Pozos is a bargain
By Teresa Martinez 
February 20, 2009 San Miguel de Allende 

Real Estate Seminar
Pozos Now!
Sat, Feb 28, 10am
Sala Quetzal
Biblioteca Pública
Insurgentes 25
Free

Real Estate Tour 
Discover Pozos! 
Sun, Mar 1, 10am–5pm
Office Depot parking lot
150 pesos, round-trip bus

The annual property tax bill for a five-bedroom, six-bath colonial house in the Centro of Mineral de Pozos (Pozos) is a mere 280 pesos. The monthly water bill is a flat rate of 70 pesos. Electricity for a one-bedroom home is 75 pesos per month.

A haircut costs only 50 pesos and a maid will clean, do laundry and take care of your garden for 120 pesos per day. Monthly membership fees at a local gym are 170 pesos. Pozos has good doctors and dentists and hospitals in San Luis de la Paz are only five miles away. Several good vets can care for your pets. 

Last September, the Pozos municipal government started working on infrastructure improvements. They installed sewer lines around the main town square and surrounding streets, and began resurfacing sidewalks and streets. Electric lines are ready to go underground. Phase One Infrastructure Program is a capital commitment of 35 million pesos (US$2.5 million).

Pozos is under strong consideration to receive Pueblo Mágico status, which would put Pozos “on the map,” with a significant increase in tourism.

The Federal Tourist Board (FONATUR) wants to create additional vacation destinations in Mexico. Selecting historical towns to be Pueblo Mágicos is an important way to achieve that goal. The Secretary of Tourism announced a list of 16 new vacation destinations last year. Pozos is sixth on the list. These are the locations designated to receive federal, state and municipal monies to attract tourism. Over the next three years, Pozos has been allocated 95 million pesos (US$6.8 million) for physical improvements and promotion. FONATUR thinks Pozos is worth investing in. 

Since the economic crisis exploded, US residents have shown strong interest in Pozos, because they can save significantly on purchasing retirement homes or land. Call 044 (415) 114-0223 or 01 (442) 293-0014 or check www.casamexicanarealestate.com. 

Instituo Allende visits Guanajuato & Querétaro

Guanajuato

Instituto Allende continues the winter field-trip season on Saturday, February 21, at 9 am, to Dolores Hidalgo and the state capital, Guanajuato. 

Dolores Hidalgo is a center for talavera ceramics. On the main square, Miguel Hidalgo uttered his famous “¡Viva Mexico!,” the historical cry for freedom referred to as “El Grito.” The main square also offers ice creams with unique and unusual flavors, such as avocado, shrimp and tequila, along with more traditional types. 

Later, the tour heads to Guanajuato, a charming capital city with a great cultural tradition and home of the University of Guanajuato. Famed painter Diego Rivera’s home is on the tour, along with an easy walking tour of other sites of interest such as the Plaza de la Paz and the main square.

Other points of interest include the stately government buildings in Centro, and a number of museums.

The all-inclusive trip costs US$65.


Michoacán: Monarch butterflies

For a natural overnight adventure, Insituto Allende takes a tour to Michoacán to see the Monarch butterflies in their natural habitat Saturday, February 21, at 8am.

Other points of interests include a visit to the historic town of Acambaro and its historic museum. 

The trip costs US$235 all inclusive. 


Querétaro

Saturday, February 28, at 9am, Instituto Allende Tours hosts a day-long field trip to the city Querétaro to visit major highlights. Although many expat residents associate the city with CostCo, there is much more!

Querétaro is known for its Spanish colonial architecture and it is one of the only places in Mexico where the Spanish built a settlement which co-existed side by side with the indigenous population. The city also has a reputation for embracing the arts with many interesting museums.

Stops include the famous Aqueduct, an ambitious feat of nineteenth century, the Cementerio de los Hombres Illustres, the Plaza de Armas and Quereétaro’s centerpiece, the Villa del Villar del Aquila Fountain. The trip also includes a visit to an outdoor market and to the Hill of the Bells where stands the Benito Juárez Monument along with the Chapel of Archduke Maximilian

This exceptional city was a runner up to Shanghai, China, as host to the 2010 World’s Fair.

Free lectures preview upcoming trips every Wednesday at 4pm at the Instituto. One-time San Miguel mayor, Jaime Fernandez, often leads tours.

Reservations are a must. For more information, call 152-0226 or visit Ancha de San Antonio 20.

Travel News You Can Use
By Judy Newell

Mexico Travel News

Mexicana’s new airline 

Mexicana Airlines, which already has a low-cost subsidiary called Click, has announced the formation of another, Mexicana Inter, which begins March 15 flying fourteen 50-seat jets out of Guadalajara—second largest city in the country—to Puerto Vallarta, Tampico, Veracruz, Torreon, Chihuahua and Ciudad Juarez. Later, Mexicana Inter plans to fly also out of Mexico City, Monterrey and Cancún.

Kissing still legal in Guanajuato 

The governor of Guanajuato has vetoed a bill that would have made kissing in public punishable by 36 hours in jail or a 1,500-peso fine. The same law would have outlawed begging, peddling, windshield washing (in hopes of earning a tip) and the use of abusive language in public. Penalties would have been the same.

In refusing to sign the bill that would have made it law, the governor said that while he agreed with most of its provisions, he did not believe they could be officially made illegal.

The Color of Tradition 

“The Color of Tradition: Herencia Milenaria” continues its US run. It opened on February 2 at the New Jersey City University’s Harold B. Lemmerman Gallery, where it remains until March 4. The Mexico Tourism Board and the State of Jalisco are sponsoring the exhibition of ceramics by artisans from the town of Tonalá, Jalisco.

The organization Herencia Milenaria began in 2006 to unite some of the most well known artisans in Tonalá and provide a means for them to place their crafts and culture in international forums. Located in the greater metropolitan area of Guadalajara, the small town of Tonalá is a traditional Mexican town where the Colonial era culture is still maintained.

Tonalá comes from the Náhuatl word Tonallan that means, “place from which the sun rises,” and its main attractions are contained in its traditional plaza. Tonalá's arts and craft market, on Thursdays and Sundays, transforms the town into a fantastic world of color and beauty. From the early hours of the day local craftsmen start filling the streets with colorful figures of animals, clowns and dolls made out of papier-mâché, hand-blown glassware, and iron.

But the town’s most popular attraction is its high quality clay creations. From plates and pots to masks and miniature figures the crafts that Tonala's artisans offer are one of a kind and made with techniques influenced by indigenous, Spanish and modern techniques. Many of the 10 different styles of finishes can be viewed at Museo Nacional de la Cerámica de Tonalá (National Museum of Tonalá Ceramics).

Crime plagues Mexico City 

According to the newspaper Reforma, Mexico City’s International Airport neighborhood is one of the most dangerous areas for tourists visiting the Federal District. It’s reported that 22 gangs operate in the area and airport employees are suspected of having ties to the gangs.

The report appeared following the recent death of a French citizen during a robbery attempt. The victim had recently changed a few thousand dollars and euros into pesos at the airport, where the exchange rate is slightly better. The alleged assailants are in jail.

Travelers are cautioned not to exchange large sums at the airport. While federal police patrol the airport itself, the area beyond its boundaries is unsafe.

Last year, according to Mexico City authorities, 356 foreign tourists filed formal complaints stating that they were victims of crime. About two-thirds of the victims were US citizens (nearly 80 percent of all foreigners visiting Mexico come from the US) and slightly more than half the crimes took place in the subways.

Statistics show 20 percent of the crimes were hotel robberies, 12 percent holdups and 7 percent robberies in taxis. Overall, considering the millions of tourists who visit Mexico City every year, the number of criminal complaints is minuscule, but so, it can be argued, is the number of victims who take the trouble to file a complaint.

Sources: Mexico Tourism New, Mexican Tourism Board, Budget Travel, Explore Cruise Travel 

Judy Newell heads the travel company Perfect Journeys that specializes discounted rates for airfare, hotels, tours and cruises worldwide, as well as luxury and adventure travel. Contact her with comments or suggestions at JudyNewell_03@msn.com  or go to her website www.PerfectJourneys.net.