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 There
are lots of Mexico guidebooks on the market–over 35 at last count–but
Traveler’s Mexico Companion by Maribeth Mellin offers such rich text and
beautiful photos that readers can travel to Mexico without getting out of
their chairs.
All guidebooks are written for a different group of readers
and this one isn’t any different. While page after page of insightful text
gives readers in-depth information, one section says this guidebook is for
budget travelers. In her section, Safety and Security, Mellin refers to the
absence of toilet seats at budget hotels and the need to bring along toilet
paper. But that’s where this book stops begin a budget guide, for Mellin
gives her readers a sophisticated look at all facets of Mexico.
Mellin divides her book into 16 major sections, each filled
with Wheeler’s magnificent images. She divides Mexico into ten regions–Mexico
City, The Valley of Mexico, Central Mexico, Guadalajara and the West, Northern
Central Highlands, The Land Bridge (Oaxaca, Chiapas, etc.), The Yucatan
Peninsula, The Northeast and the Gulf Coast, The Pacific Coast, and Baja
California.
Of the many regions of Mexico admired for their natural
beauty, Michoacan is among the most diverse. Mellin says, "It is a
panoply of soaring plateaus, sheer pine-forested slopes, crashing rivers,
tropical valleys, vibrant towns and , on the Pacific Coast, thundering surf,
coastal marshes and white beaches."
Her book takes readers to Mexico’s main tourist sights and
also to places off the beaten track where few tourists go. Mellin visits
remote villages and out-of-the-way neighborhoods of Mexican cities where the
real Mexico exists and offers first-hand information for her readers.
Part of the Traveler’s Companion series from Globe Pequot
Press, Mellin’s book provides her readers with detailed maps and practical
tips. But what sets her book apart are the added sections–"Top
Spots," "Off the Beaten Track" and a special chapter on
different vacation activities. While this is a great book for any traveler to
Mexico, it’s especially good for first timers.
Maribeth Mellin, winner of Mexico’s prestigious Pluma de
Plata Award for the first edition of this guidebook, has written and
contributed to many guidebooks on Mexico and Latin America. She speaks
with the voice of experience, a voice tempered by years of travel south of the
border.
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