The Open Road of Mexico

Mexico's West Coast Highway has a tendency to be the favorite loitering place of a large variety of livestock, making cautious driving a must. An array such as is shown in these pictures can be expected on or along most any twenty-five mile section.

not to drink tap water; only purified or mineral water, agua purificado or agua mineral, or soft drinks. It is a wise precaution to carry a large thermos of fresh water to avoid drinking doubtful water in smaller and isolated places. Milk not pasteurized should be avoided. Unpeeled fruit and fresh vegetables should be approached with caution. Better restaurants in the larger cities now guarantee such things as milk, fruit and water, and so state on their menus. Incidentally, a person with no knowledge of Spanish can get along very well. It is surprising how many Mexicans speak English.

Motoring in Mexico requires the same caution and courtesy as motoring in the U. S. Road signs are written in Spanish. It should be remembered that road signs are few and far between and when one appears it means something, emphatically. If one does not understand the sign, a safe precaution is to slow down and proceed with care.

The hazard of the unfenced highway takes the form of wandering livestock. There are more burros, horses, dogs and cows on this highway per mile than probably anywhere else on earth. These animals are particularly hazardous at night; so great care should be used in driving at night. The highway upholds the wisdom of the proverb: the slow driver will usually get there first, and, we might add, all in one piece.

The open road south of Nogales is an invitation to the traveler. Deserts, tropical jungles, vast farming areas, the eternal seas and white beaches, mountains, plateaus, interesting places and people-all is Mexico, all part of the invitation.

Farming in Mexico varies from primitive methods in the mountain country to modern in the wide irrigated plains as around Obregon in the Yaqui Rio Valley below.

Impressions of a Tourist IN MEXICO

Each visitor to Mexico doubtlessly comes away with his own personal set of impressions imbued by chance, individual observation and experience. All that can be offered here, is one man's opinion; the impressions of one tourist in Mexico.

With the West Coast Highway of Mexico now in readiness, a new and exciting trip in a strange landyet right in his own back yard-awaits John Tourist, American. He has but to turn south at Nogales, Arizona, with his sights on Guadalajara more than a thousand miles and four states away, or he may go on to Mexico City, Acapulco and points beyond if he so chooses.

Mexico is often referred to as "The Land of Extremes," so take things in stride as you find them; the wealth and the poverty, the orderly and the squalid, the primitive and the modern. They all belong and as you learn to know and understand Mexico, the brighter facets will far outshine the darker ones as before your eyes and through your very soul flows a continuous pageantry of fascinating proportions. That was the attitude of this tourist, and he quickly learned to love the country and its people.

Since it is quite common practice for Americans to step over the border at Nogales for a pleasant evening of dining, dancing and entertainment in the Latin atmosphere or for an economical shopping spree, Nogales is conditioned, by virtue of its proximity to the United States, with rows of shops catering to the tourist dollar. Small boys sometimes cling to your tracks like persistent flies, touting shoeshines and a variety of wares and services.

A few miles south, this atmosphere rapidly changes, for Mexico's West Coast is geared for the most part to the pace of the Mexican Nationals. Tourists, as yet, have not been plentiful enough to influence the tempo except at occasional resort areas and points of interest or sport where they congregate. The West Coast of Mexico is still much a part of the Mexico romanced in word and song, incongruously blemished only by an occasional juke box blaring American boogie and an over-zealous