For those of you who are first-time visitors, I’d like to tell you there are other Collections on this website about Mexico: Oaxaca (#40), San Cristobal (#53), and Baja California (#9).

Mexico is the first foreign country I ever went to. Since then I’ve returned many times– to Oaxaca, San Cristobal, Acapulco, Monterrey, Baja, etc. Mexico City remains in memory as one of the first cities I went to. It blew my mind to see buildings that had color. The people were kind, beautiful and patient with me.

Monterrey was my first bullfight and in that afternoon I witnessed something that I couldn’t photograph that was extremely rare (I found out later). The bull had fought so bravely that the crowd screamed to spare him. The bull walked around the arena until a gate was opened for him to exit. Before he left he turned back and snorted, as if to say, “I won, you bastards!”

I went to Jamiltepec, which at that time could only be reached by plane. I think it was Lausa Airlines. It was a DC-3 plane and as we were about to take off I thought it would be a good idea to mention to the pilot that they’d left the door open. I could tell he was the pilot because he had on a baseball cap. The co-pilot didn’t have a uniform.

There’s not much to do in Jamiltepec so the locals would line up in two rows on the airport runway as close as possible and the plane would land between the two rows.

I was later told they always did that, but all I could think of was what if the pilot dips his wing, or swerves. Everybody was fine with this.

“They do it all the time.”

Me? I was scared shitless.