President Claudia Sheinbaum was on hand on Saturday for the flagging of the new Marinabús under the supervision of Asipona, the National Ports System Administration. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)
The port and resort city of Acapulco, Guerrero, on Mexico’s Pacific Coast launched a new boat-bus service Saturday for tourists and residents to connect to different points of the bay.
Dubbed the Marinabús, the new public transportation service seeks to relieve traffic on the tourist-heavy coastal thoroughfare Costera Miguel Alemán by covering a 10-kilometer route across Acapulco Bay with access to hotels, restaurants, bars, shops and beaches.
The Marinabús takes 90 passengers at a time to such popular points along Acapulco Bay as the Zócalo of Acapulco, Puerto Marqués, Icacos, Caleta and the Miguel Alemán Coastline. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro.com)
The vessel, built of steel by the Acapulco Marine Shipyard, measures 25 meters by 7 meters and has a capacity for 90 passengers. With a 400-horsepower diesel engine, it reaches a maximum speed of 17 kilometers per hour. It is operated by the Navy.
“The Marinabús [is] a new maritime transportation system that travels across the bay quickly, safely and sustainably; it will benefit thousands of people with daily transportation,” President Claudia Sheinbaum wrote on her official X account.
Sheinbaum said that the project shows that the port “is alive, strong and full of future,” noting that it’s part of the reconstruction process following Hurricanes Otis and John.
In October 2023, Acapulco was hit by Otis, a Category 5 hurricane that caused massive destruction, leaving hundreds of thousands of homes damaged and a near-total collapse of infrastructure. The natural disaster resulted in dozens of fatalities and major economic losses. A year later, the beach destination was hit by Hurricane John, leading Sheinbaum to declare a state of emergency in Guerrero.
“This is more than just a means of transport,” Sheinbaum said of the Marinabús. “It is a symbol of reconstruction and hope.”
The service offers 16 daily trips, from 7 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. The stops include the Zócalo of Acapulco, Puerto Marqués, Icacos, Caleta and the Miguel Alemán Coastline.
Prices vary depending on the passenger. Residents pay 30 pesos per ride, domestic visitors 60 pesos, and international tourists 160 pesos. Tickets will be available at boarding points along the bay.
Sheinbaum, on Monday, was also quizzed by reporters about Sinaloa Cartel leader Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada and professional boxer Julio César Chávez Jr., two high-profile Mexicans who face serious criminal charges. (Moisés Pablo/Cuartoscuro)
At her Monday morning press conference, President Claudia Sheinbaum fielded questions about two high-profile Mexicans who face serious criminal charges, one in the United States and the other here in Mexico.
She was also quizzed about an allegation made against her by one of Mexico’s most prominent opposition politicians.
Here is a recap of the president’s Aug. 25 mañanera.
Sheinbaum unconcerned by possible testimony from ‘El Mayo’ in US
A reporter asked the president whether there is “concern” in her government about possible testimony in the United States from Sinaloa Cartel leader Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, who was arrested in the U.S. last year after arriving in New Mexico — against his will — on a private plane with one of the sons of imprisoned drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.
The aforesaid reporter noted that in February, Zambada demanded to be repatriated to Mexico, and highlighted that he said in a letter to the Mexican government that he could cause a “collapse” in the Mexico-United States relationship through his testimony in the U.S.
Sheinbaum responded “no” to the question about whether there was “concern” in her government about the information he could reveal.
Anything that Zambada says that is related to Mexico will have to be supported by “evidence” and by the Federal Attorney General’s Office in Mexico, she said.
The New York Times reported that the septuagenarian will be sentenced to life in prison, noting that he “pleaded guilty to one count of taking part in a continuing criminal enterprise and one count of racketeering conspiracy.”
It remains to be seen whether Zambada will name any of the politicians that he says colluded with the Sinaloa Cartel, but that currently appears to be unlikely. His lawyer, Frank Perez, said in a statement that his client’s plea agreement doesn’t include any commitment to cooperate with U.S. authorities.
“The agreement that he reached with the U.S. authorities is a matter of public record. It is not a cooperation agreement, and I can state categorically that there is no deal under which he is cooperating with the United States Government or any other government,” Perez said.
In a post to X, Ioan Grillo, a veteran Mexico-based journalist who specializes in investigating and reporting on organized crime, wrote:
“I think it’s unlikely Mayo will testify against Mexican politicians (unpopular opinion).
– He is going to die in prison anyway.
– He could get better jail conditions by helping with asset seizures.
– He has family in Mexico to protect.
– Why take the stand? (Maybe, I’m wrong)”
Sheinbaum declines to comment on conduct of judge who released Julio César Chávez Jr. from prison
A reporter asked the president about the decision of a judge who ruled that former world middleweight boxing champion Julio César Chávez Jr. could await trial on organized crime and firearms offenses outside prison.
“It’s what the judge decided, that’s it,” Sheinbaum said.
Later in her press conference, she said that it was up to the Federal Attorney General’s Office to decide whether to challenge the decision or not.
Like her predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Sheinbaum has, at times, been critical of judges for releasing suspects from preventive detention before they face trial.
Sheinbaum’s war of words with PAN senator continues
A reporter noted that National Action Party (PAN) Senator Lilly Téllez was back on Fox News on the weekend and accused Sheinbaum of threatening to prosecute her.
“Yes, I am afraid and the president has threatened me, to proceed against me with criminal prosecution, to get me out of the Senate and get me in jail just because I told you, in this space, in Fox News, what is the reality of our country with the cartels,” the PAN senator said.
Asked whether Téllez’s remarks were true, Sheinbaum responded: “No, false.”
Sheinbaum subsequently said it was “not a minor issue that a senator gave an interview to a foreign media outlet calling for intervention” from the United States.
On Monday, Sheinbaum acknowledged that the dispute had blown up on social media.
She subsequently stressed that her government has no intention to strip Téllez of her legislative immunity (known in Mexico as the “fuero“) or file a criminal complaint against her.
“But it is important that the people of Mexico know who is who and what they say,” Sheinbaum said.
“Now, they’re once again running with the ‘narco-government’ thing,” she said, adding that the tactic failed in last year’s federal elections — which the ruling Morena party dominated — “because the people know … [the claim] is false.”
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
Mexico repeated its 2023 Cal Ripken World Series championship by beating the United States 10-2 in the final game of the Under-8 tournament. (Cal Ripken Baseball/Facebook)
For the second time in three years, Mexico’s U-8 baseball team won the Cal Ripken World Series with a convincing 10-2 win over the United States in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, on Sunday.
The star of the final game was pitcher Milán “Búfalo” Zazueta who struck out 10 batters in four innings of work. Reliever Carlos López closed out the victory, completing the last two innings and retiring the final batter via an easy ground ball back to the mound,sending players and coaches storming the field in jubilation.
Several players keyed Mexico’s offensive explosion, with outfielder Humberto Huizar knocking in three runs. Catcher Abraham Enríquez had two hits and two RBIs, while second baseman Roberto Cruz and third baseman Carlos Verdugo each contributed three hits.
Mexico scored twice in the first inning and put up runs in four of the five innings they came to the plate. The U.S. team narrowed the lead to 2-1 in the top of the second, but Mexico outscored their rivals 8-1 thereafter.
The U-8 Player Pitch division is for 7- and 8-year-olds (players who turn 9 during the season remain eligible) and, unlike the U-8 Rookie division in which a pitching machine is utilized, features pitchers throwing from a small mound.
Eight of the 12 kids on Mexico’s roster hail from the state of Sinaloa — seven from the state capital of Culiacán and one from Mazatlán — while the other four ballplayers are from the state of Baja California — two each from Ensenada and Tijuana.
“We extend our sincere congratulations to our champions and a profound thank you to the parents, managers, coaches, delegates and everyone who made this team project possible. This triumph reflects discipline, commitment and unity.”
A team from the same region of Mexico led by two youngsters from Mazatlán — Elías Córdova and Santiago Fuentevilla — won the same U-8 title in 2023.
Designed for players aged 4-12, Cal Ripken Baseball — named for the legendary Baltimore Orioles stars Cal Ripken, Jr. — is a division of the Babe Ruth League, an international youth baseball and softball league based in the U.S.
Unlike Little League Baseball, which hosts a World Series for teams from around the world, the Cal Ripken Baseball World Series only features teams from the U.S. and Mexico.
Mexico’s Little League team — from Chihuahua city — advanced to the quarterfinals of the loser’s bracket before being eliminated by Japan on Aug. 19.
With ApoyArte, the goal is to distribute 500 million pesos ($26.8 million) to 17,000 producers from various regions of the country this year, particularly in the Costa Chica municipalities of Guerrero and Oaxaca. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum unveiled a new credit program for Indigenous female artisans during an official visit to Mexico’s Pacific Guerrero state on Sunday, calling it “ApoyArte.”
The program’s name combines the words to help (apoyar) and art (arte) and aims to promote the skills of Mexico’s Indigenous women by offering them interest-free loans of up to 30,000 pesos (US $1,608) with extended repayment terms.
Sheinbaum and Governor Evelyn Salgado met with women artisans from the Amuzgo community in the Xochistlahuaca municipality of Guerrero. (Claudia Sheinbaum/X)
“Being the first (female president) forces me to look at all the people, but especially at the women of our country: rural women, working women, young women, older women, but above all, it forces me to look at Indigenous women, those who for centuries were the most invisible, the most excluded, and the most forgotten,” Sheinbaum said during Sunday’s presentation.
The program, operated by Financiera del Bienestar (Finabien), will help artisans cover the textile costs required to develop their businesses, seeking to strengthen the financial autonomy of Indigenous and Afro-Mexican women across Mexico.
During the tour, Sheinbaum and Guerrero’s Governor Evelyn Salgado met with women artisans from the Amuzgo community in the Xochistlahuaca municipality who continue to use the backstrap loom, an ancient textile-making technique that the government seeks to preserve.
As part of the program, Mexico’s National Fund for the Promotion of Handicrafts (Fonart) will provide financial advice to the beneficiaries, as well as guarantee the sale of huipiles and other garments made by participating artisans at a fair price.
To date, 11,000 loan applications have been received, with approvals delivered to almost 6,000 women, supported by 170 million pesos (US $9.1 million) in funding.
The goal is to distribute 500 million pesos ($26.8 million) to 17,000 producers from various regions of the country this year, particularly in the Costa Chica municipalities of Guerrero and Oaxaca, where Indigenous and Afro-Mexican communities are concentrated.
Artisans in Guerrero and Oaxaca use backstrap looms to weave traditional huipiles and other textiles, using symbolism-rich designs. (Dassaev Téllez Adame/Cuartoscuro)
Sheinbaum’s government designated 2025 as the Year of the Indigenous Woman.
The study showed that while Mexico has a high entrepreneurial spirit, there is a significant lack of new business creation, largely due to funding restrictions and a lack of business acumen, a gap that programs such as ApoyArte seek to fill.
INEGI also reported that the Mexican economy grew 0.9% in the first six months of the year compared to the same period of 2024. (Mireya Novo/Cuartoscuro)
The Mexican economy grew 0.6% in the second quarter of 2025 compared to the previous three-month period and 1.2% in annual terms, the national statistics agency INEGI reported.
The 1.2% annual growth rate was unchanged from INEGI’s preliminary data.
INEGI also reported that the Mexican economy grew 0.9% in the first six months of the year compared to the same period of 2024.
The 0.6% quarter-over-quarter growth rate between April and June came after a 0.3% sequential expansion in the first quarter of 2025 and a 0.6% contraction in the final three months of last year.
The Mexican economy has grown in 2025 despite the United States’ imposition of tariffs on a range of imports from Mexico. However, the annual growth rate in the first six months of the year is the weakest since the COVID pandemic.
Separately, and despite U.S. tariffs, foreign direct investment in Mexico rose to nearly US $34.3 billion in the first six months of 2025, an increase of over 10% compared to the same period of last year.
Growth rates by sector
Over 60% of Mexico’s GDP is generated by the tertiary, or services, sector, while almost 34% comes from the secondary sector, which includes manufacturing, construction, mining and activities related to electricity, gas and water.
Only 4% of national GDP is generated by the primary sector, which includes farming and fishing and forestry activities.
Here are the 2025 growth rates by sector.
Q2 vs Q1
Compared to the first quarter of 2025, the tertiary sector recorded the strongest growth between April and June, expanding 0.8%.
The secondary sector, which includes manufacturing, construction, mining and electricity generation, grew 0.7%, while the primary sector contracted 2.4% compared to the first quarter of the year.
Annual growth in Q2
In sharp contrast to its quarter-over-quarter result, the primary sector grew 2.6% in annual terms between April and June.
The tertiary sector grew 1.8% annually, while the secondary sector contracted 0.3% compared to the second quarter of 2024.
Annual growth in first 6 months of 2025
The primary sector grew 4.6% annually between January and June, while the tertiary sector expanded 1.5%.
The secondary sector contracted 0.8% compared to the first six months of 2024.
Other need-to-know economic data
INEGI reported on Friday that Mexico’s annual headline inflation rate was 3.49% in the first half of August, down from 3.51% across July.
The colors and sights of San Miguel de Allende are an almost meditative experience. Resident Bruce Sarbit explains what it's like to roam the streets of the best small city in the world. (All photos by George Aronson and Lynn Padwe)
For nine years now, we’ve been wintering the worst three months of the Canadian winter in San Miguel de Allende. It has become our second home. Situated approximately 1,900 meters (6,200 feet) above sea level on a vast plateau in the central highlands of Mexico, San Miguel de Allende blends dramatic geography, colonial architecture and vibrant culture.
The city was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2008 and has repeatedly been named as the best small city in the world by Travel + Leisure Magazine. There are so many reasons, among them that it’s charmingly rustic, welcoming, warm and friendly. For many of us, however, it’s also that San Miguel de Allende is an incredible stimulus to the senses.
San Miguel de Allende is a whirl of color, vibrancy and life.
A synesthetic experience of a city
In addition to the five main senses — sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell — particularly important in San Miguel de Allende is “proprioception.” For the uninitiated, that’s how the brain grasps where the body, including its limbs and muscles, is in space. Many visitors to San Miguel de Allende, challenged by its cobblestone streets and narrow sidewalks, can attest to its impact on their balance, not to mention their knees and ankles.
Some people are blessed with a special sense called “synesthesia,” which transcends the traditional five we all know by combining them. Stimulation of one sense leads to involuntary experiences in a second sense. For instance, people who see colors when listening to music, see shapes when they encounter certain scents, or experience tastes when looking at certain words, may be said to have synesthesia.
But, here’s the thing: Even without having synesthesia, almost all of us in San Miguel de Allende experience an amalgam of senses at every turn.
Sight, perceived through the eyes, is a complex process. The rods, more sensitive to light, help us to see in dim settings, while the cones function in bright light, enabling us to see the colors of San Miguel de Allende, where no two ever seem to clash.
The sights of San Miguel de Allende
The cobbled streets of San Miguel slope across the hillsides.
There are the undulating cobblestoned streets lined with vivid, multicoloured colonial-era architecture, many of them concealing lush gardens behind imposing, stately doors.
Ochre, sienna, cobalt blue, and deep reds paint the colonial buildings, juxtaposed with gorgeous purply-blue jacarandas, red frangipani and bougainvillea draped over stone walls.
Churches
Stately doors are adorned with flowers, wood branches, ornaments and door-knockers. Well-coifed trees, benches and the gazebo in the marvellous Jardín Allende frame the picturesque Parroquia.
The Parroquia de San Miguel Arcangel, its façade by Don Zeferino Gutiérrez, was inspired by postcards from Gothic European cathedrals, especially that of Cologne. When lit dramatically at night, it is mesmerizing — its pink towers rising into crisp blue skies.
The Baroque San Rafael or Santa Escuela Church, whose clock is the city’s official timekeeper, features bells that toll every 15 minutes.
There’s also the Oratorio de St. Philip Neri, its Baroque-style sandstone façade covered with profuse vegetative ornamentation, and the Templo de San Juan de Dios, the hospital next door that’s now a school.
The towering spire of San Miguel’s Parroquia dominates almost any view of the city.
Consider the Church of the Immaculate Conception (Templo de la Purísima Concepción), its construction based on Paris’ Les Invalides. Currently a convent for nuns, its dome was added by Don Zeferino Gutiérrez.
Seek out the stately great snowy egrets nesting in the lofty jacaranda trees over the wash basins of El Chorro. El Chorro was the meeting point for the women who, from different parts of the city, came to wash their clothes with the spring water that gave rise to the city. Look for it and the incredible nest of parrots on Calle Alameda.
Streets
Take a leisurely stroll down Tercera Cerrada de Pila Seca, also known as Rinconada de la Aldea.
Stare in awe at the spectacular sunsets that bathe the city in warm, golden light, viewed from rooftop terraces such as Los Milagros Terraza, Quince, La Azotea, the Rosewood’s Luna, or from the Mirador or hilltops. They’re breathtaking.
Ponder the Calle Querebrada Bridge, as one looks west at Canal from the Bellas Artes, or that grand hall of art and design, the Fabrica Aurora, housed in a former textile factory.
Visit Casa de los Soles, its hotel courtyard covered in thousands of ceramic sun sculptures, or the hulking adobe and fieldstone Instituto Allende, an art education center for more than 70 years, now a hub of lifelong learning, its walls covered with the expressionist works of David Leonardo Chávez.
The colonial architecture of San Miguel begs visitors to surrender themselves to a kind of visual hedonism.
Culture
Take in the elegant Bellas Artes (El Centro Culturál Ignacio Ramírez, aka “El Nigromante”), where the monastery of La Concepción church became a fine-arts school housing the magnificent murals of Pedro Martínez and the extraordinary unfinished mural by David Alfaro Siqueiros.
Check out the grand Biblioteca, the largest English-language library in Mexico, with a fabulous ceiling mural in its bookstore.
One can scarcely blink, as galleries, hand-painted tiles, artisanal storefronts and intricate ironwork catch the eye at every turn.
As does art by Friedeberg, Carrington, Levanthal, Cranston, Brooks and so many others who made San Miguel de Allende their home and inspiration.
The panoply of Guadeloupe murals, many featuring Mexican themes like Huichol mythology, some more abstract, reveals the multicultural sides of San Miguel de Allende.
There’s the grandeur of the colonial-style Rosewood Hotel tucked amid lush gardens and colorful bursts of flowers.
Even the quietest, most unassuming street corners are filled with life.
And El Charco del Ingenio, whose name comes from a spring-fed pool nestled in an impressive canyon with cacti and other succulent Mexican plants, many of which are rare, threatened or in danger of extinction.
The Spring Equinox celebration and the Festival of the Sun are also feasts for the senses, celebrated with a concert in El Charco’s natural amphitheater.
Nor should one fail to appreciate Parque Guadiana, with its variety of trees and plants, its fountains and butterfly garden.
Admire Parque Zeferino Gutierrez, with its trail surrounding a lake, a beautiful fountain, and the impressive statue called “La Giganta.”
Stop by the Museo de Esquina, which has a wonderful collection of Mexico’s folkloric toys, or the Mask Museum, which boasts an amazing retrospective of Indigenous masks and their ceremonial use.
Even the cemeteries are filled with wonder.
Respectfully stroll the cemetery, Our Lady of Guadalupe, with its traditional pantheon of gravesites.
Markets
Bask in the profusion of colors at the bustling San Juan de Dios Market, the indoor section featuring balloon-decorated stalls with magnificent baskets of fruit and vegetables piled high. Outdoor stalls, which sprawl for several blocks, offer wares ranging from raw meats to flowers and clothing.
The Mercado de Artesanías beckons, too, with its stalls spilling over with Mexican pewter platters, bright ceramics, jewelry, picture frames, mirrors, bowls and woven tablecloths. At its eastern end is the local fruit, flower, and vegetable mercado, Ignacio Ramírez Market, located behind Plaza Civica, where the women in traditional dress sit on the floor surrounded by piles of herbs and cactus leaves, or their baskets of freshly prepared tortillas.
At Mercado Del Carmen, a food court promises bars, an Italian restaurant, Japanese desserts, and gourmet tacos. Numerous vendors sell wild mushrooms, local honey, and fresh juices.
Then there’s the monster Tuesday Market stretching nearly 1,000 feet under giant tarps. Beneath them and for sale are “seasonal and imported produce, antiques, blown glass, hand-carved furniture, pirated DVDs, computers, tablets, boom-boxes, handmade huaraches, Barbie dolls, goldfish, pet birds, tools, bicycles, buttons, used and new clothes, fresh fish and local honey and cheeses.”
And the wonderful Saturday Organic Market (Tianguis Orgánico),where people indulge in delicious organic breakfasts as they shop for organic produce and prepared foods, clothing, rugs, and jewelry.
Conchoneros dance in the streets.
Did I mention the street vendor food carts selling tacos, ice cream and BBQ?
People
Religious observances are frequent but anything but common. There’s the Blessing of the Animals, celebrating the feast day of San Antonio Abad. Pets and farm animals, from goldfish to donkeys, are brought to the churches to be blessed by the priest.
One may also be greeted by church bells, dances and fireworks, the arrival of pilgrims carrying banners, singing songs, chanting and praying for the peregrinación, or pilgrimage, to the small town of San Juan de los Lagos and its small shrine to the Virgin Mary. The pilgrimage is the largest in the Western Hemisphere, with some three million people from across Mexico, nearly 20,000 of them starting in San Miguel and environs, walking and sleeping out in the open for nine days.
Behold as well the Festival of Our Lord of the Conquest when the faithful come to the Parroquia to recite prayers, one for each of the 33 years of Jesus’ life, and where Indigenous concheros wearing brightly decorated costumes and plumed headdresses dance from dawn until dusk to the deep, steady beat of large drums in honour of “Christ of the Conquest,” a statue in the church representing the acceptance of Christ by Mexico’s Indigenous people.
And once a year, on Allende’s Birthday, there’s a joyous parade of school marching bands celebrating the town’s iconic hero, down the Ancha de San Antonio to El Centro and the Parroquia. This year, on the stage in front, the San Miguel de Allende symphony played before the most magnificent fireworks we have ever experienced. As we ate our 2-for-1 paletas, we stood in awe, watching, certain that we’d never forget the splendid sight we were witnessing.
Bruce Sarbit is a San Miguel de Allende resident.
George Aronson and Lynn Padwe are professional photographers who split their time between San Miguel de Allende and New York City.
Officials estimate that between 300 and 350 crocodiles live in the Bay of Banderas, which forms Puerto Vallarta's coastline. (Unsplash)
Authorities in the state of Jalisco are set to launch the second phase of a strategy designed to reduce conflicts between people and crocodiles in Puerto Vallarta, home to several hundred of the protected reptiles.
The state’s environmental protection agency (Semadet) announced last week that the next stage of the Strategy for Responsible Coexistence between Humans and Crocodiles will begin the first week of September.
Jalisco environmental authorities are convinced that a well-respected plan with a set of rules for interaction is the best way for humans and crocodiles to coexist safely in Puerto Vallarta. (@noticiaspv/on X)
This comes on the heels of several alarming incidents in Puerto Vallarta last month, including the killing of two adult crocodiles — one found decapitated with some of its tail cut off in the protected El Salado Estuary, another tied up by its snout and legs with bullet wounds to the head.
In addition, lifeguards at one popular beach captured a 3.7-meter (12-foot) crocodile and relocated it to a safe area outside the tourist zone.
Officials said a big part of the bilingual plan is already being disseminated through social media and includes a partnership with local hotels to get information in English to tourists.
Using infographics with clear and accessible language, the materials explain the ecological importance of crocodiles, how to behave in their presence and what actions to take in the event of an encounter.
“The important thing is to stop the negative interactions that have led to accidents and consolidate a long-term strategy for healthy coexistence,” said José Daniel Graff Pérez, Semadet’s director general of natural resources.
He described the information as “simple, engaging and non-scientific” and that it can be “understood by both children and adults.”
🐊 Hoy, en el Día Nacional del Cocodrilo, recordamos la importancia de respetar su hábitat y convivir de manera responsable con esta especie.
The second phase will begin with a working group that includes state and municipal authorities, academics and specialists.
Short-term goals of this phase include posting warning signs and establishing clearer responsibilities for institutions.
Officials estimate between 300 and 350 crocodiles live in the Bay of Banderas, with only about 45 breeding adults.
Roughly 60 live within the El Salado Estuary, where that one croc was found decapitated.
“It was a disturbing and violent incident,” Graf Pérez said, noting that the crime was committed by intruders who had entered the protected area. “With such small numbers, the viability of the population is at risk.”
The area’s beaches are places of transit for crocodiles, who often move through the sea because their natural habitat of estuaries and mangroves have shrunk due to urban growth and tourism.
Moreover, the rainy season expands local waterways, encouraging crocodiles to seek new feeding and breeding grounds. As a result, crocodile sightings increase around this time of year.
The breeding season, which peaks in July and August, is considered a particularly sensitive period for the species.
Rubio first expressed his intention to visit Mexico in May. Three months later, it may finally happen. (Marco Rubio/X)
President Claudia Sheinbaum said Monday that it is likely that United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio will come to Mexico next week to sign a new bilateral security agreement.
🇲🇽🇺🇸 Sheinbaum anuncia posible visita de Marco Rubio a México
La presidenta @Claudiashein informó que el secretario de Estado de EUA, @marcorubio, podría visitar México en la primera semana de septiembre para firmar el acuerdo de seguridad bilateral; sin embargo, aclaró que la… pic.twitter.com/PHb4eBWCrj
Asked whether the new Mexico-U.S. security agreement would be signed during Rubio’s visit, Sheinbaum responded: “Yes, that’s the idea.”
The president has said on repeated occasions this month that the new security agreement is “ready.”
She said last week that the bilateral pact was on the verge of being signed and is “fundamentally” based on “sovereignty, mutual trust, territorial respect … and coordination without subordination.”
“They are the four principles,” Sheinbaum said last Tuesday.
Pact to be signed amid tension in the Mexico-US relationship
The signing of a new Mexico-U.S. security agreement in the first week of September would come after an eventful and turbulent August.
On Aug. 8, The New York Times reported that U.S. President Donald Trump had “secretly signed a directive to the Pentagon to begin using military force against certain Latin American drug cartels that his administration has deemed terrorist organizations.”
“We cooperate [with the U.S. on security], we collaborate, but there will be no invasion. That’s ruled out … because, in addition to what we’ve stated in all our conversations, it’s not allowed, nor is it part of any agreement,” she said at her Aug. 8 press conference.
Earlier in August, the president said that a U.S. military intervention in Mexico is “not on the table,” and throughout the month — and indeed during the entirety of her presidency to date — she has stressed that her government would never accept any kind of violation of Mexico’s sovereignty.
Also in August, Sheinbaum asserted that her government hasn’t entered into an agreement with the DEA after the U.S. agency announced what it called a “bold bilateral initiative to dismantle cartel gatekeepers and combat synthetic drug trafficking.”
Sheinbaum’s frequent pushback to U.S. announcements and rhetoric has occurred as Trump and other U.S. officials have talked tough about their desire, and intention, to combat Mexican cartels that smuggle large quantities of fentanyl and other narcotics into the U.S.
Sheinbaum revealed in May that she had rejected an offer from the U.S. president to send the U.S. army into Mexico to combat criminal groups such as the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, both of which are now designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the U.S. government.
President Sheinbaum has sent 10,000 National Guard troops to patrol the Mexico-U.S. border as part of an agreement with the United States. (Galo Cañas Rodríguez/Cuartoscuro)
The pressure on Mexico from Trump, largely in the form of the threat — and imposition — of tariffs has been relentless. His administration has even asserted that “Mexican drug trafficking organizations have an intolerable alliance with the government of Mexico,” and that “the government of Mexico has afforded safe havens for the cartels to engage in the manufacturing and transportation of dangerous narcotics.”
All these factors, and others, add up to a complex and tense bilateral security environment even as Sheinbaum and Trump maintain that they, and their governments, have a good working relationship.
The signing of a new security pact between Mexico and the United States should give greater clarity and renewed impetus to the joint fight against organized crime, but the complexity and tension in the security relationship will likely remain, as will the calls of some U.S. officials and politicians — and some Mexican ones as well — for the U.S. to adopt a more proactive, and even bellicose, posture, against Mexican cartels.
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
Founder of Mi Gran Esperanza, Bertha Padilla de Pérez, with some of the children her charity has helped over the years. (Mi Gran Esperanza)
Cancer is frightening enough when it afflicts adults. To see it strike children is truly heartbreaking. But what about children whose families have no insurance and no resources?
In 1995, Bertha Padilla de Pérez came upon such children in Guadalajara’s Fray Antonio Alcalde Hospital — too many of them.
Children and volunteers at the 30th anniversary celebrations. (Mi Gran Esperanza)
Bertha had been invited to tour the hospital by her cousin, pediatrician Horacio Padilla.
“How can I help?” she asked him.
In short order, she and 14 friends set up an Asociación Civil, a nonprofit organization collecting food, clothes, and medicines for the needy families.
They called themselves Mi Gran Esperanza, My Big Hope, and, little by little, they reached the point where they could buy a house where family members of the children — who came from all over Jalisco and neighboring states — could stay, free of charge.
6,500 kids later
“This is how we started out, with zero pesos,” I was told by Mayte Medrano, the present-day Director of Mi Gran Esperanza, “and during the last 30 years we’ve been able to help over 6,500 patients. Today, many of those patients have grown up, completely recuperated, with families of their own.”
Erick Cervantes and Mayte Medrano with some of the children that Mi Gran Esperanza has helped over the years.(Erick Cervantes)
At the moment, Mi Gran Esperanza is helping some 500 families.
“We provide them with a food basket, medicine, treatments like immunotherapy, x-rays, or mammograms, but we also give them workshops, which is very important when the problem is cancer. They need healthy food and good hygiene and we make sure they get the message.
“My job as Director is to keep funds coming in so all this can go on, to contact government, foundations, embassies, corporations, to schedule events, and to train an interdisciplinary team.”
Transparency
Medrano told me she is working on ways to make Mi Gran Esperanza more international, so donations they receive from abroad will be tax-deductible in the donor’s country.
“I’m thinking about people in the U.S.,” she told me. “They are very generous with causes like ours. Here in Mexico, there is more skepticism. So one of the pillars of our organization is transparency. We want people to be sure that every peso they give to Mi Gran Esperanza goes directly to the patients’ treatments. This has become part of our reputation. People know that we do things well.”
One of the ways Mi Gran Esperanza raises money is by holding a bazaar once or twice a month.
I asked one of the volunteers at the bazaar, expat John Baird, what it’s like.
Knick-knacks and a coffin
“After my wife died,” Baird told me, “I was looking for something to do, so I started going to their facility in downtown Guadalajara and offering to help. They have three or four trucks that go out every day and make the rounds, and they pick up recycled paper, bottle caps, knick-knacks, furniture and clothes, which they bring to the recycling center where it gets sorted by volunteers like me. By the way, you never know what is going to be in a bag or a box when you open it. For example, we found a miniature, handmade coffin three weeks ago. There were 43 hearts painted on it, so I knew it referred to the 43 students in Guerrero who disappeared in 2014. This coffin was probably carried in a march.
“Once a month, they also receive donations of food items, which they give to people who have a family member being treated in the Civil Hospital. I help hand out the food when I can.
“I usually go there twice a month. It’s sweaty, good work for a good cause. It’s fun!”
You can find just about anything at Mi Gran Esperanza’s bazaar. (John Baird)
Since Mi Gran Esperanza has been around for 30 years, I asked Mayte Medrano if she could put me in contact with one of the children they helped years ago, now grown to adulthood.
From cancer patient to manager
“That’s easy,” she said. “We have a staff member right here who came to Mi Gran Esperanza 25 years ago with cancer and today he is our Communications Manager. Meet Erick Cervantes!”
“I’m from Guadalajara,” Cervantes explained. “When I was seven years old, they discovered I had a form of Hodgkin’s Disease. So I went to the old Civil Hospital, and then they accepted me in the new building. That’s when I got help from Mi Gran Esperanza for medicines that I needed and for treatments that the hospital couldn’t provide.
“For ten months, I received chemotherapy at the hospital and 20 or 25 sessions of radiation therapy. After that, they pronounced me free of cancer, but for the next 10 years, I was monitored and had to make regular visits to the hospital for studies and checkups.
“So I was able to go study Business Administration… and today I’m a manager at Mi Gran Esperanza,
“I’m happy to be giving something back to Mi Gran Esperanza for what it gave to me and to my mother.”
John Pint has lived near Guadalajara, Jalisco, for more than 30 years and is the author of “A Guide to West Mexico’s Guachimontones and Surrounding Area” and co-author of “Outdoors in Western Mexico.” More of his writing can be found on his website.
“Just like Tajín, these shades bring boldness, warmth and a spark of joy to every occasion," the Mexican-American actress said of the set. (Selena Gómez/Instagram)
Cosmetic brand Rare Beauty, owned by U.S. actress and singer of Mexican descent Selena Gómez, has launched an exclusive, limited-edition makeup kit in collaboration with the Mexican seasoning Tajín, which is now available for purchase in Mexico.
“This collab is a celebration of what makes us unique — our culture, our energy and the moments that bring us together,” Gómez said in a press statement. “Just like Tajín, these shades bring boldness, warmth and a spark of joy to every occasion.”
The limited edition set includes a 0.11 fluid ounce bottle of Positive Light Luminizing Lip Gloss in the Classic shade, a terracotta color with gold and copper shimmer, and a 0.25 fluid ounce bottle of Soft Pinch Liquid Blush in the Chamoy shade, a deep red with a brown undertone. Both offer warm and original tones, inspired by two typical Mexican flavors and colors.
Tajín Classic is made from a mixture of dried chilies, dehydrated lemon and sea salt, while Chamoy is a Mexican seasoning that combines sweet, sour, salty and spicy flavors. But do not fret – the lipsticks do not actually contain Tajín.
The set costs approximately 730 Mexican pesos in Mexico (US $39) and is available online through Rare Beauty’s official website and at Sephora México, both in physical and digital stores.Customers are limited to two sets per order.
Consumers’ response has been positive on social media, with comments expressing nostalgia and enthusiasm.
“The way my sisters and I would play with chamoy as lip gloss growing up,” an Instagram user commented on Rare Beauty and Tajín’s post promoting the collaboration. “Amoooo (love it),” she wrote.
Another user said in a TikTok video that the new collaboration was “made in heaven.”
Beyond the fun of it, Gómez said that she chose Tajín because it’s a product she grew up with and that she has consumed throughout her life. The actress’s father, Ricardo Joel Gómez, is originally from Monterrey, Nuevo León. However, her grandparents, Mary and Ricardo, are from Guadalajara, Jalisco, the very birthplace of Tajín.
Gómez, who rose to fame as a Disney Channel child star, has expressed how proud she is to have Mexican roots.
“I’m a proud third-generation Mexican-American, and my family’s journey and sacrifices helped me get to where I am today,” she told Vogue in an interview. Even after her parents’ divorce when she was five years old, Gómez has said that her father’s family instilled in her “a diversity of customs and traditions” that made her life “much richer” and helped her become the person that she is today.
This isn’t Gómez’s first collaboration with a food brand in a nod to her Mexican heritage. In May, she teamed up with Oreo to launch limited-edition cookies inspired by horchata, a Mexican drink made from a base of rice water, condensed milk and cinnamon.
