A lakeside native who raised his family in Sacramento, California is realizing his dreams of sharing his Mexican ballads with the world.

When the first branch of a well known U.S. pet store threw open its doors in southwest Guadalajara in October, Maricarmen Portilla saw it marking a major shift in Mexicans’ attitudes toward animals.

“Petco is a very large, nice store bringing the concept that they only offer dogs and cats for adoption, unlike another major store here that sells, for example, Shih Tzus for 20,000 pesos,” she said.

Portilla, a young mother and former lawyer for a U.S. corporation, had devoted herself to rescuing dogs and cats for the past ten years, the last five of them full-time after being laid off during the financial crisis. She and her fellow volunteers in Adoptando un Amigo had become so outstanding among local rescue groups that Petco contacted her to head the adoption effort for its first store in Mexico.

The name looks simple enough — Art 21 Studio — although the description below it, “Ateliers & studios, showroom, bronze foundry,” hints at something more complex. The setting is also hard to categorize. The handful of rambling buildings and tree-shaded open spaces are strewn with parts of large sculptures and located in a semi-rural area just north of Guadalajara.

I HATE Halloween!  I’ve decided that it’s extremely scary and potentially dangerous - not because of spooky costumes or the fear of tricks if my treats fail to measure up – but because someone really could be badly hurt.

Art lovers Enrique Saiso and Eduardo Sarabia are channeling their creativity into a fresh new venture: brewing a cerveza artesanal aimed exclusively at Guadalajara’s booming craft beer market.

A cultural center celebrating the arts, music and language of Brazil has opened just in time for those looking to learn some Portuguese before the 2014 World Cup.