poverty, some 60% live in crowded conditions conducive to the virus’ spread and one-third of homes don’t have running water.
In addition, the municipality doesn’t have a hospital, meaning that anyone with serious coronavirus symptoms would have to be taken some 50 kilometers to Tlapa, where the Covid ward has room for just 12 patients.
With the odds of being unscathed by the coronavirus stacked against them should it arrive, authorities and many residents are doing all they can to stop it arriving there in the first place.
Psychologist Javier Coss offers some music therapy.
They say that laughter is the best medicine, but in Mexico City’s Juárez Hospital, psychologist Javier Coss is using the power of his guitar to serenade patients, doctors, and staff in the Covid-19 ward with classic songs to reduce stress levels.
“I carry my guitar with me, and I play music for the doctors, for the nurses, for the patients in the hallway because it’s a way in which I can … change the tense atmosphere, and if possible, give them a moment of contemplation.”
Coss’s song selection varies from Cuban singer-songwriter Silvio Rodríguez to the international pop-rock band Caifanes. Staff apparently appreciate the value of his music therapy: at one point, he said, a nurse asked to borrow his guitar so she could play a song while Coss sang along, “so that she could just ease her stress a bit and connect with herself,” he said.
Coss, part of a team of psychologists assisting the staff and patients with psychological counseling, has worked at the hospital for three years. In addition to providing therapeutic assistance and music performances, he and his team also manage patients’ communication with their families via videoconferencing calls. He sees it all as part of a package of strategies to keep patients’ motivation up as they try to recover from an illness that isolates them from everyone.
“We have to achieve this emotional closeness with the patients because somehow or other we must keep them motivated,” he said.
A hospital worker listens as Coss entertains staff and patients.
Hospital Juárez is one of the nation’s biggest hospitals. On a daily basis, it attends to hundreds of Covid-19 patients. Despite having seen a recent decrease in coronavirus patients, the medical and administrative staff have been working through Mexico City’s worst pandemic and many are suffering from chronic stress and burnout.
Coss himself is not immune. When he began working in the Covid-19 ward, he was scared. He had to completely change the way he dressed and wear gloves, two or three layers of masks, and a shield. Outside of work he has had to change his socialization patterns — not seeing his parents and reducing his interactions with his children. But once he felt he could safely enter the ward with adequate protection, he began to lose his fear.
He says he now feels proud to be working at the hospital because it’s made him realize the importance and interconnectedness of each of the hospital’s departments. Before the pandemic, he said, he thought of all the staff as being in their own isolated spheres doing their own tasks but all are in fact connected and integrated.
These garlic-lemon dorado fillets are seared in a hot pan.
Periodically I post pictures on my Facebook page about my life in Mexico: a gorgeous sunset, rows of beautiful Talavera pottery, fabulous carne asada tacos. I do it because I’m still at times incredulous at all the beauty and joy to be found here, but also to make my friends north of the border jealous. I often title these posts “Why We Love Mexico, Reason #xxx” just to rub it in.
Because I live on the coast, many of the posts have been about the fresh seafood — camarones, ostiones, dorado, atún, marlin ahumado — and I’ve grown accustomed to the abundance, affordability and freshness of what’s available here.
Dorado, called mahi-mahi or dolphinfish outside Mexico, is on the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s list of sustainable fish, depending on how it’s caught. The firm, mild, white-fleshed fish lends itself easily to many styles of cooking, and is just as good grilled simply with a squeeze of lime and some salt and pepper as it is in more complex recipes.
“Dorado” means golden in Spanish, and the fish do indeed have a glowing yellow belly and sides. An adult dorado can be six feet long; the ones I see at my local fish market are smaller, usually about four feet, down to 12-inch young ones. All have the signature weird square head and more or less golden colored sides.
My go-to easy dorado dinner involves a quick grilling and some sort of salsa or sauce. I add some rice or potatoes and a salad and that’s it. Chefs say one of the secrets to getting a nice crust on fish is to use a really hot pan and dry fish.
You also want to sear more on the first side; start skin-side up, and let that side cook longer, then flip and cook for 1-3 minutes more, depending on the size of the fillet.
Dorado, also known as mahi-mahi or dolphinfish.
Ginger Glazed Dorado
3 Tbsp. honey
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
3 Tbsp. Balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. grated fresh ginger root
1-3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. olive oil
4 (6 oz.) dorado fillets
Salt and pepper
In a shallow glass or ceramic dish, mix honey, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, ginger, garlic and 2 tsp. olive oil. Season fish with salt and pepper, then place into dish skin side down. Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes to marinate. Heat remaining 1 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Remove fish from dish, reserving marinade. Fry fish for 3-5 minutes on each side, turning only once, until fish flakes easily with a fork. Remove fillets and keep warm. Pour reserved marinade into skillet and heat over medium heat until mixture reduces to a glaze. Spoon over fish and serve.
Grilled Dorado with Avocado-Chile Salsa
1 ripe avocado, cut into small chunks
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
1 cup minced red onion
1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
½ cup minced fresh cilantro
1 lime, juiced
½ tsp. salt
1½ lbs. dorado, cut into 4 pieces
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 lime, juiced
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Make salsa by combining first seven ingredients in a bowl. In another bowl, mix olive oil, lime juice, salt and pepper; marinate fish for 20-30 minutes before grilling. Grill or cook under a broiler 3-5 minutes per side. Top with salsa and serve.
Grilled dorado with an avocado and chile salsa.
Garlic-Lemon Grilled Dorado
1 lemon
4 (4-6-oz) dorado fillets
1¼ tsp. salt, plus more as needed
Freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
4 Tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro or parsley leaves
Cut half the lemon into round paper-thin slices. Juice the remaining half to get 1½ Tbsp. of juice; set both aside. Pat fish dry with paper towels. Season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large cast-iron skillet or nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat until just starting to smoke, 3-5 minutes. Add the dorado (skin-side up if there’s skin) and sear undisturbed until well-browned on the bottom and the sides are cooked just past halfway up the fillets, about 4 minutes. Flip the fillets and continue to sear until just cooked through and the flesh flakes easily, 2 to 4 minutes more depending on the thickness of the fillets. Transfer to a serving platter.
Turn heat to low and add lemon juice and garlic and remaining ¼ tsp. salt to the same pan. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.
Add the lemon slices, then stir the butter in, one piece at a time, waiting until each piece is almost melted before adding the next. Remove pan from the heat. Stir in the fresh herbs. Taste the sauce and add more salt and pepper if needed. Pour over the fish and serve immediately.
Bobby Flay’s Fish Tacos
1 lb. dorado fillets
¼ cup olive or vegetable oil
1 lime, juiced
1 Tbsp. ancho chile powder
1 jalapeño, seeds removed, chopped
¼ cup chopped cilantro
8 corn tortillas
Toppings as desired
Preheat grill to medium-high. Place fish in medium size dish. Whisk together oil, lime juice, ancho, jalapeño and cilantro and pour over fish. Marinate in refrigerator for 20 minutes. Remove fish from marinade and place onto a hot grill, flesh side down. Grill 4 minutes on the first side, flip and cook 30 seconds more and remove. Let rest for 5 minutes, then flake the fish with a fork. Heat tortillas on the grill. Divide fish among the tortillas and garnish as desired with shredded white cabbage, hot sauce, sour cream, red onion and cilantro.
Janet Blaser has been a writer, editor and storyteller her entire life and feels fortunate to be able to write about great food, amazing places, fascinating people and unique events. Her first book, Why We Left: An Anthology of American Women Expats, is available on Amazon. Contact Janet or read her blog at whyweleftamerica.com.
Recovering from the economic impact of the coronavirus crisis looks set to be a long and difficult process for the tourism-dependent locales of Cancún, Quintana Roo, and Los Cabos, Baja California Sur.
Hotels and other tourism-related businesses such as restaurants and night clubs were closed for more than two months in both destinations due to nationwide coronavirus restrictions that were put in place between late March and the end of May.
As a result, between US $3 billion and $3.5 billion in tourism revenue was lost in Quintana Roo, according to preliminary estimates by the state Tourism Ministry.
Cancún’s hotel zone looks like a ghost town, the newspaper El Universal reported, noting that arrivals and departures at the city’s airport are up compared to May and June but still well below pre-pandemic levels.
Passenger number declines saw a reversal in June. el universal
During the summer vacation period a year ago, flights into Cancún were full, the city’s hotels had occupancy levels above 90%, the beaches were packed with tourists and the restaurants, bars and nightclubs were busy.
Today, the beaches are largely empty – they remain closed to locals – and hotels and restaurants are operating well below their capacity due to both coronavirus restrictions and a lack of tourists.
But visitor numbers are expected to gradually increase in coming months, according to the Quintana Roo Tourism Minister Marisol Vanegas, who said hotel occupancy levels are predicted to reach 60% in December.
The tourism recovery is also progressing slowly in Los Cabos and La Paz, Baja Califoria Sur (BCS), where the coronavirus lockdown caused the industry to lose an estimated 21 billion pesos (about US $1 billion).
During the shutdown period, international passenger numbers at the Los Cabos International Airport declined 96% and domestic traffic fell 80%, said manager Francisco Villaseñor.
Around 600 mainly domestic and United States tourists are now arriving at the airport each day, compared to just 20 or 30 in April and May, but hotel occupancy levels are still only about 20%.
Lilzi Orcí Fregoso, president of the Los Cabos Hotel Association, acknowledged that the recovery has been slow and difficult – BCS hotels began reopening in the middle of June – but noted optimistically that 20% occupancy is better than zero.
She said that 72 of 84 member hotels have reopened but added they are currently only accepting guests in 7,000 of 17,500 rooms.
Agustín Olachea Nogueda, president of the La Paz Hotel Association, said that occupancy levels are just 17.5% compared to 80% at the same time last year.
Tourists braving the pandemic in Los Cabos, La Paz other BCS destinations now have a wider array of activities in which they can partake after 1,500 tour companies were given the green light to get back to business last week pr0viding walking, diving, snorkeling, kayak and glass-bottom boat tours, among other activities.
