The hurricane, which made landfall as a Category 3 storm on Sept. 24, caused at least 22 deaths — including 18 in Guerrero — and severe damage across the states of Guerrero, Michoacán and Oaxaca. Acapulco is on the Guerrero coast.
Soldiers help an Acapulco resident escape knee-deep floodwaters in Acapulco Tuesday. The Defense Ministry said 3,455 people have ended up in temporary shelters as of Oct. 2 due to flooding and storm damage. (Sedena/Cuartoscuro)
As Sheinbaum arrived in the city to assess damage, locals demanded urgent aid and government support. Many do not have running water.
Driving to the coast in a pickup truck on the Autopista del Sol, Sheinbaum was also greeted at the La Venta toll booth by victims handing her documents outlining their needs. La Venta is a town in the municipality of Acapulco.
Later, in brief remarks, she emphasized that her visit aimed to assess damage with Guerrero Governor Evelyn Salgado and other officials.
Sheinbaum’s visit comes less than a year after Hurricane Otis, a Category 5 storm, devastated Acapulco, inflicting billions of dollars in damage to hotels and other properties when it struck on Oct. 25, 2023.
Acapulco had barely recovered from last year when Hurricane John struck last week and unleashed a year’s worth of rainfall in four days, leading to floods and landslides that compounded previous damages.
Sheinbaum headed a meeting at the Icacos Naval Base in Acapulco to plan for short-term and long-term storm damage recuperation. The governors of Guerrero and Michoacán attended the meeting. (Claudia Sheinbaum/X)
Miguel Gómez, leader of a local merchants’ union, said over 1,300 workers, many of them women, were unable to work due to damage along the coast. Vendors in areas such as Puerto Marqués and Majahua beach who sell goods like seafood, souvenirs and crafts saw their livelihoods shattered by the storm, Gómez said.
He said that in Puerto Marqués (a municipality about 10 kilometers south of Acapulco) two sinkholes have damaged the main avenue, collapsing at least 13 restaurants. He and others expressed fear that they won’t be able to reopen in the coming weeks.
“You’re strong, you can help us!” one woman from Tierra Colorada whose business was ravaged by the storm shouted at Sheinbaum as she passed.
During her visit, Sheinbaum did not fully tour the most damaged areas but flew over regions, including the municipality of Coyuca de Benítez — which is inland of the coast but has a river of the same name running through it — and the Diamante area, Acapulco’s hotel zone.
Amid the unrest, Sheinbaum also warned about the arrival of tropical depression 11-E, which has begun bringing heavy rains and winds to several western Mexican states. It was also announced that classes at schools throughout Guerrero have been suspended due to the new storm.
At a private meeting at the Icacos Naval Base in Acapulco with Salgado and Michoacán Governor Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla, Sheinbaum discussed long-term recovery plans and emergency support to meet more immediate needs.
Underscoring the gravity of the situation, also present for the meeting were several ministers from Sheinbaum’s cabinet: Marcelo Ebrard (Economy), General Ricardo Trevilla (Defense), Admiral Raymundo Pedro Morales (Navy chief), Rosa Icela Rodríguez (Interior), Omar García Harfuch (Public Security), David Kershenobich Stalnikowitz (Health) and Josefina Rodriguez Zamora (Tourism).
“We are leaving instructions with the National Water Commission [Conagua] and the Infrastructure, Communications and Transport Ministry (SICT) to expedite aid,” Sheinbaum posted on her Facebook account.
Sheinbaum committed to another meeting on Thursday to continue assessing damages and coordinating a support plan.
Meanwhile, some citizens have gone to Chilpancingo, the Guerrero state capital, to ask federal authorities to provide them with assistance.
In the 1920s, a string of high-powered radio stations on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande changed American culture. (The Radio Historian)
If you’re like me, you love “Pirate Radio,” starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Bill Nighy. The movie follows a group of rogue DJs who set up an outlaw radio station on a boat off the coast of Great Britain to broadcast rock and roll to fans hungry for the music.
Before pirate radio, however, there was border radio. The concept was the same — avoid regulations and censorship, broadcast music not being carried by mainstream radio and evade the long arm of the law.
XER, later known as XERA, is the best-known of the border blasters. (Library of Congress)
The advent of border radio
In the 1920s, the United States and Canada reached an agreement to divide the long-range radio frequencies between themselves, leaving Mexico out of the agreement. Radio created a stir in both countries as a new communications medium that brought entertainment into people’s living rooms. As a result, a long string of border radio stations — also known as border blasters — sprang up south of the Rio Grande.
Mexico’s lack of regulations allowed stations to operate at a powerful 50,000 to 500,000 watts. This gave them access not only to listeners across the United States but as far away as Canada, Europe and South America; their target audience was the U.S.
In 1930 American businessmen — primarily conmen and charlatans — began building radio stations along the border. The first was Houston theater owner Will Horwitz, who established XED radio in Reynosa, Tamaulipas. Horwitz was eventually sent to prison by the U.S. authorities for broadcasting the Tamaulipas lottery over radio waves reaching the United States.
Another controversial border broadcaster was Iowan Norman Baker, who set up XENT radio in Nuevo Laredo and used it to promote his alleged cure for cancer. The most controversial and best-known of the outlaw radio station owners, however, was without a doubt, John R. Brinkley.
Brinkley’s degree came from the Eclectic Medical College of Kansas City, a diploma mill. (Kansas State Historical Society)
The Goat Doctor
A failed politician, Brinkley received a degree from an unaccredited medical school but ultimately ended up practicing medicine in Kansas and Arkansas. One day a farmer presented himself in Brinkley’s office, lamenting his lack of “male vigor” and wishing he had the vigor of a billy goat.
With those words, a scheme formed in Brinkley’s mind that he called the “goat-gland rejuvenation” operation as a remedy to male impotence. He implanted the testicles of a goat in the farmer’s scrotum. It became the perfect scam — a quick operation that didn’t cost much to perform — but he needed a way to publicize his miracle treatment. Then he learned about the power of radio.
He received a broadcasting license for his station KFKB in Kansas in 1923. Three times a day, between broadcast church services and music, Brinkley would deliver his medical sermon on the wonders of goat-gland rejuvenation. Thousands converged on the tiny town of Milford, Kansas seeking the operation. Brinkley became so successful he had to build a hospital to accommodate all his patients.
The goat-gland rejuvenation operations were brought to the attention of Morris Fishbein, the president of the American Medical Association. Fishbein, knowing Brinkley was a quack, decided to shut him down for good. Eventually, Brinkley lost his broadcasting and medical licenses and decided to try his luck south of the Rio Grande. He set up his radio broadcasting station in Villa Acuña, across from Del Rio, Texas, so Texans could access his services. Mexican officials welcomed the wealthy entrepreneur, facilitating the building of a 50,000-watt station.
XER’s programming was extremely popular and included yodelers, fiddlers, Mexican music, religious sermons, psychics and astrologists, but its main purpose was to attract patients for Brinkley’s goat-gland rejuvenation business.
The Brinkley Mansion still stands in Del Rio, Texas. (Clinton & Charles Robertson/CC BY-S.A. 2.0)
Who knows why men believed that goat gonads would restore virility, but thousands flocked to Villa Acuna for the operation. Brinkley did quite well, purchasing several planes, a yacht and a 16-acre estate called the Brinkley Mansion.
Border radio spreads new genres across the US
As the station grew, Brinkley reached an agreement with Mexican officials to broadcast at 500,000 watts and restructured his radio empire under the call letters XERA. The United States was in the depths of the Great Depression and XERA was the only radio signal that reached rural listeners, transporting them away from their problems. He introduced country music to the rest of America when he discovered the Carter Family from the hills of Virginia, who played “hillbilly” music.
The Carter Family became country icons. Their music influenced a six-year-old in Arkansas who would eventually marry the family’s daughter June: Johnny Cash. Many country icons, including Hank Williams, Johnny Horton and Cash himself, took advantage of the high-wattage border blasters, trekking to the border to promote and perform their latest single.
The Carter Family was one of the first acts launched to stardom by the border blasters in the 1930s. (Birthplace of Country Music)
XERA was not the only station ushering in new genres of music. XERF radio played a prominent role in introducing Americans to rhythm and blues, soul, rock and roll and the blues. Young DJ Bob Smith grew up listening to border radio in New York City. In 1963, determined to get on the air at a border station, he arrived in Del Rio, Texas with demos of his radio gigs and talked his way onto CERF. He eventually became the station manager and was known to his listeners as Wolfman Jack.
As station manager, he included product-peddling and religious broadcasts in his programming but after midnight he played jazz, rock and roll, soul and rhythm and blues. Wolfman Jack had an air of mystery that made him extremely popular. In the postwar 1950s, a sense of normalcy and strict moral standards settled over the United States. Broadcasting from Mexico, Wolfman Jack’s thinly disguised sexual innuendos and new music genres evaded the extreme censorship at the time.
ZZ Top guitarist Billy Gibbons was influenced by listening to the blues on border radio growing up in Lubbock, Texas. The band even dedicated two songs to border music, including “I Heard It on the X.”
Border blasters continued to prosper in the 1960s. Then, in 1972, Mexico and the United States reached an agreement on radio frequencies which was the beginning of the end of border radio. Television broadcasting eventually became the dominant medium.
Border radio, however, ushered in new ways of thinking about music and fresh expressions of creativity. It took locally popular music out of regional isolation and jettisoned it into the mainstream, changing the culture of the United States.
Make sure to read this list before you jet off for Mexico. (Lutfi Gaos/Unsplash)
The first time I got on a plane to Mexico, I freaked out pretty thoroughly.
It started when the flight attendant began giving instructions in Spanish. To my dismay, even after two years of studying the language, I didn’t understand a single word she was saying.
(Unsplash)
My nervousness continued after I bumped into someone at the Mexico City airport. I wasn’t exactly sure how to say “I’m sorry.” I think I said “lo siento” too late, but no matter; it should have been “perdón” anyway. Later I realized that in packed places like Mexico City, most people don’t even bother saying “excuse me”; bumping into others is kind of expected.
This was 22 years ago, by the way, the time before everyone carried the internet — and potential immediate contact with all their people — in their pockets. My initiation felt rough, but after a couple of months, I was pretty well acclimated.
It’s been a while now, but I remember the surprises upon landing well. So if you’re planning on any kind of extended trip to Mexico, I’ve got your back! Here’s a list of things you can do to prepare.
1. Try to leave your cellphone in your bag. I know, we’re all addicted these days. And even if you don’t need to do anything with it, a cell phone is the perfect accessory to distract you and others from awkward situations, of which there will be many.
(Julia Viniczay/Unsplash)
But trust me: they may be a habit, but they’re not your friend if you want to really learn about Mexico. They’re also designed to keep us hooked and distracted. I can’t count how many times I’ve taken my phone out to look something up, then gotten distracted and forgotten about the original thing. I’m also 100 percent sure I would not have learned Spanish as well as I did if I’d had the option of distraction and comfortable at-home content. When you’re on your phone, you’re not talking to or noticing what’s in front of you. Put it away!
2. Pack for all kinds of weather. It’s a common belief abroad that Mexico is all desert. If you’re reading this you probably know it’s not, but you still might be surprised by the variety in temperatures. Once I went to Catemaco — a place that’s supposed to always be hot — just as a cold front blew in. My sandals and sleeveless t-shirts were not cutting it. Even if you’re going to a coastal destination, take a couple sweaters and a few pairs of socks. You’ll be glad you did!
3. Have a money plan. You’ve probably heard that it’s best to use ATMs rather than exchange money. This is true, but there’s a tad more you should know about them. Some charge a lot and should be avoided — looking at you, BBVA — whileothers are free. Another thing that I want to make sure you know: sometimes a screen will pop up that offers the choice to be charged in your own currency or pesos. You’re basically being asked “May we charge you at a more favorable-for-us exchange rate?”
Know this: you are allowed to say no, and you will still get your money. Just be sure to let your bank know you’re going, though. Even though mine knows I’m usually in Mexico, my cards get frozen once in a while.
(Cuartoscuro)
Finally, remember that Mexico is both a cash economy and one in whichno one ever has change. Ever. This is unfortunate, as ATMs routinely spit out 500 or even 1000 peso bills. Your best strategic bet is to buy something small at a large store or chain and use the 500 there. And if you’re partial togiving tips and donations to people, try reserving one pocket just for small change.
4. Be safe, but don’t worry too much. Though you don’t want to encourage would-be petty criminals through too-trusting behavior, rest assured that most people are nice and honest. Sure, there areprecautions to be taken. But for the most part, you’re not typically in danger any more than in your home country.
Mexico has a lot to offer and a lot to learn from. I’m even a little jealous of those who are getting to know it now for the first time. You’ve got a wild, fun ride ahead!
The earth oven, or horno de tierra, is the key to pit cooking in Mexico. (Feria de Productores/CC BY-SA 2.0)
Nobody knows how long the earth has been used as an oven. However, evidence for the practice dates back at least 30,000 years. The Taino, an Indigenous people of the Caribbean, did much to popularize it, thanks to a fire pit cooking method they called “barabicu”: the sacred pit. After the Spanish began colonizing the Americas in the late 15th century, barabicu became barbacoa — and, later in the U.S., barbecue.
The method of cooking the word barbacoa described — slow-cooking in a pit with the meat or fish arranged on some sort of makeshift grill — may have been novel to the Spanish. But earth ovens existed in Mexico long before they arrived. The Maya pib, for instance, predates the colonial period by hundreds of years, if not far more. Maya settlements date back well over 3,000 years, so earth ovens may have been used for far longer than written evidence suggests.
Diners unearth food from a pib in Quintana Roo. (Na’atik Language and Culture Institute)
The Maya pib and cochinita pibil
However old the tradition, it’s continued today in dishes like the iconic tamal, pibipollo — a large round tamal eaten on Hanal Pixán, the Maya Day of the Dead — and the signature Yucatán specialty cochinita pibil. The latter, in its modern incarnation, is made with pork marinated in annatto seed-sourced achiote paste, bitter Seville orange juice, cumin and other spices, before being wrapped in banana leaves and slow-roasted. It’s served in a variety of presentations, including in tacos.
Domesticated livestock like sheep, pigs and cattle were introduced to Mexico by the Spanish. Before their arrival in the early 16th century, cochinita pibil was made not with pork, but with wild game. That was the case, too, with barbacoa, which in olden times was prepared with animals as diverse as turkey, deer, rabbit and iguana.
The pib itself varies in size according to what is being cooked. Vegetables like corn and the foods it helps make, like tamales, don’t require a deep pit and can be cooked in an hour or less. Cochinita pibil or barbacoa, meanwhile, need a larger pit and are typically cooked overnight. The heat comes from the embers of fired wood and heated stones, and once the meat has been wrapped in banana or maguey leaves, the pit is covered to trap the heat. These pits can be reused but must be cleaned with embers removed before the next feast.
The traditional joys of barbacoa hidalguense
Barbacoa, a weekend favorite in Mexico, is made in several states. But it’s most famously produced in Hidalgo, where municipalities like Actopan are synonymous with Mexican pit-cooked barbecue. In the Hidalgo tradition, lamb is the meat of choice, with cuts set on a grill and wrapped in pencas (maguey leaves) to be cooked overnight in an earthen pit. The meat is generally shredded for tacos, while drippings are caught in a pot and used to make consomé.
Barbacoa from Actopan, Hidalgo served in tacos in Mexico City. (Jj saezdeo/CC BY-SA 4.0)
The state’s proximity to Mexico City ensures many barbacoyeros serve their food in the capital, along with specialty items like pancita (stomach-stuffed offal) and moronga (black pudding). As for the cooking itself, it’s done in pits, with wood such as mezquite stoking the fire and imbuing the meat with sought-after smoky flavors sealed in via wrapping with maguey leaves.
The world’s most fulfilling tamal
The Maya pib is also used to make tamales, of course. The origin of the current tradition of eating tamales on Día de los Reyes Magos is thought to be founded upon an ancient agricultural ritual to promote a good planting season. Tamales are made from masa, a corn-based dough, and corn was a staple crop of the Maya and many other Indigenous groups.
The biggest tamal of them all, however, isn’t found in the Yucatán but in the Huasteca region which stretches across seven Mexican states, including Veracruz, Puebla and Hidalgo. The zacahuil, as it is known, is a feet-long, party-style tamal that can feed up to 50 people or more. Pork or chicken and several chili peppers are also typically used in its preparation, with the cooking traditionally done in an earth oven.
It should be noted that earth ovens aren’t just used to make iconic cuisine: they’re also the tool used to make Mexico’s national liquor. Artisanal Oaxacan mezcals, for example, owe much of their smoky flavor to the days-long roasting process they undergo in a stone-lined pit.
The zacahuil, Mexico’s titanic tamal, is traditionally prepared in an earth oven. (Octavio Ruiz Cervera/CC BY SA-2.0)
The living legacy of earth ovens in Mexico
Some mezcals, like tequila, are roasted in what are now more conventional ovens. As people have migrated from rural areas to cities, recipes for some traditional dishes, too, have been adapted to indoor kitchens and modern appliances. But the earth oven remains alive and well in Mexico and it isn’t hard to understand what accounts for its continued use.
Part of the enduring appeal of the earth oven is the amount of flavor it produces. “The wood we cook it in, the leaves we top it with, the earth it’s buried in — those things give the flavor,” chef David Cetina told AFAR in 2019. “The best machine in the world can’t give the flavor of food cooked underground.”
However, the ancient texts, says travel writer Vaitiare Rojo, also reveal a more sacred dimension. “According to the codices, ground ovens are a tribute to Mother Earth, who in addition to giving us her fruits, offers the opportunity to prepare food in her own bosom. Its meaning, in addition to its practicality, is beautiful and profound.”
The tropical depression is expected to make landfall Thursday night as a tropical storm in Oaxaca. (NOAA GOES satellite image)
The week after Hurricane John made landfall (once as a hurricane, once as a tropical storm) in the state of Guerrero, devastating Acapulco and inundating coastal areas from Oaxaca to Michoacán, Tropical Depression Eleven-E is expected to become a tropical storm on Thursday when it makes landfall on the coast of Oaxaca.
The tropical storm warning extends from Laguna de Chacahua, Oaxaca to Pijijiapan, Chiapas, as shown on this map. (Google Maps)
As of 9 a.m. Central Mexico time, Mexico’s national weather agency (SMN) reported that the depression was located 85 km to the southeast of Bahías de Huatulco and would make landfall as a tropical storm on Thursday night, between Bahías de Huatulco and Salina Cruz, Oaxaca. The SMN has issued a tropical storm warning for the area stretching from Lagunas de Chacahua, Oaxaca (north of Puerto Escondido) to Pijijiapan, Chiapas.
On Thursday morning, the SMN forecast torrential rains (150-250 millimeters) for Guerrero and Oaxaca as the depression interacts with a low-pressure system and a monsoon trough over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico. Humid air from the Pacific and the Gulf will also feed the system moisture, producing electrical storms and hail, according to weather news site Meteored.
The SMN projects the storm will make landfall with winds of 60-80 km/h, producing 1- to 3-meter waves along the Oaxaca coast.
The NHC warns of “flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain in Chiapas, Oaxaca, Veracruz, Tabasco and coastal Guerrero.”
The “Diamante” resort zone of Acapulco was still under water on Monday as downpours have continued. (Carlos Alberto Carbajal/Cuartoscuro)
The storm system is also expected to dump very heavy rains (75 to 150 mm) on Chiapas, Tabasco and Campeche, while also sending considerable rainfall to Puebla (50 to 75 mm).
The forecast is bad news for areas already hard-hit by John, which transformed from Tropical Depression Ten-E into a Category 3 hurricane in two days before slamming into the mainland near Punta Maldonado, Guerrero.
In her first full day on the job Wednesday, President Claudia Sheinbaum visited the coastal Guerrero resort city of Acapulco in the company of Governor Evelyn Salgado to survey the damage.
The president ordered the National Water Commission (Conagua) to expedite the restoration of potable water service while the federal highway department works to clean up and repair roads and bridges to facilitate rescue efforts.
Elsewhere, a mass of cold air will sweep down from northern Mexico, causing low temperatures in high elevations in northern states and cool temperatures in the Mesa Central.
Mountainous regions in Chihuahua, Durango and México state can expect to see freezing temperatures (–5 to 0 C), while higher elevations in Coahuila, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Zacatecas, Aguascalientes, Jalisco, Michoacán, Guanajuato, Querétaro, Hidalgo, Veracruz, Puebla, Tlaxcala and Mexico City could dip down to 0 C Thursday night.
Three of the concerts are scheduled for Mexico during an eight-day span in 2025: BBVA Stadium in Monterrey on March 12, Akron Stadium in Guadalajara on March 16, and GNP Seguros Stadium in Mexico City on March 19.
The winner of three Grammy Awards plus 15 Latin Grammys, Shakira is known for a bevy of hits, but her all-time most popular song is “Hips Don’t Lie,” a duet with Wyclef Jean in which the hip-hop pioneer repeats the lyric “Shakira Shakira” over and over.
The phrase has come to express excitement or celebration in addition to being a reference to the song itself — which in 2006 was a massive worldwide hit for the now 47-year-old superstar.
Shakira, who sings in Spanish and English and is renowned for her energetic and captivating dance moves, will be returning to Mexico for the first time since her “El Dorado” tour in 2018.
The “Queen of Latin Music” also gave a 2007 concert at the Zócalo in Mexico City in which she performed for over 200,000 fans.
That evening, the atmosphere was electric, and Shakira told the audience, “Buenas noches, Mexico. I confess that this is a moment I have dreamed of since the beginning of my artistic life. I hope to give back a little of what you have given me. You and I have a history of many years, a love story … I have come here to tell you that I love you, Mexico. Enjoy this night because I am all yours.”
The Latin American portion of Shakira’s upcoming tour will start on Feb. 11 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and conclude on March 19 in Mexico City. Before that, she will tour the United States and Canada starting in November.
The tour is called “Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran” or “Women don’t cry anymore” — the title of Shakira’s latest album, released in February.
Shakira, Cardi B - Puntería (Official Video)
The lyrics in the album’s first song, “Puntería,” a duet with female rapper Cardi B., include strong messages of female empowerment. They imply that women don’t have to suffer in silence any longer, that they have found their voice and strength to overcome adversity. Fans in Mexico have eagerly awaited Shakira’s return, especially after her chart-topping hit “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53” kept her in the global spotlight this year. In July, she did the halftime show at the Copa América soccer final in Miami. And last week, she released a single titled “Soltera.”
Her performances in Mexico are expected to be a mix of her classic hits and newer songs.
As for tickets, a pre-sale begins on Tuesday, Oct. 8 at 10 a.m. Mexico City time, but to participate, fans must register and get a special code on Shakira’s website before Monday.
There will be another pre-sale on Oct. 10 for Citibanamex customers, followed by general ticket sales starting at 2 p.m. on Oct. 11. Ticket prices have yet to be announced.
At the top of Condé Nast Traveler's list of Mexico's 10 best hotels was San Miguel de Allende's Casa Sierra Nevada, whose Tunki rooftop terrace serves food and beverages overlooking the city's most iconic architecture. (Sierra Casa Nevada)
Global travel magazine Condé Nast Traveler has released its Readers’ Choice Awards 2024 with its list of the top 10 hotels in Mexico.
Mexico City hotels, unsurprisingly, won spots, as did some resort destinations you might expect. However, the top two spots were again in the relatively small, landlocked expat haven of San Miguel de Allende, which in total featured three hotels chosen by Condé Nast Traveler readers.
Hotel Matilda’s outside looks like another colonial building in downtown San Miguel de Allende, but inside the boutique luxury property is a different story, where contemporary artwork fill the walls. (Hotel Matilda)
Here’s the complete list:
1. Casa de Sierra Nevada, San Miguel de Allende
Up one position from last year, Casa de Sierra Nevada “gets everything right,” the magazine said, finding the correct balance between acknowledging San Miguel de Allende’s rich history and providing the conveniences of modern life.
Housed in multiple historic buildings, the hotel is full of antique touches yet also features modern comforts like a luxury spa, three upscale restaurants and a bar. Some rooms even have private rooftops, the magazine said.
2. Rosewood, San Miguel de Allende
Down one spot from 2023, the Rosewood hotel has long been a favorite with affluent Mexicans in town for weekend getaways or destination weddings, as well as with retired expats socializing at its three restaurants and its upscale, low-key rooftop lounge.
According to Condé Nast, the San Miguel de Allende luxury mainstay “captures an idea about faded colonial grandeur but presents it in a way that is bright, fresh, vibrant.”
Expect old-school luxury at Mexico City’s Four Seasons hotel. (Condé Nast)
3. Four Seasons Hotel, Mexico City
Located in the capital on the iconic Paseo de la Reforma avenue, one of Mexico City’s busiest streets, the magazine describes this property as “a tranquil escape from the hustle and bustle of the capital.”
Once a business traveler mainstay, Condé Nast said the hotel nowadays attracts “a younger, sophisticated crowd…eager to experience Mexico City but who prefer a quiet place to unwind.”
Highlights include a rooftop pool, two restaurants, and a spa with treatments inspired by Mexico’s ancestral traditions.
4. Paradero Todos Santos, Baja California Sur
Paradero, “a delightful departure from the all-inclusive, mega-resorts of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo,” is an ideal stay for guests seeking adventure in Baja California Sur’s wilds, Condé Nast said. But it also features a world-class spa and Tenoch, a restaurant listed in the 2024 Michelin Guide.
With surfing, hiking, and biking included in your room rate, Paradero offers outdoor adventure experiences comparable only to those found in South America and Africa, Condé Nast said.
5. Hotel San Cristóbal, Todos Santos, Baja California Sur
In the little surf town of Todos Santos, Hotel San Cristóbal stands out for its effortless combination of luxury and surf-town feel, said Condé Nast.
The hotel itself, inspired by Todos Santos’ low-key, hippie vibe, is “super on-trend design-wise” and “totally place-specific,” said Condé Nast, with simple but “perfectly designed and decorated” rooms, polished concrete walls, hand-stamped tiles, and equipales.
Hotel San Cristóbal keeps things simple but appealing, offering low-key luxury and evoking the authentic feel of a surf-town hotel, said Condé Nast. (Condé Nast)
6. Las Alcobas, Luxury Colection Hotel, Mexico City
Las Alcobas Luxury Boutique Hotel is one of the city’s most expensive hotels, “but it lives up to the hype,” said Condé Nast. Located in the affluent Polanco neighborhood, it’s near lush parks, fine dining and high-end shopping.
The hotel boasts modern interiors, luxurious rooms and sophisticated bathrooms with mood lighting and soaking tubs that feature hydrotherapy jets and a soap menu, described by Condé Nast as “something out of a dream.”
7. The St. Regis Mexico City
This upscale city high-rise hotel offers a full-service experience in the heart of Mexico City, Condé Nast said.
It emphasized its “seemingly endless” dining experiences at the hotel’s multiple restaurants. Other highlights include spacious rooms, hot tubs, cocktails at the King Cole Bar, and even rooftop helicopter service.
8. Nobu Hotel, Los Cabos
A Cabo San Lucas luxury resort property, Nobu Hotel features 10 dining experiences — everything from a poolside snack bar to the Nami Champagne Bar, offering lobster ceviche, hamachi tartare with lychee, and crispy seaweed tacos with bluefin tuna.
It overlooks the sparkling waters of the Gulf of California and takes advantage of that with Japanese inspired room design and gorgeous views. Its 13,000-square-foot spa offers Asian-inspired treatments, hydrotherapy and custom salon services.
9. Hotel Matilda, San Miguel de Allende
A sleek boutique hotel three blocks from the city’s historic center, Matilda’s colonial façade belie its interiors, which feel like you’re in an art gallery: there’s contemporary artwork in the hallways, an avant-garde video installation at the front desk and photographs by Mexico City artist Eduardo Zaylan in guest rooms.
Highlights of a stay here include crisp, white beds dressed with Egyptian cotton linens, an infinity pool and the hotel’s rooftop bar, the magazine said.
10. W, Mexico City
“Modern minimalist chic meets bygone Latin American charm at the 237-room W,” Condé Nast said of this family-friendly stay where trendy aloofness “takes a backseat to well-honed Latin hospitality that is both warm and incredibly efficient.” The magazine called the treatment by staff here as “white-glove.”
Of special note is the hotel’s stone bathrooms “that double as sunrooms where you can kick back in a hammock and enjoy the views of Chapultepec Park and the Zona Rosa.”
The vice presidential candidates held a more calm, civil debate Tuesday than that of presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, but JD Vance and Tim Walz disagree about plenty, including illegal immigration. (Twitter)
The issue of illegal immigration to the United States via Mexico was a significant point of contention between U.S. Senator JD Vance and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz during their vice presidential debate in New York on Tuesday night.
CBS News journalist Margaret Brennan told Vance, the Republican Party’s nominee for vice president, and Walz, the Democratic Party’s VP pick, that “the crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border consistently ranks as one of the top issues for American voters.”
During the debate, Senator Vance — seen here at a recent Trump/Vance rally — returned frequently to the topic of immigration at the Mexico-US border, blaming migrants in the U.S. for the fentanyl crisis, bringing guns from Mexico and raising housing prices for Americans. (File photo/JD Vance-X)
She specifically asked Vance about Donald Trump’s “mass deportation plan” for undocumented migrants, but before the 40-year-old senator responded to that question, he chose to go on the attack.
Vance blames Harris for ‘historic immigration crisis’
“Before we talk about deportations, we have to stop the bleeding,” Vance said.
“We have a historic immigration crisis because Kamala Harris started [it] and said that she wanted to undo all of Donald Trump’s border policies. Ninety-four executive orders suspending deportations, decriminalizing illegal aliens, massively increasing the asylum fraud that exists in our system – that has opened the floodgates,” he said.
“And what it’s meant is that a lot of fentanyl is coming into our country.”
Vance asserted that the U.S. government needs to “re-implement Donald Trump’s border policies, build the wall [and] re-implement deportations.”
Governor Tim Walz defended Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’ record on immigration, and said she was the only candidate who prosecuted transnational criminal gangs, as California’s attorney general. (Tim Walz/X)
“And that gets me to your point, Margaret, about what do we actually do? So we’ve got 20, 25 million illegal aliens who are here in the country. What do we do with them? I think the first thing that we do is we start with the criminal migrants,” he said.
“About a million of those people have committed some form of crime in addition to crossing the border illegally. I think you start with deportations on those folks, and then I think you make it harder for illegal aliens to undercut the wages of American workers,” Vance said.
Walz defends the US vice president
The 60-year-old Minnesota governor began his remarks on the immigration “crisis” by rejecting Vance’s assertion that some migrant children in the United States “have been used as drug trafficking mules.”
“The drug mule [claim] is not true,” Walz said.
Vance subsequently said that he was in fact referring to Mexican drug cartels’ use of children as drug mules.
Walz, meanwhile, pointed out that Harris served as attorney general of California before entering federal politics.
He asserted that she is the only person contesting the Nov. 5 presidential election “who prosecuted transnational gangs for human trafficking and drug interventions.”
“It was crafted by a conservative senator from Oklahoma, James Lankford. … The Border Patrol said, ‘this is what we need.’ … Fifteen hundred new border agents, detection for drugs. … Just what America wants. But as soon as it was getting ready to pass and actually tackle this [crisis] Donald Trump said ‘No’ – told [Republicans] to vote against it because it gives him a campaign issue,” Walz said.
Senator Vance told viewers that Donald Trump would fix immigration if elected, while Gov. Walz said that only 2% of Trump’s previous solution to immigration, the US border wall, ever was built. (Twitter)
Walz: ‘Mexico didn’t pay a dime’ for border wall
Walz also took aim at Trump for what he characterized as the former president’s failure to fulfill his promises on immigration-related issues.
“Donald Trump had four years. He had four years to do this. And he promised you, America, how easy it would be. I’ll build you a big, beautiful wall and Mexico will pay for it. Less than 2% of that wall got built and Mexico didn’t pay a dime,” he said.
“But here we are again, nine years after he came down that escalator, dehumanizing people and telling them what he was going to do. As far as a deportation plan, at one point, Senator Vance said it was so unworkable as to be laughable. So that’s where we’re at.”
Vance: Trump will solve the immigration crisis
Vance’s attacks on Harris over immigration were relentless.
“The only thing that … [Harris] did when she became the vice President, when she became the appointed border czar, was to undo 94 Donald Trump executive actions that opened the border,” said Vance, a senator for Ohio, former corporate lawyer and author of a bestselling memoir about “a family [his] and a culture in crisis.”
“This problem is leading to massive problems in the United States of America. Parents who can’t afford health care, schools that are overwhelmed. It’s got to stop, and it will when Donald Trump is president again,” he said.
Walz was critical of the practice of “blaming migrants for everything” and continued to advocate the approval of the immigration bill that “law enforcement … asked for.”
Vance claims that ‘illegal guns’ are entering the US from Mexico
Back in 2021, Mexico’s then-Foreign Affairs Minister Marcelo Ebrard was calling attention at the United Nations to Mexico’s problems with Mexican criminal groups bringing guns from the U.S. to use in Mexico. (Government of Mexico)
CBS News’ Norah O’Donnell asked the VP nominees whether holding parents responsible for gun violence committed by their underage children “could curb mass shootings.”
During his response, Vance said that “the gross majority” of gun violence in the United States “is committed with illegally obtained firearms.”
“And while we’re on that topic, we know that thanks to Kamala Harris’s open border, we’ve seen a massive influx in the number of illegal guns run by the Mexican drug cartel,” he said
Journalists José Díaz Briseño and Ioan Grillo took to the X social media platform to respond to Vance’s claim.
“In a sort of tongue twister, J.D. Vance ends up suggesting that Mexican cartels are the source of firearms in the U.S. when in reality it is American gun stores that sell them. We don’t have gun shops in Mexico,” wrote Díaz, a U.S.-based correspondent for the Reforma newspaper.
“I have no bone in this U.S. election and a lot of concern about Mexican drug cartels that I have been reporting on for two decades,” wrote Grillo.
Both candidates’ closing statements at the debate focused on Kamala Harris. Senator Vance blamed her for causing the nation’s fentanyl crisis, while Walz said she’s bringing “real solutions” to voters. (Kamala Harris/X)
“But J.D. Vance — cartels don’t smuggle guns into the United States. The U.S. gun market supplies Mexican cartels. I wrote this book about it,” he added, referring to his 2021 book “Blood Gun Money.”
Closing statements
In his closing statement, Walz said he was “as surprised as anybody” about the “coalition that Kamala Harris has built.”
“From Bernie Sanders to Dick Cheney to Taylor Swift and a whole bunch of folks in between there. And they don’t all agree on everything, but they are truly optimistic people. They believe in a positive future of this country. And one where our politics can be better than it is,” he said.
“… Kamala Harris is bringing us a new way forward. She’s bringing us a politics of joy. She’s bringing real solutions for the middle class. And she’s centering you at the heart of that,” Walz said.
In his final remarks, Vance once again blamed Harris for the entry to the U.S. of large quantities of illegal fentanyl — a drug made and trafficked by Mexican drug cartels.
“I believe that whether you’re rich or poor you ought to be able to afford to buy a house. You ought to be able to live in safe neighborhoods. You ought to not have your communities flooded with fentanyl,” he said.
“And that, too, has gotten harder with Kamala, because of Kamala Harris’s policies,” Vance said.
“Now, I’ve been in politics long enough to do what Kamala Harris does when she stands before the American people and says that on day one she’s going to work on all these challenges I just listed. She’s been the Vice President for three and a half years. Day one was 1,400 days ago. And her policies have made these problems worse,” he said.
More MND articles related to the US presidential election
A selection of the commitments Sheinbaum made on Tuesday for her six-year term appears below. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)
As part of a very busy day on Tuesday that included her inauguration as president of Mexico and lunch at the National Palace with world leaders and other dignitaries, President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo outlined 100 commitments for her term in office during a speech to some 400,000 boisterous supporters in Mexico City’s main square.
But before she made those pledges, dancers and musicians took to the stage in the Zócalo, where a festive mood prevailed, and the new president received a “baton of command” from female representatives of Mexico’s Indigenous and Afro-Mexican communities.
Sheinbaum also received a smoke cleansing and words of praise, encouragement and advice from various Indigenous women.
“We invoke the divine strength of nature so that in the government of the constitutional president, problems are resolved through dialogue, the building of agreements, forgiveness and reconciliation with a humanist sense,” one of the women said.
Mexico’s Indigenous peoples gave Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) a similar welcome to office in the Zócalo on the day he was sworn in as president almost six years ago.
When she made it to the lectern late on Tuesday afternoon wearing her presidential sash, Sheinbaum further warmed up the already enthusiastic crowd by leading them into some of López Obrador’s favorite adages, as well as common chants from the recently-completed “AMLO years.”
“It is…” she said.
“An honor to be with Obrador!” chanted the droves of Sheinbaum supporters and loyal AMLOvers.
“For the good of all,” Sheinbaum began. “The poor come first,” continued the crowd.
“There can’t be a rich government … with a poor people!”
Sheinbaum’s commitments for her 6-year term
Like López Obrador, Sheinbaum was elected president on a ticket backed by the Morena party.
Like López Obrador, Sheinbaum outlined 100 commitments for her time in office on the day she was sworn in as president.(Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)
And like López Obrador, Sheinbaum outlined 100 commitments for her time in office on the day she was sworn in as president. Some of the new president’s commitments were made up of two, three, four or even more individual pledges.
However, some newspapers, including El Sol de México and Sin Embargo, reported that the number of commitments AMLO actually fulfilled was significantly lower than he claimed.
A selection of the commitments Sheinbaum made on Tuesday for her six-year term appears below. Each commitment has been sorted into one of 13 categories.
Time will tell how good Mexico’s first woman president is at keeping her word.
Overarching commitments
“We will never subjugate ourselves to economic, political or foreign interests. We will always work for the supreme interest of the people and the nation.”
“We will be a government that is sensitive and close to the people. … I will continue visiting all the states of the republic on the weekends: Friday, Saturday and Sunday.”
“We will guarantee all freedoms — those of speech, the press, assembly and protest.”
“[My cabinet ministers and I] will lead an honest, honorable government without cronyism, nepotism, corruption or impunity.”
Commitments regarding justice
“We will continue working with the families to reach the truth and justice [in the Ayotzinapa case] and to find all the missing young men.”
Justice plans for all [Indigenous] peoples will continue.”
Commitments regarding political power
“In 2027 I will subject myself to a revocation of mandate [recall election], as the constitution establishes.”
“We will send a constitutional reform initiative [to Congress] to recover the democratic principle of ‘no reelection’ so that from 2030 no [person holding a] position of popular election can be reelected … not mayors, senators or deputies.”
Sheinbaum held her first “mañanera” of many on Wednesday morning. (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)
Economic commitments
“The neoliberal model that did so much damage to Mexico won’t return. The moral economy and [the doctrine of] Mexican Humanism will be maintained.”
“We’re going to maintain republican austerity and financial and fiscal discipline. A government without luxuries and without privileges will continue.”
“We will respect the autonomy of the Bank of Mexico and maintain a reasonable balance between [levels of] debt and gross domestic product.”
“The price of gasoline, diesel, electricity and household gas will not increase above the inflation rate.”
“[We will] welcome private investment and the relocation of companies.”
Welfare and cultural commitments
“We will guarantee [the continuation of] all of President López Obrador’s welfare programs.”
“We will guarantee the conditions so that Mexico’s artists can carry out their activities and receive fair remuneration.”
Education commitments
“The New Mexican School education model will continue and [so will the distribution of] free textbooks.”
“We will make Mexico a science and innovation power. To do that, we will support [the teaching of] basic and natural sciences, and humanities.”
Claudia Sheinbaum with Director of Pemex Víctor Rodríguez Padilla and Energy Minister Luz Elena González, who will head the Federal Energy Commission (CFE). (Graciela López/Cuartoscuro)
Energy commitments
“We will commence the production of lithium with our own technology.”
“The objective continues to be to strengthen Pemex and the Federal Electricity Commission [CFE] as public, strategic companies.”
“We’re going to promote renewable energy. The objective is that in 2030 [renewable energy] will have 45% participation [in the energy market].”
The state – the CFE – will produce at least 54% of [electricity] and 46% [will come from] private generation.”
“We will strengthen the Sonora [energy] Plan, increasing the generation of solar energy and the productive chain for lithium, copper, semiconductors and electric vehicles.”
Health care commitments
“From birth, all Mexicans must have access to vaccines, preventative care [and] medical care.”
“The program for the modernization of hospital infrastructure and equipment will continue.”
“We will strengthen … access to health care for women throughout their whole lives, particularly … [access to] sexual and reproductive health care.”
Housing commitments
We will build at least one million homes during the six-year period of government.”
“We’re going to provide 450,000 low-cost loans for home improvement.”
Labor commitments
“[Annual] increases to the minimum wage will continue.”
“We’re going to progressively increase the minimum salaries of teachers, doctors, nurses, soldiers, members of the National Guard and marines so that none of them earns less than the average salary of [workers with] IMSS [social security benefits].”
“We’re going to strengthen Mexicana de Aviación, the airline of the people of Mexico.”
“We will expand the airports in Tamuín, in San Luis Potosí; in Tepic; in Lázaro Cárdenas; in Puerto Escondido, and [complete] the remodeling of the Benito Juárez International Airport in Mexico City.”
Sheinbaum reiterated her plans to build new passenger train routes during her six-year term. (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)
Water commitments
“Access to water will be a priority for our government. … Water belongs to the nation.”
“The main strategic projects to guarantee the recycling of water and human access to water … will be in Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, Colima, Guerrero, Durango, Coahuila, Guanajuato, Zacatecas, Oaxaca, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Campeche and … the metropolitan area of the Valley of Mexico. We’re going to guarantee access to water in the Valley of Mexico and Hidalgo.”
“We’re going to clean up the three most contaminated rivers in the country: the Lerma Santiago River, the Tula River and the Atoyac River.
Security commitments
“We will guarantee the reduction of high-impact crimes [such as murder].”
“The irresponsible war against narcos of [former president Felipe] Calderón won’t return.
“We’re strengthening the [security] strategy, which consists of four core tenets: attention to the causes [of crime]; strengthening of the National Guard; intelligence and investigation; and coordination … with the states, with the municipalities.”
Jenna Mayhew has been working as a psychologist in Mexico for eight years. At her practice, Hola Therapy, she has made it her mission to help foreigners living in Mexico, Mexicans with a foreign partner, foreigners with links to Mexico and Mexicans with links to foreigners or foreign countries.
In this new series, Jenna answers MND readers’ questions on the pressing issues of relationships, mental health and navigating changes that come with relocating to and living in Mexico.
(Depositphotos)
Dear Jenna,
I’m a 66 year old woman from Chicago and for the past seven years I’ve been visiting Mérida whenever I can. Last year I retired, and my plan was to move to Mérida full time.
However my youngest son, who is 33, has ADHD. He is constantly losing jobs, struggling financially and in conflict with the mother of his children. Oftentimes I end up caring for my grandchildren on the weekends when he’s meant to see them.
For more than a decade my energy, finances and time have been dedicated to trying to get him help. I have found therapy and psychiatry for him, jobs and interviews, linked him in with financial support services which he doesn’t take up, cared for his kids and paid off his excessive credit card bills several times over. I want to live my own life, but I also feel guilty leaving him and his children without support. What should I do?
– Caged Snowbird
(David Vives/Unsplash)
Dear Caged Snowbird,
Your sign-off name says it all — you feel trapped. Let’s untangle this from the beginning. Your son’s ADHD is undoubtedly a challenge, and you’re right to be supportive. But from what you’ve shared, it seems like there’s more going on here than just ADHD.
You strike me as a devoted mother and grandmother who genuinely wants to help. We all want to support our loved ones, especially in tough times. However, what you’re describing seems to be a persistent cycle that goes beyond just providing support. Your son seems to be relying heavily on your time, money and resources, even affecting your retirement plans. So, where do you draw the line?
Let’s start with what’s good for your son. How much are you helping him by engaging in this cycle? When people genuinely want to change they tend to display two things. Firstly, they take full responsibility for their prior actions — no excuses, no blame, no minimizing. Secondly, they take action to show they’re motivated to change. Even when these two things are present, change is hard fought and hard won.
From what you’ve described, your son’s current behavior suggests he might not be ready to make these changes, or worse, he might be benefiting from this cycle of rescue. Remember the old joke: “How many psychologists does it take to change a lightbulb?” The answer is: “The lightbulb has to want to change itself first.”
It’s time to step back and assess the whole situation. Acknowledge your fears for your son and grandchildren. What’s the reality you need to face? Perhaps it’s that your son’s choices are not prioritizing his children, and if this continues he might lose his visitation rights. Accepting harsh realities such as this might be necessary for moving forward. It’s time to disengage in this cycle of rescuing your son, because, frankly, it’s not helping change his situation.
Now, let’s focus on you. At 66, you’re approaching retirement and have your own plans. It’s crucial to find a balance between being there for your family and living the life you’ve envisioned for yourself. With the harsh reality above accepted, let’s look at ways that you can move forward in a more balanced way. This might look like moving to Mérida and staying present in your son’s life as a support. Let him know you’ll be there to help him help himself whenever he needs it. If he ever needs an extra hand with logistics, finding support services or planned visits from you, you’ll be there. It might be to nurture your relationship with your grandkids, reminding them that no matter who they live with, they’ll have a present and loving grandmother. You might even let them know that you’ll always come and visit them in Chicago or they could come and visit you in Mérida.
And set some limits — whatever feels right to you. These limits may be related to finances, childcare or time. You don’t have to cut anyone off, but you do get to choose where the boundary is. Ultimately, it may end up being the best thing for everyone involved.
So, Trapped Snowbird, I hope you can open the door to your own cage and fly down to Mérida, guilt free and with the full knowledge that your family has a reliable, loving mother and grandmother to count on. The rest is up to your son.
Jenna Mayhew is an Australian psychologist based in Mexico, with over 20 years of experience in Australia, England and Mexico. She is the founder of Hola Therapy, a bilingual practice dedicated to supporting the immigrant and cross-cultural communities in Mexico and provides therapy in-person and online across Mexico and worldwide. Jenna’s work combines her extensive expertise with a deep commitment to addressing the unique challenges faced by individuals in diverse cultural settings.
