Go South, Again!

It's Christmas in the California Sierras. It's clear, sunny, beautiful in a way, but COLD! In the mornings here at about 4000 feet, it's about 15 degrees Fahrenheit. I'm reminded of the opening lines in Paul Theroux's travel book The Old Patagonian Express that it was freezing cold in the midwest, a morning of paralyzing frost, the "perfect day to leave for South America."
It's a bit ironic that I have been to large parts of South America, as well as a couple of countries in Central America, but I don't really know our immediate neighbor to the south, Mexico. Like many Americans, I've had the opportunity to go to several beach resorts over the past decades. However, they are not Mexico. So....a couple of days after Christmas, I take off for Mexico. I first will travel to Guadalajara to visit some good friends. For the sake of privacy, I'll refer to them as K and S. I'm looking forward to it very much.
I've read a number of things from La Paz and Fuentes some time ago. This time I read Alan Riding's Distant Neighbors. It's quite dated now but still interesting. Jaime Suchlicki's book on the history of Mexico is a good review. However, most interesting of all I found to be Boye Lafayette de Mente's There's a Word for It in Mexico. Each chapter is a Spanish word describing some Mexican trait. He then uses that as a jumping off point to discuss a great deal of both Mexican and chicano culture. In his introduction de Mente quotes Carlos Fuentes as saying: "Mexican culture is far more intricate and challenging to the North American mind than anything in Europe; a country at times more foreign than anything in Asia." That sounds very daunting indeed. However, I look forward to attempting to pierce the veil of the mystery of Mexico. I invite you to come along for the ride. Merry Christmas!