THE BEANS VISIT MANZANILLO AND ACAPULCO IN MEXICO

Pancho Villa Statue

This morning, The Beans have visited Manzanillo in the Mexican state of Colima. The city, located on the Pacific Ocean, contains Mexico's busiest port that is responsible for handling Pacific cargo for the Mexico City area. It is the largest producing municipality for the business sector and tourism in the state of Colima.

The city is known as the sailfish capital of the world.  Since 1957, it has hosted important national and international fishing competitions, such as the Dorsey Tournament, making it a very attractive fishing destination. Manzanillo has become one of the country's most important tourist resorts, and its excellent hotels and restaurants continue to meet the demands of both national and international tourism.

More information: Visit Mexico

In 1522, Gonzalo de Sandoval, under orders from conquistador Hernan Cortes, dropped anchor in the Bay of Salagua, north of Manzanillo Bay, looking for safe harbors and good shipbuilding sites.

Manzanillo Bay was discovered in 1527 by navigator Alvaro de Saavedra, naming it Santiago de la Buena Esperanza, or Santiago's Bay of Good Hope. Manzanillo was the third port created by the Spanish in the Viceroyalty of New Spain. It became a departure point for important expeditions. Cortes visited the bay twice to protect his galleons from Portuguese pirates. 

Over the next 300 years, the Pacific Coast’s history is filled with accounts of pirates from Portugal, England, France and even Spain assaulting, looting and burning ships for their rich cargos.

Pancho Villa and Emiliano Zapata

In 1825 the Port of Manzanillo opened, in recently independent Mexico, and so named because of the abundant groves of native Manzanilla trees that were used extensively in the early days of shipbuilding. Manzanillo was raised to the status of a city on June 15, 1873. The railroad to Colima was completed in 1889.

In 1908, President Porfirio Diaz designated Manzanillo as an official port of entry to Mexico. It was the state capital of Colima from February 20 to March 1, 1915, while Pancho Villa’s troops were threatening to capture the city of Colima.

More information: Lonely Planet

This afternoon, the family has travelled to Acapulco de Juárez. This city, commonly called Acapulco, is a city, municipality and major seaport in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific coast of Mexico, 380 kilometres south of Mexico City.

Acapulco is located on a deep, semicircular bay and has been a port since the early colonial period of Mexico's history. It is a port of call for shipping and cruise lines running between Panama and San Francisco, California, United States. 

Emely, Nereyda's friend, is a professional jumper

The city of Acapulco is the largest in the state, far larger than the state capital Chilpancingo. Acapulco is also Mexico's largest beach and balneario resort city.

The city is one of Mexico's oldest beach resorts, which came into prominence in the 1940s throu 1960s as a getaway for Hollywood stars and millionaires. Acapulco is still famous and still attracts many tourists, although most are now from Mexico itself.

The name Acapulco comes from Nahuatl language Aca-pōl-co, and means where the reeds were destroyed or washed away. The de Juárez was added to the official name in 1885 to honor Benito Juárez, former President of Mexico (1806–1872). The seal for the city shows broken reeds or cane. 

More information: Acapulco

You have to fill the planet with violins and guitars 

instead of so much shrapnel.

Chavela Vargas

NATALIA BEAN REMEMBERS THE UNITED MEXICAN STATES

Natalia Bean with a Mexican mask

Really, Mexico is called Mexican United States, in the North of America. It has 31 states and the capital, that’s mean that there are 32 states. It has two coasts, at west we find the Pacific Ocean, at east Gulf of México and the Caribbean Sea. 

At Yucatan Peninsula, we find the Riviera Maya, I only know Cancun, and its seemed nothing wonderful. That depends of feeling of each one, because I don’t like beach, in general. Because of Guadalajara, Jalisco is in the east part of México, that place is more known for me.

GULF OF MEXICO, RIVIERA MAYA

Cancun: It’s situated in Riviera Maya. It’s a touristic place. It’s the second most expensive place. But you can choose cheap places to stay. Snorkel.

PACIFIC OCEAN

Manzanillo: You can find wild animals at the entrance of hotels.

Puerto Vallarta: Green waters and vegetation. It is a Mexican beach resort city situated on the Pacific Ocean's Bahía de Banderas. There, you can practice adventure sports.

Ixtapa Zihuatanejo:   Fishing village, all are almost conserved. Cobbled streets and tiles. Its located at de bay of Zihua.

Acapulco: Humidity place and template. Here you can find the clavadistas. Around 1950  was a select place for Hollywood stars. There were filmed a lot of movies. You can find some different places, like virgin and popular beaches. The narco turns Acapulco into one of the most dangerous places.

And obviously, México D.F., as a child I visit The children city but now does not exist. There are some places to get fun as funny parks.

In México we can find some interesting places, not touristic, but great. Like the Tianguis. They are markets were local and foreign peoples will expose their art craft and typically food. There is no drinking water, so in each house we can find water filters.

FOOD
 
Some of names of food are in Nahualt (Azteca language). It is based on tortillas of corn, cheese, acid cream, onion, chili, nopales, beans, lettuce, avocado, coriander, green lemon, potatoes and cocking meat.

Tortilla: Boiled water and corn flour.

Tlacoyo: Blue corn tortilla with nopal and black beans.

Elote: Is the cob (corn) with chile, cheese and mayonnaise and esquite. It is the same but all the grain are out from the cob. Grilled corn.

Taco El Pastor: Corn tortilla with beef, longaniza and spicy sauce and coriander.

Taco de canasta: Are made at home and sold in the streets.

Flautas: Rolled tortillas full of chicken.

Quesadilla:  Tortilla fills of cheese, Oaxaca cheese and sometimes has spicy chorizo.

Quesadilla made of blue corn: Filled with flower of pumpkin.

Gorditas: Grilled fat end filled tortillas. They are like an Arab bread.

Tamales: Made with corn leaves and filled.

Fruite Juice: Beside all of those places.

Sope: Blue tortilla filled with black beans, cream, lettuce and cheese.

Green sauce: Green tomatoes, chile jalapeño, onion, garlic, black pepper and salt.

Chicharrón: Fried tortilla with cabbage, cream, avocado, tomato and lemon.

Gordita de maíz: With corn, sugar, vanille, carbonate.

Fried banana: With cream, cajeta.

Sweet lemon: Lemon peel filled with coco and honey.

Tamarindo Ball: Tamarindo and sugar.

Atole: Beverage with cinnamon corn milk.

The Vengeance of Moctezuma is the stomachache that suffers the tourist because of Mexican food.

THE DEATH DAY

It is a celebration to venerate the dead.

Earth: Flowers.
 
Water: Cups or glasses full of anyone liquid.
 
Fire: Candles and incense.
 
Wind: Perforated paper.
 
Photographs and personal things.
 
Smiles and good memories.

Native places I visited: Teotihuacan, Toltecas and Olmecas.

More information: Historia y Biografías

I was privileged to grow up in Mexico at a time when you could play in the streets. We lived not too far from the ocean, and we would be outside all the time with the neighbours' kids, running free. 

What better place could there be for a child? 

Salma Hayek

THE CATALAN INDIANS, EVOkATING THE AMERICAN PAST

The Grandma in Begur, El Baix Empordà

Since 1765, when Carlos III, the Spanish king, had to be more flexible with the commercial monopoly of the Southern Spanish ports over Cuba, we have news about Catalan migrants in this Caribbean Island. The beginning of the Catalan Industrial Revolution and this political resolution marked the economic success of some Catalan migrants in the island during the first half of the 19^th century (1820-1840). During those years, the Catalan migrants had an intensive commercial activity and they became in new members of the Cuban society. In Santiago de Cuba, the commercial activity was so big than native people say “I go to the Catalan” when they went to the winery and surnames like Baró, Martí, Alegret, Ametller or Arnau mixed with the native ones.

Download The phenomenon of the Indians in Catalonia

Judges like Josep Verdaguer, businessmen like Facund Bacardí Massó (founder of Bacardí Rum) and  Jaume Partagàs i Ravell (founder of Partagàs Tobacco Factory), bankers like Narcís Gelats (founder of Banco Gelats) or religious like Antoni Maria Claret, the archbishop of Santiago de Cuba, were only an example of personal successes in the island.

The existence of the Modernism art in La Habana is a great influence of the Catalan artists in architecture, painting and sculpture. The main Catalan settlements were Guantánamo, Santiago de Cuba, La Habana, Matanzas, Bayamo, Manzanillo and Holguín.

Those who became rich and had fortune returned to their hometowns and built Indian-style houses. They missed the island and tried to evocate the Caribbean architecture in towns like Cambrils, Torredembarra, Sitges, Vilanova i la Geltrú, Arenys de Mar, Blanes, Lloret de Mar, Palafrugell or Begur.

More information: Xarxes de Municipis Indians

Lots of Catalans helped Cubans in the Independence Wars against Spain (1868-1878 and 1895-1898) and some years later, lots of Catalans loyal to the Republican troops must emigrate: it was a political exile (1936-1939). Some of them, famous intellectuals, contributed to found prestigious institutions and universities (Universidad de Oriente, 1947) and worked in them.

Nowadays, the influence of Caribbean cultre is still visible along the Catalan coast in the architecture and in the traditions. 

Local people celebrate parties to reminisce these cultural influences where Havaneres (Cuban-Catalan music) and rum are the main protagonists.

More information: Cantada d'Havaneres de Calella de Palafrugell

Liberty is the right of every man to be honest, 
to think and to speak without hypocrisy.

José Martí