May 27th, 2009 Page 3

Jaltemba community turns out to celebrate Jaime's 79th birthday  Let the Games begin

Sunday Golf Winners, Bill, Bill, Rene and Jim

Mexico: One Journalist’s View
Linda Ellerbee - PVNN go to original

Sometimes I’ve been called a maverick because I don’t always agree with my colleagues, but then, only dead fish swim with the stream all the time. The stream here is Mexico.

You would have to be living on another planet to avoid hearing how dangerous Mexico has become, and, yes, it’s true drug wars have escalated violence in Mexico, causing collateral damage, a phrase I hate. Collateral damage is a cheap way of saying that innocent people, some of them tourists, have been robbed, hurt or killed.

But that’s not the whole story. Neither is this. This is my story.

I’m a journalist who lives in New York City, but has spent considerable time in Mexico, specifically Puerto Vallarta, for the last four years. I’m in Vallarta now. And despite what I’m getting from the U.S. media, the 24-hour news networks in particular, I feel as safe here as I do at home in New York, possibly safer.

I walk the streets of my Vallarta neighborhood alone day or night. And I don’t live in a gated community, or any other All-Gringo neighborhood. I live in Mexico. Among Mexicans. I go where I want (which does not happen to include bars where prostitution and drugs are the basic products), and take no more precautions than I would at home in New York; which is to say I don’t wave money around, I don’t act the Ugly American, I do keep my eyes open, I’m aware of my surroundings, and I try not to behave like a fool.

I’ve not always been successful at that last one. One evening a friend left the house I was renting in Vallarta at that time, and, unbeknownst to me, did not slam the automatically-locking door on her way out. Sure enough, less than an hour later a stranger did come into my house. A burglar? Robber? Kidnapper? Killer? Drug lord?

No, it was a local police officer, the "beat cop" for our neighborhood, who, on seeing my unlatched door, entered to make sure everything (including me) was okay. He insisted on walking with me around the house, opening closets, looking behind doors and, yes, even under beds, to be certain no one else had wandered in, and that nothing was missing. He was polite, smart and kind, but before he left, he lectured me on having not checked to see that my friend had locked the door behind her. In other words, he told me to use my common sense.

Do bad things happen here? Of course they do. Bad things happen everywhere, but the murder rate here is much lower than, say, New Orleans, and if there are bars on many of the ground floor windows of houses here, well, the same is true where I live, in Greenwich Village, which is considered a swell neighborhood — house prices start at about $4 million (including the bars on the ground floor windows.)

There are good reasons thousands of people from the United States are moving to Mexico every month, and it’s not just the lower cost of living, a hefty tax break and less snow to shovel. Mexico is a beautiful country, a special place.

The climate varies, but is plentifully mild, the culture is ancient and revered, the young are loved unconditionally, the old are respected, and I have yet to hear anyone mention Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, or Madonna’s attempt to adopt a second African child, even though, with such a late start, she cannot possibly begin to keep up with Angelina Jolie.

And then there are the people. Generalization is risky, but— in general — Mexicans are warm, friendly, generous and welcoming. If you smile at them, they smile back. If you greet a passing stranger on the street, they greet you back. If you try to speak even a little Spanish, they tend to treat you as though you were fluent. Or at least not an idiot.

I have had taxi drivers track me down after leaving my wallet or cell phone in their cab. I have had someone run out of a store to catch me because I have overpaid by twenty cents. I have been introduced to and come to love a people who celebrate a day dedicated to the dead as a recognition of the cycles of birth and death and birth — and the 15th birthday of a girl, an important rite in becoming a woman — with the same joy.

Too much of the noise you’re hearing about how dangerous it is to come to Mexico is just that — noise. But the media love noise, and too many journalists currently making it don’t live here. Some have never even been here. They just like to be photographed at night, standing near a spotlighted border crossing, pointing across the line to some imaginary country from hell. It looks good on TV.

Another thing. The U.S. media tend to lump all of Mexico into one big bad bowl. Talking about drug violence in Mexico without naming a state or city where this is taking place is rather like looking at the horror of Katrina and saying, "Damn. Did you know the U.S. is under water?" or reporting on the shootings at Columbine or the bombing of the Federal building in Oklahoma City by saying that kids all over the U.S. are shooting their classmates and all the grownups are blowing up buildings. The recent rise in violence in Mexico has mostly occurred in a few states, and especially along the border. It is real, but it does not describe an entire country.

It would be nice if we could put what’s going on in Mexico in perspective, geographically and emotionally. It would be nice if we could remember that, as has been noted more than once, these drug wars wouldn’t be going on if people in the United States didn’t want the drugs, or if other people in the United States weren’t selling Mexican drug lords the guns.

Most of all, it would be nice if more people in the United States actually came to this part of America (Mexico is also America, you will recall) to see for themselves what a fine place Mexico really is, and how good a vacation (or a life) here can be.

So come on down and get to know your southern neighbors. I think you’ll like it here. Especially the people.

Mixed Media Artist: Mariana Kgide

                                           By Tara Spears

Tropical Riviera Nayarit has long been a favorite area for artists with its gorgeous coasts, mysterious jungles, and vibrant Mexican culture.  For La Penita resident, Mariana Kgide, this paradise stimulates her creativity and spirituality.  “My art has reached a new level since I have lived on the coast,” said Mariana through an interpreter. “I feel that I am fulfilled as an artist and as an individual.”   A mixed media artist, her most recent work is a powerful earth-tone series that include wall art and sculptures.

Born in Acapulco, Michoacán, Mariana lived in various parts of Mexico due to her father’s work. “I started making jewelry for myself as a young child,” she said. “By the time I was a teenager, friends asked me to make jewelry for them, so I started selling my original work.”  She asked other craftsmen and artists to show her how they made their wares: “I felt a need to express my heart in art.”  Mariana explored various art mediums, creating when she wasn’t working. She decided that what best conveyed her message was to incorporate a variety of styles in a single piece. “I love to paint; I love to shape things with my hands; I love the beauty in natural objects, so I feel such joy to create by blending all three!” Twenty years later, her unique style reflects her spiritual and technical evolution.

While Mariana’s work is available at the Decameron Hotel Boutique, south Sol Nuevo Avenida in Guayabitos, she recently had a month long art exhibit at the tony La Penita gallery, Xaltemba.  In addition, she and her silversmith artist husband, Cristobal Munoz, offer original, quality jewelry each week at the Thursday market (tianguis). Pictured with the talented couple is their Mexican hairless dog, Ursus.  Cristobal, a native of Guadalajara, Jalisco, speaks English and is happy to translate for customers.  He specializes in original silver and semi-precious stone rings, bracelets and necklaces. Both artists accept commissions for specific pieces to suit customers’ taste.

Mariana was focusing on honing her art when tragedy struck: 19 months ago she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy and chemo therapy.  “I celebrate every little thing in life now” she said with a smile. “We take it day by day.”  While cleared of cancer, Mariana recently was hit with another major medical disaster.  She has severely eroding hip joints and needs two hip replacement operations in order to keep her legs and to be able to walk, but has no health insurance after the cancer. The government will provide amputation of both legs at the hip unless she can raise money for private surgery. Even with this desperate medical situation, Mariana and Cristobal focus on expressing joy by creating beauty from their hearts in their art. 

Contact Mariana or Cristobal for a private showing of available art (or to commission work):

274-3280    or email: dikurkgid@hotmail.com

Punta Rasa coastal photograph by Bill Bell