By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS When it comes to food, the Japanese tend to be purists. Ask for a California roll or shrimp sushi with mayonnaise (as it is commonly served in Moscow) at a traditional restaurant in Osaka, and you are likely to earn a scornful glare of disapproval from your chef or server, if not an invitation to go elsewhere.
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By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS Although it is generally perceived as a minor holiday, the observance of Candelaria Day, or Candlemas, on Feb. 2 is in fact a longstanding festival in Mexico that officially marks the end of the Christmas and Epiphany season. In Mexico, Candelaria is closely interconnected with another post-Christmas holiday, the Three King’s Day, when not only do children
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OPINION By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS On Thursday, Jan. 27, the daily newspaper Infobae published an article noting that in 90 percent of the legal cases “investigated” by the Mexican government’s so-called Protection Mechanism for Human Rights Defenders and Journalists (MPPDDHP), no convictions are ever delivered. This figure came from the administration’s own Interior Secretariat (SeGob), which oversees the MPPDDHP office, following
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OPINION By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS Ah, the fickle love of an authoritarian president. When Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) loves you, you can do no wrong. His buddy-buddy Félix Salgado Macedonio — who was repeatedly accused of rape, embezzlement and close ties with drug cartels, but still managed to garnish the governorship of the coastal state of Guerrero, albeit
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By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS Palacio de Hierro department stores across Mexico launched a new holistic health, body and beauty campaign on Thursday, Jan. 13, which includes wellness, personal care and gastronomy. The campaign — aimed at the entire Totalmente Palacio community and titled Este Año Seré… (This Year I Will Be….) — is intended to help Mexico’s premiere department store’s clients
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OPINION By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS Despite the fact that just five months ago, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser met with Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) at the National Palace, declaring that the international financial group considered Mexico “a country of opportunities” thanks to its economic, political and social stability, the corporation announced on Tuesday, Jan. 11, that it would be
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OPINION By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) has a handy way of dealing with facts and figures he doesn’t like: He simply rewrites them. Yes, the president’s “otros datos” (“different data”) stratagem is a magic wand he can wave over unpleasantries like inflation, economic downturn, crime, corruption and anything else he doesn’t like to make them
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By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS While in Northern European Christian cultures, it is the eve or day of Christ’s birth (Dec. 24 and Dec. 25, respectively) that is celebrated with special meals and an exchange of presents, here in Mexico, it is the Epiphany, or the commemoration of the anniversary of arrival of the Magi at Bethlehem, that is most associated with
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By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS In a true if-the-mountain-won’t-come-to-Mohammed moment, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) said Tuesday, Dec. 21, that should the National Electoral Institute (INE) not agree to hold his controversial mandate revocation referendum, Mexican citizens could organize the nonbinding poll on their own. “Democracy comes from the people, not from an administrative apparatus,”AMLO said during his daily morning
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By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS So who says you have to stick to turkey or ham for Christmas and New Year’s? Certainly not the good folks at Mexico’s Entre Fuegos restaurant group, who firmly believe that a true holiday celebration begins with a great cut of beef. All three of the Puebla-based group’s brands are offering up eat-in-or-take-out set holiday menus this
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