People
Print
Email
Save to Favorites
Let a broad wooden chopping block represent Mexico; imagine hacking it with a sharp cleaver until it is grooved and pocked. That fractured surface resembles Mexico’s central highlands, where most Mexicans, divided from each other by high mountains and yawning barrancas, have lived since before history.
The Mexicans’ deep divisions, in large measure, led to their downfall at the hands of the Spanish conquistadores. The Aztec empire that Hernán Cortés conquered was a vast but fragmented collection of tribes. Speaking more than 100 mutually alien languages, those original Mexicans viewed each other suspiciously, as barely human barbarians from strange lands beyond the mountains. And even today the lines Mexicans draw between themselves—of caste, class, race, wealth—are the result, to a significant degree, of the realities of their mutual isolation.
© Bruce Whipperman from Moon Puerto Vallarta, 7th edition
Buy Moon Travel Guides
Search
Moon Travel Guides make independent travel and outdoor exploration fun and accessible. With expert and adventurous travel writers delivering a mix of honest insight, first-rate strategic travel advice, insider travel tips and an essential dose of humor, Moon Travel Guides ensure that travelers have an uncommon and entirely satisfying experience. Each travel book is filled with unique trip ideas, easy-to-use maps, and detailed information on sights, restaurants, and accommodations. Moon Travel Guides not only point you in the right direction, they inspire new ideas and adventure. Whether you are seeking a relaxing beach trip to Hawaii, or an adventure travel trip to the rainforests of Costa Rica, Moon guidebooks—and Moon.com—are with you every step of the way. Founded in 1973, the Moon Travel Guides series includes Moon Handbooks, Moon Outdoors, Moon Metro, Moon Living Abroad and Moon Spotlight travel books. Moon is based in Berkeley, California and is a proud member of the Perseus Books Group.