Only six more days to go and cinema will be in full swing in Alamos with the first annual Álamos Mágico International Film Festival. A collaboration between filmmaker John Sheedy and the Municipality of Alamos, this project will showcase a variety of independent films, with special guests The Arizona International Film Festival, film workshops in the schools, meet the filmmaker parties, and much more.

Films will be shown at the Palacio Municipal, the Hotel Colonial and our very own Hacienda de los Santos private theater (you know, the one with the yummy leather couches and fresh popcorn.)

The party will start at 5:30 p.m. at the Old Adobe Mission, East 1st Street and Brown in Old Town Scottsdale, and run to sunset. Tickets are $30, which covers admission, Mexican snacks and the first drink. A cash bar will be available. Elementary students and SSCA student members will be admitted free.

Besides the strolling musicians, there will be a silent auction and a raffle. The silent auction will feature accommodations at three Alamos hotels including the Presidential Suite at the Hacienda De Los Santos, rated one of the top luxury hotels in Sonora.

Proceeds from the celebration will be used to support La Estudiantina and Scottsdale Sister Cities exchanges. Tickets may be purchased at the door or on the Association’s website: http://scottsdalesistercities.com/estudiantina.aspx.

La Estudiantina is a troupe of young musicians/singers from Alamos who sing traditional Mexican and Spanish songs using various string and percussion instruments. They were recently featured performers in the annual Festival Alfonso Ortiz Tirado, a nine-day musical event that attracts artists from around the world and is held in Alamos each January.

Alamos is known as “La Ciudad de los Portales.” Portales are tall, arched, covered verandas or walkways fronting many of the cobble-stoned streets or calles. Alamos boasts numerous buildings exhibiting classic architecture from Mexico’s Colonial period, including the Plaza de Armas, the Church of La Purísima Concepción and the Palacio Municipal (city hall).

Alamos is located in the southeastern part of Sonora, about 590 miles from Scottsdale, where the Sonoran Desert meets the Sinaloan tropical rain forest in the foothills of the Sierra Madre. Alamos was founded in the late 17th century following discoveries of silver in the region and has served as capital of the region.

Paul Messinger discovered Alamos while on a vacation in Mexico and launched a campaign to make it a Scottsdale Sister City. Bud Tims, then Scottsdale Mayor, made the designation official in 1971, although there is some documentation suggesting the action may have taken place as early as 1969. The documentation is under review.

The Scottsdale Sister Cities Association, Inc., serves as ambassador of international friendship and goodwill for the City of Scottsdale. This mission is accomplished through programs such as student, educational, cultural and economic development exchanges creating long-term international partnerships.

In addition to Alamos, other Scottsdale Sister Cities are Cairns, Queensland, Australia; Interlaken, Switzerland; Kingston, Ontario, Canada; and Haikou, China. An association with Marrakech, Morocco is being explored.

For more information, contact Scottsdale Sister Cities Association at 480-945-0384 or info@scottsdalesistercities.com.

Media contact:

Grant Smith, gesmith@q.com
480-860-1847

Happy trails, friends, and we hope to see you in Alamos real soon!

By Patrick Osio

Here comes Easter break again and young people will be young people – high school and college kids will travel to distant places where the drinking age is either less than it is in the U.S. or where authorities don’t care to enforce minors’ drinking laws. For several decades Mexico has been one such place of choice where the legal drinking age is 18. Mazatlan, Acapulco, Puerto Vallarta and Cancun were the fly to favorite places and Rosarito Beach and Ensenada the favorite drive to places from Southern California. – But not this year, or for that matter neither was it last year.

Our government and the U.S. media have convinced most Americans that Mexico is not a safe place to visit as drug traffickers are fighting it out to see which gang will have the right to sell their illicit drugs to the very group that will not be visiting Mexico. They will have to wait until they return from Easter break to get their Mexican smuggled drugs at home.

But what really struck me was that the preferred country to visit this Easter break in lieu of Mexico is the Dominica. It struck me because Dominica is rated as the number one country with the highest propensity for crime in the world. According to facts gathered by NationMaster.com, their total crime per 1,000 residents (per capita) is 113.822 –Compared to the U.S. that is 8th in the world in total crimes at 80.0645 per 1000 residents, making chances of being a victim of a crime in Dominica better than 10%, and slightly less than an 8% chance of being a victim in the U.S.

But here is the real clunker – Mexico, the country our government tells us not to visit and the media has a field day reporting any crime be it significant or not to further put the fear of God into staying away from there – well, it ranks 39th in total crime in the world with a per capita of slightly less than 13 crimes per 1000 residents that is a 1.3% chance of being a victim of crime in Mexico.

So Mexico is out, Dominica is in, yet the chances of being a crime victim there is greater than in the U.S. and the chances of being a crime victim in the U.S. is greater than in Mexico. But, for our own safety we need to stay out of Mexico.

Have you ever felt like you’re being duped but you can’t quite put your finger on why – what’s the motive? Is it to keep us from facing some bitter truths?  We keep reading how crime is down, how safe we are compared to most other parts of the world. But is it true?

So here are some multiple choice questions for you:

1. Which country has a higher crime rate per 1,000 residents?
Mexico, b. Germany, c. Canada, d.  U.S.

2. Which country has the highest murders with firearms?
a. Mexico, b. El Salvador, c. U.S.

3. Of the following countries, which has the least number of drug offenses?
a. Germany, b. United Kingdom, c. Canada, d. Switzerland, e. Mexico

4. Which country has the most prisoners?

a. United States, b. China, c. Russia, d. India, e. Mexico

(Answers: 1. d. U.S., 2. c. U.S., 3. e.  Mexico,  4. a. U.S.-  Source: http://www.nationmaster.com)

In one of the only bright spots due to its recent gang related murders, Mexico, on a per capita, ranks as more dangerous than the U.S. occupying No. 24 and Mexico No. 6 in the world, but in total number of murders the U.S. is No. 5 and Mexico No. 6.

In fact, much of the crime data per capita 1000 population suggests that in many respects Mexico is safer than the U.S.: in assaults the U.S. ranks No. 6, Mexico No. 20; burglaries the U.S. No. 17, Mexico No. 34; car thefts U.S. No. 9, Mexico No. 22; fraud U.S. No. 18, Mexico No. 29; Rape (Canada No.5), U.S. No. 9, Mexico No. 17.

No doubt that at the expense of Mexico we are being duped. Is it to hide our insatiable appetite for illicit drugs and cheap labor, and so by pointing the finger of guilt to the biggest supplier of both we exculpate our actions or at minimum pacify our own guilt?

Maybe it’s time for “the home of the free, and land of the brave” to take note.
_______________________________________________________________________
Patrick Osio is the Editor of HispanicVista.com (HVC) (www.hispanicvista.com). Contact at POsioJr@aol.com  and co-founder of TransBorder Communications, Inc. (www.transbordercommunications.com) dedicated to binational economic development.
Article on HVC at:
http://www.hispanicvista.com/HVC/Columnist/posiojr/02152011_Patrick_Osio.htm

Our beautiful Deseos gift shop at Hacienda de los Santos Resort is now open!

Here you’ll find an Aladdin’s cave filled with new, out-of-print and gently used hard cover books. Vintage Mexican pottery, antiques, clothing, jewelry, and other light hearted fun items for you to take home and keep or give to a cherished friend. The inventory will be ever changing, so stop by often!

Deseos is next to Santiago’s restaurant, which will be serving Chiapas Coffee, plus some sinfully delicious coffee specialties similar (we say better) to what you would find on a Starbucks menu. We are excited about our new equipment and especially love the ‘Mocha Iced Lattes’. You can have them made skinny (non-fat) or regular. Chilled beer and wine are also available.

We do ask that you drink any liquor beverage inside Santiago’s or on the inside portal. Coffee drinks can be served on the outside portal, too, which is a great spot to watch the action on the street.  Come by and visit with friends, and enjoy the good Alamos life. Hours will be daily from 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

5^th Annual Alamos Silver Festival

Good food, great presentations, and best of all, you get to shop some of the most mouth-watering silver designs you’ll ever see!

There’s a reason the Camino Real ran through Alamos: back in the day, its mines made it the premier “Silver City” of Northern Mexico. We’re very excited to be a part of the celebration of the town’s glittering heyday, and invite you to stay with us and enjoy the best of Alamos and Hacienda de los Santos. We’ve put together fabulous weekend Silver Festival Experience—click here for details and reservations!

• Booths open up on Friday morning at 10 a.m. Get ready to give your shopping muscles a great workout! This is Mexican silver at its very best along with some very special Alamos-only pricing.

• Throughout the weekend you’ll be able to enjoy complimentary lectures by our silver experts in the Hacienda theater—dial 0 and we will give provide you with a list of topics and times.

• Silver-smithing classes will be available on Friday and Saturday for a limited number of participants. Cost is $50 USD per student to be paid to silversmith Ron Burham. Learn the secrets of bending and shaping this precious metal into your own personal design!

• Photographer Dana Waldon will be on-hand all weekend to take your portrait! Each shoot will be approximately one hour long and will be specifically tailored to you. Please make appointments with Jamie at jamiehacienda@hotmail.com.

• Don’t forget to purchase your raffle tickets during the weekend! Our fabulous Silver Raffle will include pieces donated by each of the 16 participating artists, and all proceeds will go to the renovation of our town church, La Parroquia de la Purísima Concepción (sponsored by Obra de Arte). Tickets are $50 USD each; 5 for $200 USD; 25 for $500 USD; and 60 for $1,000 USD. It’s a worthy cause and you could come away with some truly astounding silver jewelry that will be the envy of all your friends!

• The Raffle will take place during our Silver Gala Dinner on Saturday night—you need not be present to win, but we hope you won’t miss this chance to have a fantastic gourmet meal and show off all your amazing silver pieces! It’s your night to shine! The price for the Silver Gala Dinner is $25 USD + tax and tip. House wine and well drinks are available for $5 USD per drink.

Featuring Silver Artists:
Emilia Castillo | Lawrence Baca | Jewels | Julio Pagliani | Ron Burhham | Noa James | Agnes Seabass | Jean-Maruice Lacroux | Damian & Alex Vazquez | Hacienda Vintage Silver | Collection | Jose Brilanti | Alejandro & Roxana Gentil | Das Lanzoloti | Douglas Magnus | Coreen Cordova | Gina Pankowski | Greg Souther