Making and selling bread in San Blas many years ago. (Courtesy Kelly Michelle Roske)
“People have told me for years that I need to write a book,” says Survivor Kelly Roske.
If she ever gets round to writing it, that book will chronicle her lifelong struggle to “live wild,” wandering Hawaii, the western US, Mexico and even short stints in Africa, which includes starring in an episode of Discovery Channel’s “Naked and Afraid.”
“I’ve moved 50 times in 25 years, on no money hitchhiking, busses,” Roske explains. Hers is a lifestyle determined in part by fate and part by her whims.
Living a nomadic life “off the land”
Roske remembers her childhood as “extremely restrictive,” “tasting freedom” when she moved to live with her “hippie” Dad on Maui.
At age 20, she was widowed with two toddlers and only a $500/month Social Security stipend in one of the US’s most expensive states. Instead of the typical single mother life of work and babysitter, she and her family simply made do without a house or apartment, living in cars, tents and shelters they built themselves.
Current temporary digs in Singayta while she looks for her mountain land. (Kelly Michelle Roske)
This tactic brought them closer to nature, as well as affording them mobility. Over the years, The family wandered Hawaii and parts of the western US, crossing several times into Mexico. Her first stint in Mexico was in 2001, arriving in the San Blas, Nayarit area with her two young children after 70 hours on the bus. Locals were afraid for her. “Aren’t you afraid that somebody’s going to come and kill you?” they asked. She admits they did sleep with weapons, but then again, she did that in Maui as well.
She and her children learned many skills, often by trial and error, but even the most resourceful forager needs some money in the modern world. Roske and her kids learned to do all kinds of jobs to make ends meet. In Maui, she worked contacts, landing jobs cleaning mansions. In San Blas, she figured out how to bake using a pot on the stove, making bread and muffins to sell.
She trained as a midwife in Uganda, and in biomagnetic pair therapy after a healer cured her daughter in Mexico. She also learned how to build, using a technique called “super adobe” – sacks filled with earth and cement stacked into a dome shape.
Until very recently, her life included raising four children, and like her, they grew up outdoors, “free” from public schooling via “unschooling” (homeschooling). Today, all four are grown and these apples did not fall far from the tree. All live lives on their own terms, using many of the skills they learned with Mom.
Naked? Yes – Afraid? No
“My favorite thing to do is to be in nature and come back with backpacks… with everything I can make something out of… because I am observant.”
Her unusual lifestyle has gifted her mental stamina and practical skills, resulting in a spot on Naked and Afraid. Cast as a kind of “earth mother” with the nickname Mama Kel, she was whisked off to South Africa, to stand “alone” with her male partner (and a camera crew) to see if the two could survive 21 days in bush. Her partner quit after only 4 days because of an injury, but Roske finished the challenge herself – one of very few women to do so. The show aired in April 2019 with the title “Stalked on All Sides.”
She enjoyed the challenge and is working to get invited on to similar shows.
Current stint in Mexico
Current temporary digs in Singayta while she looks for her mountain land. (Kelly Michelle Roske)
Roske’s lifelong obsession is to have a large isolated piece of land where she can live as she wants. Highly introverted, her dream has always been to live in nature, in as much isolation as possible. She wants little more than books, an internet connection and to be far enough away that she can dance naked outside when she wants.
Roske tried to make this work in the U.S. but has come to realization that it is not economically or socially viable. Taxes, permits, regulations and just the cost of living means that she has had to “don her society gear” to work jobs far more than she would ever want.
Instead, she would rather meet her needs “in a sustainable way,” meaning meeting her physical needs through gardening and collecting from nature. Both Mexico’s lower cost of living and far more laissez-faire attitudes towards regulation promise this.
To get started, she returned to familiar Nayarit to settle temporarily in a small beach village. Although quite “rustic” by most of our standards, she finds herself too much in civilization, especially bothered by male eyes that stare at the only white women with tattoos they may have ever seen.
The long-term goal is to move further into Mexico’s mountainous inland, where she hopes to have enough isolation to live as she pleases. Even in such a small village, she says, “I am at about 5% of what I am when I am living outdoors as far as just being creative – living in nature and weaving the plants together, building and gardening and planting… I have none of that right now.”
There is a bit of time pressure for her right now as well. Although only 48, a lifetime of physical labor has taken its toll, Her goal is to get her land while she is still able to do things like build adobe houses and set up her library. Fortunately, one of her sons has decided to return to Mexico to help make this a reality.
Like many of us have discovered, Mexico offers opportunities that our home countries do not to live as we wish. Roske emphasizes this. “I have always loved Mexico,” she says. “It is always where we wanted to end up. Mexico has always meant Freedom to us.”
Roske is not easy to reach. Your best bet is through Instagram or Facebook.
Leigh Thelmadatter arrived in Mexico over 20 years ago and fell in love with the land and the culture in particular its handcrafts and art. She is the author of Mexican Cartonería: Paper, Paste and Fiesta (Schiffer 2019). Her culture column appears regularly on Mexico News Daily.
Christmas in Mexico is an almost month-long season, beginning Dec. 12 with the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe and lasting until Three Kings’ Day on Jan. 6. It’s a time of parties and posadas (get-togethers at friends’ homes loosely based around Mary and Joseph seeking shelter) – and the giving and sharing of food is an important part of the festivities.
Dinner on Christmas Eve, Nochebuena, is often the highlight. Families gather, often attend midnight mass, and then celebrate at home with a big, multi-course meal of traditional favorites.
While there are regional variations, Christmas Eve dinner usually includes pozole, sweet and savory tamales, roast turkey and sometimes Bacalao Navideño, an unusual dried cod stew made with olives, tomatoes and potatoes. Ensalada de Nochebuena or Ensalada Navideña, a brightly colored salad of dried fruit, chopped vegetables and nuts, is often included too, with each family having their own version. Dessert usually includes buñuelos, fried dough disks sprinkled with cinnamon sugar or dipped in caramel or sugar syrup, classic marranitos, spiced, pig-shaped cookies reminiscent of gingerbread, and sweet tamales filled with pineapple, raisins or dulce de leche (caramel).
Of course, beverages are part of the Christmas celebrations, too! Because December and January are the coldest months of the year, hot drinks, like cozy, comforting atole and champurrado, made from a base of corn flour, are hearty, delicious beverages that warm you up, too (recipe below).
For a more celebratory drink, try Rompope – Mexican eggnog flavored with cinnamon and vanilla – and PoncheNavideño, a sweet Christmas punch that’s a delicious blend of wine, hibiscus tea, fresh and dried fruits, chunks of sugarcane and brandy or rum.
As the New Year approaches, colorful cakes called Rosca de Reyes fill up the bakeries and pastry shops. With a texture similar to fruitcake or panettone, the Mexican version is donut-shaped and decorated with stripes of red and green candied fruit. Although traditionally eaten on Three Kings’ Day (Jan. 6), it’s available earlier in grocery stores and some bakeries.
To help you decide what to serve or to identify what you’re eating at someone else’s house, here is a list of some of the most popular Mexican holiday foods.
Savory Foods for a Mexican Christmas
Christmas Eve Salad, Ensalada de Nochebuena (recipe below)
Traditional Sweets/Desserts for a Mexican Christmas
Sweet Tamales
Buñuelos
Marranitos
Rosca de Reyes
Mexican Christmas Salad (Ensalada de Nochebuena)
For the dressing:
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. orange juice
Salt & pepper to taste
For the salad:
2 cups butter lettuce or other soft-leafed lettuce
2 small beets, roasted or steamed, cooled and sliced or cubed
1 cup fresh pineapple, cubed
1 cup jicama, cubed
¼ cup pomegranate seeds
¼ cup roasted salted peanuts, roasted pecans or slivered almonds
Combine dressing ingredients in a small jar and shake well. Divide lettuce and other salad ingredients between two bowls or salad plates. Sprinkle with the nuts, drizzle with dressing and serve.
Guava Ponche
6 medium-size ripe yellow guavas, unpeeled, stemmed and halved
3 cups water
1 cup dried hibiscus flowers (flor de jamaica)
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 (2-inch) cinnamon sticks
1 cup (8 oz.) sweet red vermouth
1 small Granny Smith apple, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
½ cup fresh lemon or lime juice, plus slices for garnish
¼ tsp. salt
Topo Chico, for serving
Mint sprigs, for garnish
Combine guavas, 3 cups water, hibiscus flowers, sugar and cinnamon sticks in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until guavas are slightly softened, about 15 minutes. Let the liquid cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. For a more intense guava flavor, transfer to a medium bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Otherwise, continue with the next step.
Pour guava mixture through a fine mesh strainer set over a medium bowl. Using the back of a spoon, lightly mash guava mixture to release all of the juices; discard solids. Mix guava mixture, vermouth, chopped apple, lemon juice and salt in an ice-filled pitcher or bowl. Garnish with lemon/lime slices. Serve in chilled cocktail glasses. Top each glass with a splash of Topo Chico, and garnish with mint sprigs.
Champurrado (Chocolate Atole)
½ cup masa harina
3 cups water, plus more as needed (see note)
1 cup milk
3½ oz. dark chocolate, broken into pieces, or chocolate chips
3 Tbsp. dark brown sugar/grated piloncillo
1 cinnamon stick or ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
Salt
Place masa into a large saucepan; set over medium heat. Immediately add water in a slow, thin stream, whisking constantly to avoid lumps. Bring to a simmer, then whisk in milk, chocolate, sugar and a generous pinch of salt. Cook over low heat until chocolate is melted, about 1 minute. Add cinnamon.Your guide to traditional Mexican Christmas foods
Return to a simmer; lower heat to low. Continue simmering, whisking constantly, for about 5 minutes. Discard cinnamon stick. Thin with additional water, as needed, to create a thick yet drinkable beverage. Taste and add more sugar or salt if desired. Froth with a whisk or molinillo.
Ever had Guadalajara's famous tortas ahogadas? Learn more about this and many other tasty treats in our list of MND staff favorites. (Fernando Carranza García/Cuartoscuro)
Ready to perk up your palate and savor the many flavors of Mexico? We are delighted to share favorite dishes and drinks curated by the Mexico News Daily team.
Dish: Alambre (Zihuatanejo)
Alamabre is a northern dish, but is also popular in other parts of Mexico like Pacific beach town Zihuatanejo. (Wikimedia Commons)
Developed in Northern Mexico, this delicious dish of chopped meats and veggies prepared on the grill is very popular in Zihuatanejo.My favorite is steak, al pastor, bacon, bell pepper and onion — swaddled in melted cheese and served alongside flour tortillas. “Alambre” means “wire,” as wire skewers once were a popular way to cook it.
Recommended by Andy Altman-Ohr, staff writer
Dish: Mole (Los Pacos, Oaxaca City)
If you’re in Oaxaca, check out the mole tasting at Los Pacos. (Los Pacos)
A traditional feast for the senses for those looking to sample one of the seven regional moles in Oaxaca. Come for the complimentary mole tasting and stay for the delicious main courses and homely atmosphere of this family restaurant just north of the city center.
Recommended by Gordon Cole-Schmidt, contributing writer
A hoppy IPA from Hércules brewery in Querétaro. (Cervecería Hércules)
Hércules makes a lot of great beers, but my favorite is the brewery’s flagship IPA, Súper Lupe. Very hoppy and refreshing! Want to know more about the Quéretaro brewery, check out this interview with the head brewer.
A hearty stout from Rámuri brewery in Tijuana. (Cervecería Rámuri)
This is one of my favorite artisanal beers in Mexico, which borrows its name fromthis song. It’s a dark and heavy chocolatey oatmeal stout (with quite a high alcohol content, so be careful!), the perfect beer for chasing away the cold, produced by the Rámuri brewery in Tijuana.
Recommended by Sarah DeVries, contributing writer
Dish: Empanadas de jaiba (Mazatlán)
You may have had empanadas before, but what about blue crab empanadas? (Shutterstock)
The combination of blue crab wrapped in corn dough and fried brings me straight back to eating crab cakes and hush puppies with my grandmother in Virginia. This Sinaloan dish is great on it’s own or with your favorite “salsa marisquera” (seafood salsa).
Recommended by Rose Egelhoff, editor
Dish: Tacos de barbacoa y consomé (El Pato Barbacoa y Mixiote, San Miguel de Allende)
El Pato’s barbacoa tacos are a must-taste. (El Pato San Miguel de Allende)
For me, El Pato is the epitome of authentic Mexico. Rich, flavorful, carefully prepared food, friendly, warm service, and a family-friendly ambiance. You can’t go wrong with their short and simple menu, but if you are sick, hungover, or just tired, try their consomé (spicy bone broth); it will bring you back to life.
Recommended by Amber Nieto, sales manager
Drink: El Tejón wines (Viñedo El Tejón, San Luis Soyatlán, Jalisco)
Viñedos El Tejón grows a wide variety of grapes on 26 hectares of land near San Luís Soyatlán, Jalisco. (John Pint)
Exquisite wines grown on the shores of Lake Chapala, “as natural as you will ever find.”
If you’re looking for a new spirit to try, corn vodka should be on your list. (Casa Zea)
Vodka is the worst. Corn vodka though? Love it. It’s grainy, it’s sweet, it’s exclusive. And it can only be enjoyed in a seductive tasting house on the outskirts of Puebla’s historic center. By far the most unique spirit I’ve tried in a long time.
Recommended by Bethany Platanella, contributing writer
Dish: La Bestia pizza (Benu, San Miguel de Allende)
Meat-lovers delight! (Benu Pizza)
Benu serves the best pizza in town. The chef, Pablo Gil, is always there making sure every pizza is cooked to perfection. He makes his own “masa madre” (sourdough starter) which gives every bite an excellent balance. La Bestia is a meat-lover pizza that you will never forget.
Recommended by Camila Sánchez Bolaño, editor
Drink: Cóctel de jamaica y mezcal (La Docena, Guadalajara)
A refreshing and tangy mezcal and hibiscus flower cocktail. (Shuttestock)
The combination of sweet berry syrup, tangy hibiscus infusion, and a hint of chili creates a tart and tannic mezcal cocktail that’s truly ideal for any occasion!
Recommended by Gaby Solís, staff writer
Drink: Pulque (Central Mexican highlands)
Pulque is an acquired taste, but is growing in popularity. (Shutterstock)
It is true that it is very difficult to find good pulque because window from ready and delicious to undrinkable is very short (days at most). But good pulque is wonderful, and great pulque is best with no flavorings. Fortunately, there are some places like, Pulquería Los Insurgentes in Colonia Roma where you can have a good first experience.
Recommended by Leigh Thelmadetter, contributing writer
Yucatecan craft beer at its finest. This 4.8 percent proof multi-award-winning brew is made in a Vienna style, using high-quality German malts and hops in its mixture. It’s an amber-colored beer, with woody aromas and smoky flavors, which makes it ideal to enjoy in the Mérida sunshine.
Travis Bembenek reflects on the year in Mexico and looks ahead to 2024. (Courtesy)
As I take time to reflect on this past year, I cannot help but be inspired and excited by what has happened and what lies ahead in 2024. As a now almost 30-year avid reader of Mexican news, I can’t ever recall a year even close to this one in terms of positive news and momentum for the future of the country.
As you hopefully have noticed, MND has been expanding our content to increasingly include analysis, opinions, and perspectives to better help you understand the news. Our goal is to help you feel comfortable “going deeper” into understanding this complex and awesome country. I personally have written extensively this past year about a variety of topics and have compiled my (according to me!) greatest hits to provide you a summary of the year and hopefully excite you about what is to come in 2024.
The “super peso”
The “super peso” was a theme on most people’s minds this year
Below is my article on what I think the Bank of Mexico needs to do to weaken the peso a bit (which they have yet to do).
Not all of the investment comes without risks, however, and in this article I explain why I think its important to begin a dialog regarding the level and types of Chinese investments coming into Mexico.
“Mexico rising” is a theme that I think will continue to gain momentum across an increasing number of industries. Several are worth special observation given their strategic importance to the economy as well as for being leading indicators to Mexico’s increasing globalization. I highlighted three industries in particular this year:
2023 was a big year for infrastructure in Mexico, with AMLO’s megaprojects dominating the headlines. Here are several perspective pieces I wrote about them:
Mexican politics historically might not have been a big topic of interest to many of our readers, but the 2024 Mexican presidential election campaign so far has been fascinating and historic. Here are a few of my recent perspective pieces:
Last December, President López Obrador inaugurated line Z of the Interoceanic Train running from Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, to Coatzacoalcos, Veracrauz. (lopezobrador.org.mx)
A week after the Maya Train began running between Campeche and Cancún, a modernized railroad linking the Pacific and Gulf of Mexico coasts across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec began operations on Friday.
President López Obrador inaugurated the Interoceanic Railroad between Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, and Coatzacoalcos, Veracrauz, at an event in the former city attended by various Mexican officials, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar, billionaire businessman Carlos Slim and others.
“Authorities, kings, politicians and rulers have been dreaming” about connecting the two oceans for “centuries,” López Obrador said.
The railroad is the centerpiece of the US $2.8 billion Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (CIIT), a government project that also includes the expansion of the ports in Salina Cruz and Coatzacoalcos, highway upgrades and the establishment of 10 industrial parks, among other initiatives.
Both passenger and freight trains will operate between Salina Cruz and Coatzacoalcos.
The government is touting the corridor as an alternative to the Panama Canal given that it will connect the Pacific and Atlantic oceans across a relatively narrow strip of land.
A cargo ship docks in the port of Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, the endpoint of the newly inaugurated rail line. (Wikimedia Commons)
Freight shipped from Asia, for example, could be unloaded in Salina Cruz and put on a train for a journey of approximately 300 kilometers to Coatzacoalcos. It could then be reloaded onto another ship before continuing on to the Gulf or Atlantic coasts of the United States.
Navy Minister José Rafael Ojeda Durán said in June that Mexico will become a “world shipping power” thanks to the construction of the trade corridor, but analysts, Reuters reported, “estimate the rail line will be able to ship just a fraction of what the [Panama] canal moves.”
On Friday, López Obrador asserted that “all the Asian countries are very interested” in using the new railroad to move freight “because Panama is at capacity.”
The approximately 80-kilometer-long Panama Canal has been affected by drought this year, leaving it without enough water to raise and lower ships and “forcing officials to slash the number of vessels they allow through,” according to The New York Times.
Shipping through the Panama Canal has been limited this year due to drought. (Rikin Katyal/Unsplash)
“All these [infrastructure] projects are being built with money from the budget, which is the people’s money. We’re just the managers of the people’s money … and we have to leave all these projects in safe custody so we’ve decided that the Ministry of the Navy will take charge of the comprehensive isthmus project,” he said before boarding the train shortly after midday for what was expected to be an eight-hour trip to Coatzacoalcos.
How much are tickets for the trans-isthmus trip?
Trains providing passenger services across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec have three classes: tourist (turista), executive (ejecutivo) and managerial (gerencial).
The price of tickets is calculated depending on the distance a passenger wants to travel.
Completing the entire trip between Salina Cruz and Coatzacoalcos, or vice versa, costs 457 pesos (about US $27) in tourist class, 608 pesos (about US $36) in executive class and 1,554 pesos (about US $91) in managerial, or first, class.
The level of comfort and the availability of amenities vary depending on the class. Travel time is expected to be shorter than the eight hours scheduled for Friday’s inaugural run.
Tickets are available for purchase on the Interoceanic Railroad website and at the 10 stations. Tickets for services this year have already sold out.
How many stations does the railroad have?
The port of Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, is on the western side of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. (Government of Oaxaca/Twitter)
There are a total of 10 stations along the railroad, which runs just over 300 kilometers between Salina Cruz and Coatzacoalcos, the two terminuses. The eight other stations are:
Ixtepec
Chivela
Matías Romero
Mogoñé
Donají
Jesús Carranza
Medias Aguas
Jáltipan de Morelos
What is the passenger and freight capacity of trans-isthmus trains?
According to information presented by the government on Friday, passenger trains will have the capacity to transport approximately 400 people.
Freight trains, which will start running on the railroad at a later date, will have the capacity to move 5,200 tonnes of cargo in 65 railcars.
Project is for “the new generations,” AMLO says
López Obrador asserted that the opening of the railroad marks the commencement of a “new stage” in Mexico before remarking that “it’s not for our generation, or not just for our generation.”
“… We’re on the way out … but we need to leave a future with possibilities of development for the new generations, we have to think of those coming behind us. This project is for them,” he said.
López Obrador noted that the original trans-isthmus railroad opened in 1907, during the presidency of Porfirio Díaz.
The president has cited the Pemex Dos Bocas refinery in Tabasco as another example of a project designed to boost economic development in disadvantaged areas. (Presidencia / Cuartoscuro.com)
The Panama Canal opened seven years later in 1914 and “became the most important passage” for the movement of freight from the Pacific to the Atlantic, or vice versa, he said.
Due to the growth in trade with Asia, “another passage” is “essential,” López Obrador said.
The president has long asserted that his government’s infrastructure projects in the south and southeast of the country, including the CIIT, the Maya Train railroad and the new Pemex refinery in Tabasco, will help spur economic development in a historically disadvantaged region.
Railroad also for “the communities through which the train passes”
López Obrador acknowledged there has been opposition to the project and said that the government reached agreements with residents who had to vacate their homes due to the construction of stations and the resumption of train services across the isthmus.
“There were places where the tracks had been invaded, alternatives were given to those who lived close [to the railroad],” he said.
“This is a project for the communities through which the train passes, we’re going to continue helping them,” López Obrador added.
More train lines to open in 2024
Two additional railroads that will connect with the Salina Cruz-Coatzacoalcos line (known as Line Z) will open next year.
A map shared by the government in September displays the point of connection between the Interoceanic Railway and the Maya Train. (Gobierno de México)
A 328-kilometer-long section of the FA Line between Coatzacoalcos and Palenque, Chiapas, is scheduled to begin operations next June, according to Raymundo Morales, director of the Interoceanic Train project.
That line will connect with Section 1 of the Maya Train railroad, which runs between Palenque and Escárcega, Campeche. The FA Line will also connect Coatzacoalcos to Dos Bocas, Tabasco, where Pemex’s new oil refinery is located.
The 476-kilometer-long K Line between Ciudad Ixtepec, Oaxaca — a city about 60 kilometers north of Salina Cruz — and Ciudad Hidalgo, Chiapas, on the border with Guatemala, is scheduled to open in the final quarter of next year.
The opening dates for the two lines announced by Morales on Friday are later than ones cited by López Obrador in September.
Last month, he published a decree that established the provision of passenger train services as a priority for national development, taking a first step toward achieving his goal of restoring Mexico’s passenger train network to its former glory.
The Texas-Mexico rail crossings at El Paso and Eagle Pass are open as of Friday evening. (@UnionPacific/X)
Two rail bridges between Mexico and Texas reopened on Friday four days after they were closed.
“Beginning December 22, 2023 at 2:00 pm Eastern, CBP’s Office of Field Operations will resume operations at the international railway crossing bridges in Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas,” U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in a statement.
Migrants ride above a freight train near the El Paso/Ciudad Juárez border crossing. (Pedro Anza/Cuartoscuro.com)
CBP suspended operations at the two bridges on Monday “in order to redirect personnel to assist the U.S. Border Patrol with taking migrants into custody,” according to a statement published last Sunday.
The agency said at the time that it had observed “a recent resurgence of smuggling organizations moving migrants through Mexico via freight trains” and that it was “taking additional actions to surge personnel and address this concerning development, including in partnership with Mexican authorities.”
Top Mexican farm lobby National Agricultural Council (CNA) said Wednesday that the decision to close the two rail bridges on the Mexico-U.S. border was affecting international trade between the two countries, including the southward flow of yellow corn and soybean meal used as livestock fodder as well as products for “industrial use.”
On Friday, the lobby expressed its “sincere appreciation” to Mexican and U.S. authorities for the “rapid and effective reopening” of the crossings.
In its statement, the CBP noted that in recent weeks it “has made a number of operational adjustments in order to maximize our ability to respond, process, and enforce consequences” amid a surge of migrants to the Mexico-U.S. border.
As of December 22, it said that:
In Eagle Pass, Texas vehicular processing remains suspended at Eagle Pass International Bridge 1.
In San Diego, California, San Ysidro’s Pedestrian West operations remain suspended.
In Lukeville, Arizona, the Lukeville Port of Entry operations remain suspended.
In Nogales, Arizona, the Morely Gate border crossing operations remain suspended.
Cruise tourism creates significant economic spillover for small businesses in the state. (Cuartoscuro)
The port towns of Quintana Roo continue to lead the way in cruise ship tourism to Mexico, with cruise visitors to the Caribbean resorts of Cozumel and Mahahual increasing by around 50% over the last year.
According to the federal Tourism Ministry (Sectur), Cozumel received 3.23 million cruise passengers between January and October 2023, 48.5% more than in 2022. Mahahual received 1.38 million, a year-on-year increase of 55 percent.
The world’s new largest cruise ship, The Icon of the Seas, will stop at the Caribbean ports of Cozumel and Mahahual in 2024. (Royal Caribbean)
Over the same period, the number of ships visiting Cozumel increased from 864 to 905, while Mahahual saw a drop from 363 to 348, but received larger and fuller cruise vessels.
This put Quintana Roo’s ports at the top of the list of Mexico’s most popular cruise destinations, which also included Ensenada, Baja California; Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur; and Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco. Between them, these five ports accounted for 97.2% of Mexico’s total cruise tourism over the period.
Luis González, director of tourism in Othón P. Blanco, the municipality in which Mahahual is located, told the newspaper La Jornada Maya that the increase largely reflected the recovery of the cruise industry since the pandemic. Nevertheless, he predicted that the upward trajectory would continue at least through 2024.
“In November in Mahahual we received 49 cruises, now in December there are 77, and the best months for the sector are May, June and July,” he said. “We want to believe that next year we will [see] an increase of between 35 and 45 percent from what was achieved this year.”
The increase also corresponds to newly inaugurated cruise routes that are bringing larger ships to the Mexican Caribbean. In December, for instance, Cozumel received the 3,200-capacity luxury shipNorwegian Viva for the first time. In 2024, Quintana Roo is expected to receive Royal Caribbean International’s new shipIcon of the Seas. With capacity for 5,610 passengers and 2,350 crew members, Icon of the Seas will be the largest cruise ship in the world.
Although environmentalists havepushed back against the expansion of cruise terminals in Cozumel, González stressed that cruise visitors create an important economic spillover in the region, estimated at between 1,600 and 1,800 pesos (US $94-$106) per visitor per day. He said that much of this revenue goes to small businesses, such as companies giving tours of archaeological sites.
Cruise tourism is also recovering steadily in Mexico’s Pacific ports, although total numbers in 2022 remained lower than in the Caribbean.Puerto Vallarta, for instance, received 456,435 cruise passengers during the first ten months of the year – 50% more than in the same period of 2022.
Revered expert in psychedelic medicine, Amanda Feilding of The Beckley Foundation, and writer for MND, Henrietta Weekes. (Henrietta Weekes)
Why are people taking psychedelics for mental health?
Psychedelics (serotonergic hallucinogens) are any substance or specimen containing psychoactive compounds, altering perception or mood and affecting numerous cognitive processes; for example, psilocybin – found in the ‘magic mushroom,’ or lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) – which Swiss scientist Albert Hoffman synthesized in 1938 from the ergot fungus.
In the last decade, we have witnessed a psychedelic renaissance; science has shown the remarkable effectiveness of these compounds for what Lady Amanda Feilding, founder of the Beckley Foundation, calls “cerebral enhancement.” The findings demonstrate powerful results for treatment-resistant depressive disorders and trauma, and Amanda’s more recent studies will look at neurodegenerative disease and autism. Studies conducted at John Hopkins University, the Beckley/Imperial Psychedelic Research Programme, Cornell and other prestigious academic institutions around the world yield hope for mental and physical illness.
The Beckley Foundation, Oxford, UK – childhood home of Amanda Feilding, founder and visionary. (Photo courtesy of Henrietta Weekes)
As the legalization of these substances for therapeutic usage unfolds slowly across the globe (mostly in the United States and Europe), the public at large is partaking in settings ranging from the doctor’s office to spiritual retreats. To improve safe access, Amanda co-founded Beckley Retreats in 2021, with one of her sons and other long term supporters of the psychedelics field. Beckley Retreats now hosts legal psychedelic healing retreats in the Netherlands and Jamaica and was awarded 2023 Retreat of the Year by Microdose Magazine.
Psychedelics: when spirituality meets cutting-edge neuroscience
“I have a lot of faith in the potential of these compounds, and in the bigger picture, they offer a new way of life. Psychedelics are really a gift of life – or a “God”-given gift, depending on your stance,” says Amanda. Her Foundation, in affiliation with scientists and universities, has conducted 40 years of research, and next year will see the most ambitious studies with LSD – a pure, non-toxic and non-addictive substance – yet conducted; the Double-Headed Research Program – which will examine how LSD may aid longevity, creativity, cognitive and physical health. She’s doubly thrilled to be working with the latest fMRI technology – the neuroimaging devices MRI 7 Tesla and MEG.
“Before he died, Albert Hoffman implored me to ‘bring back his problem child’ for his 100th birthday – that would have been in 2006,” Amanda tells me: “The gods, sadly, don’t tell the time! But we’re only a few years off, and I’m ready to hit next year with these pioneering studies using Albert’s brainchild, LSD.”
Hoffman vigorously advocated for LSD’s responsible usage since its creation. “Anything that interacts powerfully with our consciousness, such as the internet, for example, can be used beneficially or completely misused,” Amanda stresses. Although more a thinker and an artist, her Foundation’s affiliation with science has been imperative for her work to gain traction, legally and in public opinion. Amanda has worked tirelessly since the 1970s to raise the profile of psychedelics, but it was only in the last several years that the taboo around the topic started to lift: “I had to speak about [psychedelics] in the language of science, and so I gathered the best scientists and organizations around me.”
According to Statista, Forbes and Healthcare Drive data, government spending on mental health in the US has increased by over 50% in the last four years, suggesting an escalating mental health crisis. “Psychedelic medicine and my projected studies with King’s College and UCL in London next year offer a far more affordable and effective way forward,” Amanda affirms.
Amanda Feilding believes her psychedelic studies can help save humanity
Though it may sound like a tall order, Amanda believes at the core of new science is the search to heal society. She mentions a growing pantheon of activists and initiatives implementing good in the world and adds, “I just want to play my part. Ever since I ‘took a trip to the heavenly funfair’ with LSD in the ’60s, I’ve devoted my life to studying the potential positive effects of psychedelics.”
“We are at the foothills of the mountains!” she remarks. “It feels like a critical time for human evolution. One hopes that the clever little monkey (us), with the help of these compounds, might change the way we act for better alternatives.”
At a time when we are witnessing the birth of Artificial Intelligence, it makes sense that we embark on a quest to better understand our own! For those who believe Artificial Intelligence forebodes the demise of our Natural Intelligence, psychedelics might be the keystone game-changer. An entire field of modern medicine (Larry Dossey, MD’s work, for example) is examining the role of consciousness in health and illness, and Amanda is certainly playing her part. This sprightly, sharp-minded and enthusiastic 80-year-old works 15 hours a day, and has multiple studies taking place at any time.
Tracing a thread through a century of psychedelics: from Maria Sabina to science
In the past century, anthropologists have discovered that many societies, including those of Mexico, used psychedelic substances for healing. Scientific and public interest began to form in 1957, when R. Gordon Wasson, a banker at JP Morgan and amateur mycologist (someone who studies fungi), published an article in LIFE magazine raving about his experience with Maria Sabina, la sabia (wise woman). Maria Sabina’s veladas (spiritual ceremonies) involved using magic mushrooms harvested in Huautla de Jiménez, Oaxaca. Tourists and celebrities like Bob Dylan and John Lennon then flocked to see la sabia, seeking mystical experiences for healing.
Maria Sabina, a poet, also known as ‘priestess of the mushrooms’ and a gifted sabia, ‘one who knows’, from Oaxaca. (Beto Vargas)
Forty years after Maria Sabina’s influence in the West, we have the technological advancements and hard science to observe the brain in real-time, beyond magical speculation. We can observe how the brain can rewire and repair itself when experiencing what Sabina and Feilding call ‘the mystical state.’ The cutting-edge hardware of fMRI graphs – which model the brain as a complex network – reveals that neuroplasticity is no hoax and that the brain reaches its greatest plasticity when in the altered state of a psychedelic experience. “We plan to look more deeply into the underlying mechanism of how consciousness and the brain works”, says Amanda.
Where might the Beckley Foundation’s psychedelic studies take us in the future?
2019 saw seminal results with the Beckley Foundation’s vast experimental microdosing platform in collaboration with Maastricht University in the Netherlands. 2024 promises to be another breakthrough year for the Beckley Foundation, with Amanda’s spreading mycelium of cutting edge studies – which she carries out in collaboration with scientists at the world’s leading institutions. Her current studies focus on LSD, in macro- and micro- doses, which hopefully will help provide supporting evidence for the creation of new psychedelic medicine. Amanda’s previous explorations of LSD have proved that it can successfully stimulate a range of cognitive processes, from mood to pain relief and the increasing of neuroplasticity. Amanda is looking forward to working with Karl Friston, the world’s leading expert in the creation of fMRI algorithms, using the latest MRI technology with full doses of LSD.
Psychedelics for palliative care and neurodegenerative disease
She is currently curating her roster of scientists to further the studies. “I dream of incorporating the positive results for neurodegenerative illnesses, such as dementia and Alzheimer’s, as well as a palliative care project.” She has already made progress and is in conversation with some of the most important care homes in Europe. Dementia is a great expense to society, and many who suffer from the disease have few care options. “This is an area in fantastic need,” Amanda implores.
“We’ve seen from our work that microdoses of LSD can improve quality of life, cognitive process, happiness and the sense of Self,” she explains. “My desire is to help transform the process of how we age and die. We have also witnessed LSD’s effectiveness for vascular disorders and cerebral circulation,” Amanda continues, “Interestingly, these are ignored areas in modern science.”
Psychedelics: a woman’s domain?
Spending an afternoon with Amanda felt a bit like observing a modern day Maria Sabina, except this ‘medicine woman’ is protected by the almighty mantle of science, and the context of this historical moment. “I might have been burned at the stake a century ago”, she remarks. She presents more like an artist, and the Beckley Foundation, her childhood home, and an ancient, rambling pile in the Oxfordshire countryside certainly has the sense of a conceptual art project rather than a science park -the offices are housed in the old cow shed of her father’s farm. “I don’t have any letters after my name – my father was a bit of an iconoclast – so in order for my work to be taken seriously, I have gathered the best scientists around me and joined hands with the academic institutions that know we are onto something.”
One might imagine Maria Sabina, the Mexican Indigenous healer, whispering through the mists of this century’s time and space continuum, and egging on Amanda, affectionately known as Lady Mindbender.
Amanda muses, “As a child, I dreamt of watering the desert.”
Her tireless work over the last half of a century is a fulfillment of that childhood dream.
As the Foundation celebrates its 25th Anniversary this year, she adds enthusiastically, “After decades of using art and political campaigns, I had come to realize that science was the best way to overcome the taboo and break through the oppressive wall of the War on Drugs. For several years, our work at the Beckley Foundation was thought of as fringe and dangerous, not to be taken seriously. But in time, the data we produced spoke for itself. We have also witnessed significant strides in drug policy reform across multiple continents, including decriminalization, legalization, and medicalisation. Just recently, the UN officially shifted its stance towards harm reduction and human rights-based drug policies, and away from prohibitionist criminalisation”.
As she riffs about consciousness, evolution, mental health and the betterment of society, her words seem to echo back to the beginnings of the 20th century, when Mexican sabia, Maria Sabina, made the choice to share the secrets of mystical communion and healing with an American banker.
“We’re lucky to be at this stage of civilization,” Amanda concludes. “We can bring the usage and wisdom of these compounds into the heart of medicine. I’ve been working with the taboos around altered states my whole life, and finally, we might just be getting somewhere, as society finally begins to recognise and respects the highly important role of psychedelics for our health and happiness.”
If readers are interested in supporting the work of the Beckley Foundation, please visit thewebsite.
Henrietta Weekes is a writer, editor, actor and narrator. She divides her time between San Miguel de Allende, New York and Oxford, UK.
The Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN) announced a "caravan of caravans" from Mexico City to Chiapas to commemorate the 1994 uprising. (Galo Cañas/Cuartoscuro)
The Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) has announced a “caravan of caravans” traveling from Mexico City to Chiapas, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Zapatista uprising.
At apress conference in Mexico City, members of the EZLN and the National Indigenous Congress (CNI) said that 600 people from 19 Mexican states, as well as 20 countries, had registered to participate in the caravan, which departs the capital on Dec. 25.
The march will conclude in San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, in the heart of the EZLN communities. (Isabel Mateos/Cuartoscuro)
The caravan will pass through Hidalgo, México State, Puebla and Veracruz before arriving in San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, where the Zapatista Indigenous movement launched an armed uprising on Jan. 1, 1994.
The uprising, which fought back against the impacts of globalization on Chiapas’ Indigenous communities, was timed to coincide with the day the North American Free Trade Agreement took effect. It took Mexican authorities completely by surprise.
Although the fighting lasted only two weeks, the movement seized control of seven towns and garnered a wave of support from international leftist organizations, eventually leading the government to sign the San Andrés Peace Accords in 1996. The EZLN went on to create an “autonomous zone” of governance across parts of Chiapas, although these areas were never officially recognized as such by the Mexican government.
In recent years, however, the EZLN communities have been threatened by the disputes between the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), vying for control of human smuggling and drug trafficking routes in the Guatemalan border region. This conflict has led to a wave of forced displacements, disappearances and murders in Chiapas.On Nov. 6, the EZLN announced that it had decided to dissolve 59 centers, as well as the governance structures known as Zapatista Rebel Autonomous Municipalities (MAREZ) and Good Government Juntas, andrestructure the movement to face this new struggle.
A week later, the EZLN spokesman known as Subcomandante Moisésreleased a statement explaining that the MAREZ were being replaced with a three-tier form of autonomous government known as Local Autonomous Government (GAL) and an increased militia presence.
In this context, the EZLN took the unusual measure of advising its members and supportersnot to attend the celebration for the 30th anniversary of the uprising, warning that “unlike other years, it is not safe.” However, they did confirm that an event would still take place.
The EZLN has called upon Mexican authorities and police forces to allow the caravan free passage, particularly once it arrives in Chiapas. The group also stressed that members of the Fray Bartolomé de las Casas Human Rights Center would accompany the caravan, to monitor human rights and security measures.
The Maya Train is one major public investment project that has contributed to GDP growth in the country's southeast region.(ELIZABETH RUIZ/CUARTOSCURO.COM)
Mexico is now the 12th largest economy in the world, according to International Monetary Fund (IMF) GDP projections for 2023, an improvement of two positions compared to last year.
The IMF updated its nominal GDP forecasts earlier this month, and is now predicting that Mexico’s economic output will be US $1.81 trillion this year.
Mexico’s strong exports this year have contributed to GDP growth. (Cuartoscuro)
Based on that projection, Mexico is the 12th largest economy in 2023 behind the United States (No. 1), China, Germany, Japan, India, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Brazil, Canada and Russia.
Mexico’s nominal GDP was $1.47 trillion last year, making it the 14th largest economy in the world. This year, it passed South Korea and Australia to become the 12th largest economy, according to the IMF data.
The federal government highlighted the improvement in a post to its official account on the X social media platform on Thursday.
“Mexico is among the 20 largest economies in the world. We are ranked 12th and moved up two places with respect to last year,” the post said.
Mexico’s manufacturing sector has seen strong FDI and export revenue this year. (Deacero Ramos Arizpe)
Contradicting that comment, the post included a graph that said that Mexico had moved up four places compared to 2022, as was widely, albeit erroneously, reported.
The Mexican economy has had a better than expected year in 2023. The national statistics agency INEGI reported Friday that the economy grew 3.5% in annual terms between January and October.
The OECD predicted in November 2022 that the Mexican economy would grow by just 1.6% this year, but is now forecasting that GDP will expand 3.4% in 2023.
Foreign investment, which totaled almost $33 billion in the first nine months of the year, is expected to increase in coming years as more companies move into the country as part of the nearshoring phenomenon. Foreign companies announced investments in Mexico totaling US $106 billion in the first 11 months of the year, with that money expected to flow into the country in the next two to three years.
The publication of the IMF data showing that Mexico had become the 12th largest economy in the world came five months after President López Obrador noted that the country was forecast to become one of the world’s top 10 economies in the coming decades.
The Washington D.C.-based financial agency is forecasting that Mexico will pass Russia to become the 11th largest economy next year and remain in that position in 2025, 2026, 2027 and 2028.
Mexico’s nominal GDP is projected to reach $1.99 trillion in 2024, $2.08 trillion in 2025, $2.17 trillion in 2026, $2.26 trillion in 2027 and $2.36 trillion in 2028.
