Arrazola wood carvings, Oaxaca

While we all await the return of safe touring, I invite you to encounter the enthusiasm for Mexico of a recently-minted PhD in archaeology, Dra.Marina Aguirre.  I’ve enjoyed traveling with Marina on several of her well-researched tours, especially her signature tour starting from the Olmec stone heads at the La Venta sculpture park in Villahermosa,

Olmec stone head, ~25 tons.

thru the Lacandon jungle, where we stayed at an eco lodge and visited the ruins at Yaxchilán by canoe on the Usamacinta river, and then onward by bus to ruins at Bonampak and Palenque, before spending several days in San Cristóbal da las Casas, Chiapas, exploring the folk arts and textiles of that Mayan region.

Marina’s ebooks are an excellent way to sharpen your appetite for the robust culture here.  She knows her stuff, having done field work to locate the characters, talents and stories that make Mexico so compelling.  There are three ebooks in her collection, covering archaeology ruins; mural and plastic arts; and folk and textile arts.  They are pointing you to future adventures. And a visit to her blog shows some of her past destinations, which are possible repeats.  (The caliber of fellow travelers was astonishing.) She often visits artists’ workshops where folk art is being made. Details of these sites are shared in her books.

Ruins at Mitla, Oaxaca. photo by Teobert Maler, 1875

Masks of tecuanes, at the mask museum

Ceramic dolls which model Fridha Kahlo outfits

Guachimontone, Jalisco