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It is vibrant in life and brilliant in color. It has been shaped from pre-Hispanic civilizations and centuries of
Spanish colonial governance which started in 1530, 246 years before the USA was created by the Declaration of
Independence after which the United States has shared in the shaping of Mexican culture. When the Mexicans rid
themselves of the Spaniards and became the United Mexico States they, interestingly enough, kept their religion,
Roman Catholicism, along with their language.
Gringos are treated well, although there may be a few older Mexicans who have not quite forgiven the United States for taking half their land as a result of the Mexican-American War and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Additionally, feelings of being politically neglected and the illegal immigration issue have lead to some hard feelings. Lack of faith in the government is apparent and stories abound about police officers offering bribes as well as gringos offering bribes to avoid the nuisance of a traffic ticket or a night in prison. One of the first things I noticed when I moved here was the high level of nature of the unified Mexican family. The country's divorce rate is among the lowest in the world. Babies and young children are showered with affection and they often live with their parents until they marry. Grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, and children often all live together with a high level of loyalty to each other. The roles of the parents are such that the father is the family's ruler and the mother as the family's heart. Machismo (Spanish for "male chauvinism") is quite common with the father exercising a high level of authority. The mother is generally responsible for maintaining the household and caring for the children, who as a result often revere her more than their authoritarian father. However, in the past few decades, these stereotypes have begun to break down somewhat with the emergence of working mothers and young single mothers. Buildings inside and out are brilliant in color and Mexico is known worldwide for its folk art traditions, mostly derived from a combination of the indigenous and Spanish crafts. Colorfully embroidered cotton garments, cotton or wool shawls and outer garments, and colorful baskets and rugs are seen everywhere. After the Mexican Revolution, a new generation of Mexican artists led a national movement that incorporated political, historic, and folk themes in their work. Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros became world famous painters for their grand scale murals, often displaying clear social messages. Refine Tamayo and Frida Kahlo produced personal works with abstract elements. Mexican art photography was largely fostered by the work of Manuel Alvarez Bravo. Mexico has a long and distinguished literary tradition. Juan Rulfo wrote two of the most influential works in the history of Latin-American literature. Octavia Paz won the Nobel Literature Prize in 1990 for his poetry. The city of Guadalajara hosts the biggest and most important International Book Fair of the Spanish-speaking world. The music of Mexico is extraordinarily diverse and features a wide range of different musical styles, the best-known being mariachi and banda. Other new styles such as cumbia, pop, and rock have seen increased popularity as the music of Mexico faces a new generation of young people. Mexican cuisine is known for its intense and varied flavors, colorful decoration, and the variety of spices that it has. Mexican gastronomy, in terms of diversity of appealing tastes and textures, is one of the richest in the world, rich in proteins, vitamins, and minerals. The many flavors of mole (pronounced “moe lay”) sauce absolutely must be experienced. Some people unaccustomed to Mexican food characterize it as a bit spicy. The sport for which Mexico is known best and gained international success in is soccer, known here as fútbol. It is by far the most popular game in the country. Every state has its own representative team. Mexico was host of the FIFA World Cup in 1970 and 1986. |