Culture

The culture of Mexico reflects the complexity of Mexico's history through the blending of pre-Hispanic Mesoamerican civilisations and the culture of Spain, imparted during Spain's 300-year colonisation of Mexico. Influences from the United States have shaped Mexican culture, and to a lesser extent, influences from Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Community

Citizens take pride in their economic independence, valuing 'community' in its cities and towns, its plazas and schools, and its work organisations. In Mexican culture the expectation of working and socializing together is a key component of society, and has a basis in the strong ties formed within the family.

Cuisine

Mostly known internationally for its tacos, fajitas, quesadillas and enchiladas, Mexican cuisine is extremely diverse. Regional dishes include mole poblano, chiles en nogada and chalupas from Puebla; cabrito and machaca from Monterrey, cochinita pibil from Yucatán, as well as barbacoa, chilaquiles, milanesas, and many other dishes.

Art

Mexico is known worldwide for its folk art traditions, mostly derived from a combination of the indigenous and Spanish crafts. Particularly notable among handicrafts are the clay pottery made in the valley of Oaxaca and the bird and animal figures made in the village of Tonala. Colourfully embroidered cotton garments, cotton or wool shawls and outer garments, and colourful baskets and rugs are seen everywhere.

Between the Spanish conquest and the early 20th century, Mexican fine arts were largely in imitation of European traditions. After the Mexican Revolution, a new generation of Mexican artists led a vibrant national movement that incorporated political, historic and folk themes in their work. The painters Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros became world famous for their grand scale murals, often displaying clear social messages. Rufino Tamayo and Frida Kahlo (Rivera's wife) produced more personal works with abstract elements. Mexican art photography was largely fostered by the work of Manuel Alvarez Bravo.

Sports

The national sport of Mexico is Charreria. Ancient Mexicans played a ball game which still exists in Northwest Mexico (Sinaloa, the game is called Ulama), though it is not a popular sport any more.

Football

The favourite sport remains football (soccer) (normally spelled Fútbol). Mexico has a very strong league and its First Division (Primera División de México) is extremely popular not only nationally but across all Latin-America.

Baseball

Baseball is also popular, especially in the Gulf of Mexico and the border states in the NW. The season runs from March to July with playoffs held in August. The Mexican professional league is named the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol. But the most important Baseball league in Mexico is the Mexican League of The Pacific, (Liga Mexicana Del Pacifico). The States of Sinaloa, Sonora and Baja California have this league, with the highest professional level. The players of this league play in the MLB in The USA, Japan and Korea. This league participates in the Mini World Series with teams from Venezuela, Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic in the Caribbean Series.

American Football

American football is practiced at the major universities such as ITESM (Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey), UANL (Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León), UDLA (University of the Americas), and UNAM. The college league in Mexico is called ONEFA.

Basketball

In the north-western States is the CIBACOPA Competition, with professional basketball players from Mexico and the American Universities and some teams from the American NBA.

Rugby

Rugby is played at the amateur level throughout the country with the majority of clubs in Mexico City and others in Monterrey, Guadalajara, Celaya, Guanajuato and Oaxaca.

Wrestling

Professional wrestling (or Lucha libre in Spanish) is a major crowd draw with national promotions such as AAA, LLL, CMLL and others.

Watersports

Sport fishing, is popular in Baja California and the big Pacific coast resorts, while freshwater bass fishing is growing in popularity too. The gentler arts of diving and snorkelling are big around the Caribbean, with famous dive sites at Cozumel and on the reefs further south. The Pacific coast is becoming something of a centre for surfing, with few facilities as yet; all these sports attract tourists to Mexico.

Bullfighting

Bullfighting is also a popular sport in the country. Almost all large cities have bullrings. La Monumental in Mexico City has the largest bullring in the world, which seats 55,000 people.