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| A Street in San Cristóbal de las Casas, Mexico |
For
those readers from the United States, Mexico is our next-door neighbor, the
second-largest customer of our national exports, and the largest source of
migrant/ seasonal labor to the United States.
Whether we as individuals think much about it or not, Mexico and the United
States are more than just connected—they are hugely reliant upon each other.
Despite
this, there may be no country more misunderstood by the average American than
Mexico. According to a poll
undertaken by consulting firm Vianovo, here are some of the words that most
frequently come to mind when Americans think of Mexico: “drugs,” “poverty,” “violence,”
“dirty,” and, of course, “beaches.”
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| Temple of Inscriptions, Palenque, Mexico |
Though
there are certainly some truths behind these stereotypes, they have been hugely exaggerated in the American
media—sensationalism sells. Most
Americans would be surprised to know that, outside the Border States and some
urban areas that are of little interest to tourists anyway, crime
rates in Mexico are generally lower than in the United States. And many people would be equally surprised by
the tourism opportunities in Mexico beyond the beaches of Cancún and Puerto
Vallarta.
The
southern Mexican state of Chiapas, for example, is one of the world’s prime
adventure tourism destinations. Most
excursions into Chiapas start from San Cristóbal de las Casas, a colonial town
situated in a mountain valley with a strong indigenous influence and an
important regional market. Many visitors
head to Palenque, a Maya historic site that features some of the most
well-preserved temple and pyramid
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| Sumidero Canyon, Mexico |
ruins in the Americas, as well as the Sumidero
Canyon, a geological wonder whose Grijalva River cuts through vertical rock
faces that can exceed 3,200 feet. The
state’s 59 Montebello Lakes range in color from deep emerald greens to
iridescent blues, making a wonderful destination for hikers and mountain bikers
alike, and the myriad small indigenous towns that dot the mountainous landscape
all charm visitors in unique ways.
And
this is just a fraction of the sites to see in one of Mexico’s 31 states (and
one federal district!). We urge
Americans to look past the CNN and Fox News headlines and head south. Get to know your neighbor—whose culture is both
ancient and modern, traditional and innovative, certainly proud, and one of the
warmest to be found anywhere on this planet.
Before You Go...
Pick up our Mexico map. This GPS map will give you turn by turn directions to your destination using a point of interest (POI), city point, and/or latitude and longitude, with the ability to preplan driving destinations before getting into your car.The easy to follow instructions allow you to download and install the map into Garmin BaseCamp desktop software and transfer it to your Garmin GPS in minutes. This installable map is compatible with ALL Garmin GPS units .
It's like having your own personal travel guide with you on your trip!
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| Screen Capture from our Mexico GPS Map. |
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| Screen Capture from our Mexico GPS Map. |
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