The Magic of Mexico/Mexico Mágico
Tara A. Spears
The magic of Mexico is its energy, unique traditions, passionate music and friendly people-love at first sight! Yes, the gorgeous geography and tropical climate attract millions of visitors each year but it is Mexico’s vibrant, multifaceted culture that hooks people to return. The charm of Mexico is ancient yet timeless in its magic.
In recent years the government tourism agency has developed a program to advertise and recognize the special qualities of the country. The Pueblo Magico/A Magic Village criterion includes honoring a town that signifies important Mexican events or that is a place that symbolizes legends. But, one magic characteristic that is ubiquitous anywhere is the style of clothes.
There’s just something romantic and feminine about the Mexican full skirts. Women from many regions of Mexico traditionally wear very long, (often colorful) skirts that may contain as many as thirty meters of fabric. That makes the skirts heavy. In all of the folkloric regional dances, the style and colors vary in each state. While dancing, women often manipulate the skirts in such a way that makes the watcher become almost hypnotized.
It’s interesting to note that Nayarit was part of the State of Jalisco until the turn of the twentieth century. The western state of Nayarit is sandwiched between the two larger states of Jalisco to the south and Sinaloa to the north. This fact means that the folklore of Nayarit has been heavily influenced by those of the neighboring states, particularly by that of Sinaloa, yet the state of Nayarit has retained its own identity and folklore. Nayarit was one of the last territories admitted as a state of the Mexican federation, which occurred on May 1, 1917.
The music and dances of the Mestiza culture (comprised of Indigenous, African, and Spanish lineage) still predominate in the region of Nayarit. The music and dances of Nayarit show the spirit of the fiesta and the excitement of coming of age. In some cases, the dances are competitions for the men and women to show their bravado such as in the “Mexican Hat Dance”. The Mexican hat dance and the type of dancer’s clothing that is worn when performing this national dance have become internationally recognizable symbols of Mexican heritage.
Women wear a wide, colorfully decorated skirt and blouse outfit, the style of which is called China Poblana. The origin of the name and style of the skirt has inspired curious legends including that of a beautiful 17th century princess from India named Mirra who was kidnapped, taken to the Philippines, and sent to Mexico to be sold there as a slave. Her exotic and vibrant clothing left such an impression, that women in Mexico began copying the style and adapting and embellishing it to popular indigenous tastes for centuries.
The music for this folkloric dance originated in Jalsico and is titled “El Jarabe Tapatío.” This song has been extremely popular throughout Mexico since the 1910 revolution. Today, this song is still regularly heard on Mexican radio and TV stations. The music combines many different rhythms from different regions and this song was created to serve as a unifying symbol of the country.
When the song/dance originated over a hundred years ago, since the couple flirt openly during the dance, the Catholic Church considered it scandalous and banned the song. Fortunately for the world, the public didn’t abide by the church’s mandate. During the dance, the man’s sombrero is placed on the ground, and after lively hopping, sliding and kicking around the sombrero, the woman bends to pick up the hat, at which point the man kicks his leg over her head. Needless to say, timing and careful choreography are important. When the performance comes to a conclusion, the woman holds the hat up and both dancers’ faces disappear behind it, leaving captivated audiences to assume that the two are finally confirming mutual romantic interest and sealing it with a kiss.
This example is just one tiny piece of Mexican culture that symbolizes the beauty of the people and country. In Mexico, the seemingly simple is actually complex; it’s the Magic of Mexico. 
