With Christmas festivities in full swing, the aroma of ponche navideño — Mexico’s traditional holiday punch — fills homes and markets across the country.

The Lake Chapala Society (LCS) will celebrate the legacy of Neill James, the organization’s principal patron and benefactor, with a series of special activities throughout 2025.

It was the first chilly night in Guadalajara, but people were percolating. A woman in a spaghetti strap dress showing off shoulder and arm tattoos chatted as if the weather were balmy.

The 38th Guadalajara International Book Fair (FIL), the most significant literary and cultural event in the Spanish-speaking world, is set to take place from Saturday, November 30 to Sunday, December 8.

Juan Pablo Valderrama doesn’t wear his clerical collar outside church. So on the streets of Guadalajara, the Anglican priest doesn’t look different from any 50-ish Mexican man. 

U.S. ambassadors have often played significant roles in trying to shape Mexico’s political, economic and security policies, usually justifying their actions as part of their diplomatic mandate to serve U.S. strategic interests.