Northern Mexico

We have had three previous visits to Mexico, "Mexico City", "Guadalajara And Mexico's West Coast" and, "Southeastern Mexico". Today's visit is to Northern Mexico.

The major city of northern Mexico is Monterrey. It has been a city since the Sixteenth Century, and is today the location of the headquarters of many international corporations in Mexico. It is known as an industrial center, particularly the manufacture of steel. The following scenes of Monterrey begin at the altar of Monterrey Cathedral. The mountain with the two peaks close together is Saddle Mountain.

There are multiple scenes following. To see the scenes, after the first one, you must first click the up arrow, ^, before you can move on to the next scene by clicking the right or forward arrow, >. After clicking the up arrow, you can then hide the previews of successive scenes, if you wish. 

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.6656475,-100.3094315,3a,75y,122.63h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipMUA74YFVygiMJENyYbh8CyoOkSJ50NJt2gEAoK!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipMUA74YFVygiMJENyYbh8CyoOkSJ50NJt2gEAoK%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi0-ya21.421217-ro-0-fo100!7i6000!8i3000

Here are some more views of central Monterrey.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.6724777,-100.3092041,3a,75y,337.2h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipP9VTQpoGBAwSEaJKys3nSXBCpOupEXUZF5CkNE!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipP9VTQpoGBAwSEaJKys3nSXBCpOupEXUZF5CkNE%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi0-ya339.2492-ro-0-fo100!7i3584!8i1792

The city of Tampico is on the Gulf of Mexico coast of northern Mexico. Tampico is sometimes thought of as Mexico's version of New Orleans, with canals through the city and similar architecture. In the early days of cars, there was an oil boom in this area. The following scenes begin in the Cathedral of Tampico. We see the familiar pattern in Mexico of the main church in a town facing the main square. There may be government buildings on the square as well.

https://www.google.com/maps/@22.2161683,-97.8575652,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sAb0QtfstmnZFt2Mtfp_XrQ!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fpanoid%3DAb0QtfstmnZFt2Mtfp_XrQ%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D102.76455%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192

Nuevo Laredo is the Mexican city across the Rio Grande River from the Texas city of Laredo. It is a central hub of goods that are manufactured in Mexico being shipped across the border. You may notice variations in the Spanish language from one place to another. In our visit to Colombia a stop sign was "PARE", but in Mexico a stop sign is "ALTO".

https://www.google.com/maps/@27.4911343,-99.5026582,3a,75y,46.5h,93t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sBEpw4EgyiAzKzzNbZopjCA!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DBEpw4EgyiAzKzzNbZopjCA%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D46.500008%26pitch%3D-3%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Further west, we come to the city of Torreon. The following views of Torreon begin under the Plaza Mayor, the main square of the city.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.5412997,-103.4531338,3a,75y,236.95h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1slLwvCLnJucVSGXyODAZWgQ!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DlLwvCLnJucVSGXyODAZWgQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D234.20222%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Here is the city of Chihuahua beginning in the Plaza Mayor. Notice that Chihuahua is an Aztec, and not a Spanish, name. Indian languages have had a great influence on the names and the language of Mexico. Millions of people, particularly away from urban areas, still speak Indian languages as their daily language. Colombia, in contrast, speaks almost purely European Spanish. Of the three great native Indian civilizations before the arrival of European two were in Mexico, the Aztec and the Maya. The third is the Inca. In case you have never been told, the Indians in the western hemisphere are so-called because Christopher Columbus mistakenly believed that he had landed in India.

The government buildings in major cities, which usually face the main square, resemble the National Palace, in Mexico City, that we saw on our visit there.

https://www.google.com/maps/@28.640045,-106.073416,3a,75y,91.86h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipNN0Y156sX6Z8whEKW-ewup-rj9AjH9bLKaANE!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipNN0Y156sX6Z8whEKW-ewup-rj9AjH9bLKaANE%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya92.11651-ro-0-fo100!7i5660!8i2830

The westernmost city in northern Mexico is Tijuana. Here is the area of Tijuana that is immediately across the border from San Diego. This is where Tijuana's metal arch is located. The following scenes begin at the same point as this photo was taken, on Avenida Revolucion. The arch was not there in 1996.

http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5492/3756/1600/dc_250998.jpg


https://www.google.com/maps/@32.5343921,-117.0369251,3a,75y,26.5h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1snK3hTrt4ER82V2qJ0JtFcQ!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo1.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DnK3hTrt4ER82V2qJ0JtFcQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D22.798174%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

We have already seen the area of Tijuana that is just across the border in the photo blog of North America. Each of the following photos can be expanded by clicking on it.

http://markmeektravel.blogspot.com/2006/09/tijuana-mexico.html

This is Tijuana's central area, known as Zona Rio. There is a spherical theater that is shaped like a planet, just as we saw in our visit to "Upstate New York" that there is a theater in Albany that is shaped like an egg.

https://www.google.com/maps/@32.529536,-117.0240889,3a,75y,75.02h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sfW0kjVLYz9-ZuKWcprzj_Q!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo3.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DfW0kjVLYz9-ZuKWcprzj_Q%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D72.39427%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Here is the part of Tijuana that is along the Pacific Coast.

https://www.google.com/maps/@32.5251095,-117.1230976,3a,75y,270.62h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sbJl0qMvJ2SHbnRiPl8XAMg!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo3.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DbJl0qMvJ2SHbnRiPl8XAMg%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D270.6245%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Can you believe that one of the conquistadors, Francisco Coronado, led a Sixteenth-Century expedition all across what is now northern Mexico and the southwestern U.S. looking for rumored "cities of gold"? But no gold was to be found. What it did accomplish was European exploration of the area.

Could they have imagined that there was a vast amount of gold below the ground. In what is now southern Mexico, the Aztecs and the Maya had tons of gold. But the Indians where Coronado was searching, such as the Apache and Navajo, were semi-nomadic and had nowhere near the level of advanced civilization as the Aztec and Maya. The gold had never been found, and wouldn't be found until the gold rushes of the Nineteenth Century.

Southeastern Mexico

This is our third visit to Mexico. Previous visits have been "Mexico City" and "Guadalajara And Mexico's West Coast".

Let's start our look at the southeastern part of Mexico in the town of Dolores Hidalgo. This is where the call for Mexican independence from Spain was first made, in 1810, by the priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla. The following scenes start inside the church in the central square. The statue of Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla can be seen in the square.

https://www.google.com/maps/@21.1582086,-100.9341568,3a,75y,56.65h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-7HNWkRqz0vo%2FV9xjKYTjVSI%2FAAAAAAAAOT0%2Fpe8cxZ3omCg8pAMNYjQIbDg1HfILloiGwCLIB!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh6.googleusercontent.com%2F-7HNWkRqz0vo%2FV9xjKYTjVSI%2FAAAAAAAAOT0%2Fpe8cxZ3omCg8pAMNYjQIbDg1HfILloiGwCLIB%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya33.78547-ro-0-fo100%2F!7i10240!8i5120

Puebla is a colonial era city, began in 1531. It is between Mexico City and the Gulf of Mexico port of Veracruz. Puebla was an important battle site in the French Intervention in Mexico, and has been a center of European and Lebanese immigration. You may remember that Carlos Slim, once the richest man in the world, is of Lebanese ancestry in Mexico. The following scenes begin in the Cathedral of Puebla, adjacent to the Zocalo, the main square. Notice how the building of the Palacio Municipal, the city hall, resembles the National Palace in Mexico City.

https://www.google.com/maps/@19.0429841,-98.198272,3a,75y,71.68h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-FcWucyLcHzU%2FU84ikcPogmI%2FAAAAAAAACPw%2FGWctOz1GIywA-b0fjLhJimwXeG8nowbbwCJkC!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2F-FcWucyLcHzU%2FU84ikcPogmI%2FAAAAAAAACPw%2FGWctOz1GIywA-b0fjLhJimwXeG8nowbbwCJkC%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya70.7006-ro-0-fo100%2F!7i4096!8i2048

The city of Leon was an active battle site in Mexico's war of independence, the Reform War between Liberals and Conservatives and, the French Intervention. Here are some scenes of Leon starting in the Plaza Principal. The arch with the lion on the top, to celebrate the heroes from the city, can be thought of as Leon's version of the Arc de Triomphe, or the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel.

https://www.google.com/maps/@21.121926,-101.6824669,3a,75y,104.01h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-L7C0T9I0FCE%2FVx5NlIPyk1I%2FAAAAAAAAREI%2F3SxpYLh7aAsu3BMLBUDI96kJQ5tMjN6GwCLIB!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh4.googleusercontent.com%2F-L7C0T9I0FCE%2FVx5NlIPyk1I%2FAAAAAAAAREI%2F3SxpYLh7aAsu3BMLBUDI96kJQ5tMjN6GwCLIB%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya95.97123-ro-0-fo100%2F!7i10240!8i5120

This is the Expiatorio Temple in Leon.

https://www.google.com/maps/@21.1201735,-101.6748544,3a,75y,46.49h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-GhCHoW5vFsg%2FVHIJFUsUWqI%2FAAAAAAAAyFA%2FCOyKFm_Mj6MghHOKEwoonUcT8Af-wW-YgCJkC!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh4.googleusercontent.com%2F-GhCHoW5vFsg%2FVHIJFUsUWqI%2FAAAAAAAAyFA%2FCOyKFm_Mj6MghHOKEwoonUcT8Af-wW-YgCJkC%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya32.499718-ro-0-fo100%2F!7i9728!8i4864

Did you know that the Mexican city of San Luis Potosi is named for a French king, Louis IX, that was so kindly and saintly that he became known as St. Louis? The United States also has a major city named for him. San Luis means St. Louis.

There was a Nineteenth Century war in Mexico, the Reform War between Liberals and Conservatives, and I see the way Conservatives supported the later French Intervention, while Liberals opposed it and ultimately triumphed, as a reflection of how America's Republicans (Conservatives) were the descendants of the French Bourbon Dynasty, as described in the posting on this blog, "America And The Modern World Explained By Way Of Paris".

San Luis Potosi was a very early and important colonial city. The following scenes begin inside the Metropolitan Cathedral of San Luis Potosi.

https://www.google.com/maps/@22.1514288,-100.9760394,3a,75y,63.47h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-zsf8TEVR2wc%2FV92kn2PeaQI%2FAAAAAAAACIE%2FhKfhyeFKhpYjrhkgpFyzzMdg6Ad-kezmgCLIB!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh4.googleusercontent.com%2F-zsf8TEVR2wc%2FV92kn2PeaQI%2FAAAAAAAACIE%2FhKfhyeFKhpYjrhkgpFyzzMdg6Ad-kezmgCLIB%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya61.67216-ro-0-fo100%2F!7i5376!8i2688

The city of Veracruz is Mexico's most important port, and is on the Gulf of Mexico. It was founded by Hernan Cortes in 1519, and the name of the city means "The True Cross". It was perhaps the most important city of colonial-era Mexico for some time, and was heavily fortified against raids.

This city was a focal point of conflict between the U.S. and Mexico. During the Mexican Revolution of 1910, to overthrow President Porfirio Diaz and redistribute land, the U.S. Government became concerned about the investments that Americans had in Mexico's oil fields, and decided to send a force to watch the situation and evacuate Americans, if necessary.

During the operation, the U.S. Navy arranged to buy some fuel from a vendor in Veracruz. A group of U.S. sailors were sent in a boat to pick up the fuel, in drums. The sailors were in uniform, and none could speak Spanish. Some Mexican soldiers saw the sailors, and asked that they were doing. Since none of the sailors spoke Spanish, they could not answer. The soldiers arrested the sailors, and took them for questioning.

The sailors were released as soon as they had been questioned in English, but the admiral that was in charge of the U.S. Navy operation was outraged. He demanded a 21-gun salute to an American flag as a token of apology, which the Mexicans naturally refused. This led to U.S. forces landing, and occupying Veracruz for about six months. This is known as the Tampico Affair.

(This may remind readers of our visit to Algiers where the Dey, the Ottoman leader of Algeria, struck the French consul with a flyswatter during a dispute over debts owed to Algerians. The French took it as an act of war, landed and occupied the country, and the destinies of France and Algeria have been entwined ever since).

I have written before about how this 1910 Mexican Revolution, with it's redistribution of land to the common people and America's hostility to it, was a predecessor of the October Revolution that would come seven years later.

While the Tampico Affair was going on, the First World War was raging but America was not yet involved. The German High Command became concerned that America might enter the war on the Allied side. Following the Tampico Affair, they sent a coded telegram to the Mexican Government advising that if Mexico would join the Central Powers against the United States, it would regain the vast land area that it had previously lost to the United States that included Arizona and California.

The British spy service, known as Room 40, intercepted and decoded the telegram. The British Government debated over whether to warn America, because that risked giving away that they had broken the Germans' code. The decision was made to warn America, since it would likely bring a new ally into the war, and indeed this week is the 100th anniversary of America's entry into the First World War.

The following scenes begin in Fort San Juan De Ulua, in Veracruz. In an event that would later be mirrored in Fort Sumter and the Confederate States of America, after Mexico had gained independence Spanish forces remained in the fort, and refused to recognize the independence of Mexico.

https://www.google.com/maps/@19.2095642,-96.1313629,3a,75y,249.45h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-gDJtjc2JBEY%2FVDmQyhlqnkI%2FAAAAAAAAAEU%2FoZ2sQnmuELc5cCMrIozJK6cYqa-Sh6R8gCJkC!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh4.googleusercontent.com%2F-gDJtjc2JBEY%2FVDmQyhlqnkI%2FAAAAAAAAAEU%2FoZ2sQnmuELc5cCMrIozJK6cYqa-Sh6R8gCJkC%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi0-ya45.35117-ro-0-fo100%2F!7i10240!8i5120

Campeche was originally a Maya city. The Maya were the other great Indian civilization of Mexico, along with the Aztecs who founded the predecessor to Mexico City. It became an important Spanish colonial city, founded in 1540, with old Spanish fortresses and walls, along with Mayan structures.

The following scenes begin outside Campeche's Cathedral.

https://www.google.com/maps/@19.8462457,-90.5362309,3a,75y,73.25h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-WU8JsYEp8MY%2FWFdYxg4vQ-I%2FAAAAAAAAAPg%2F4CqdOjaH2Gg0bHjG5xa2I2QDyrSzDGH3QCLIB!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh4.googleusercontent.com%2F-WU8JsYEp8MY%2FWFdYxg4vQ-I%2FAAAAAAAAAPg%2F4CqdOjaH2Gg0bHjG5xa2I2QDyrSzDGH3QCLIB%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya195.26086-ro-0-fo100%2F!7i8704!8i4352

Merida is another very old city that was first Maya, and then Spanish, and then a vital city of independent Mexico. Unlike the U.S. and Canada, where no native languages are spoken as daily languages, the language of the Maya is still widely spoken here just as Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs, is spoken in the central part of the country. The following scenes begin in the Cathedral of Merida.

https://www.google.com/maps/@20.9671419,-89.6224173,3a,75y,265.87h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sn8M4MbKmAsBQTtAAEhA1Ag!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3Dn8M4MbKmAsBQTtAAEhA1Ag%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D265.57947%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

The development of Cancun as a resort began only in the early 1970s, but today it is one of the best-known beach resorts in the world.

https://www.google.com/maps/@21.1503277,-86.8254089,3a,75y,316h,88t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-kG28V39a4wI%2FVFld6b61Q6I%2FAAAAAAAABuw%2FxJVHFmFQQiQuIOJTk1HdPnp24cnfR3ppQCLIB!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh6.googleusercontent.com%2F-kG28V39a4wI%2FVFld6b61Q6I%2FAAAAAAAABuw%2FxJVHFmFQQiQuIOJTk1HdPnp24cnfR3ppQCLIB%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-2.9999962-ya353.5-ro-0-fo100%2F!7i8704!8i4352

Dazzle For Fashion

After the development of submarines, but before the development of radar, British ships were painted in bizarre patterns known as Dazzle.

It is very difficult to hide a ship at sea. But the confusing and deceptive camouflage patterns of Dazzle could deceive anyone looking at the ship through a periscope as to the ship's direction and what type of ship it was. Dazzle might cause the observer to think a ship moving east-west was really moving north-south. It could confuse as to the number of ships in a convoy. In choppy seas and poor visibility it could even conceal a ship, since the Dazzle patterns look like waves.

You can do a search to see some examples of Dazzle patterns.

Now I think it is time for a peaceful use of Dazzle, as fashion. Wouldn't it be cool to have a jacket with Dazzle patterns? How about having your car painted in Dazzle?

If a business had vehicles they could have their own particular style of Dazzle. Wouldn't a town or city seem progressive if it's vehicles were painted in Dazzle? Dazzle would get attention in advertising. It would be ideal for signs and walls in buildings. Wouldn't going to school be more fun if the hallways were painted in Dazzle?

I believe that seeing things that are painted in one solid color prompts us to fit in and think like everybody else while seeing different designs and patterns makes us both be creative and to think for ourselves. If we could only see in black and white we would be more conformist than we are seeing in color.

On the subject of Britain I am pleased to see that my native Forest of Dean is one of the areas that has been least-afflicted by the virus. Maybe because it is somewhat geographically isolated.

Structural Batteries

Ever since I was a teenager there have been people saying that the days of the internal combustion engine are numbered. Now, depending on the progress of electric vehicles, it appears that the end for the internal combustion engine might be on the horizon.

The great roadblock to electric vehicles is the necessity of carrying a battery. Battery technology has not kept pace with either electric car or electronic communications technology. The two drawbacks of batteries are that they are heavy and they take time to charge.

Engineers are working on getting batteries to charge more quickly. But what if we could eliminate the weight of the battery entirely? Maybe it only requires some thinking outside the box.

Small drones fly on batteries. What if passenger jets could fly on battery power? The reason that they can't, of course, is the weight of the battery that would be necessary. The battery would be so heavy that the plane would be unable to fly. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could somehow eliminate the weight of the battery altogether?

Every battery that I have ever seen has been compact in form. It has been either cylindrical, as in flashlight batteries, or rectangular, as in lantern or automotive batteries. But the compact form is only for ease of placement and handling. There is no rule that a battery has to be of any certain form or shape.

What if we could make a jump in outside the box thinking that would effectively eliminate the weight and bulk of the battery? Most of a car is made of steel and most of a plane of aluminum. Why couldn't the elements of the battery actually be built into the structure of the car or plane so that parts of the battery would also be structural parts of the vehicle? Some parts of the vehicle would be made of battery materials.

This would effectively eliminate most or all of the weight of the battery. What could be more revolutionary than this step, which really only requires some thinking outside the box.

Of course there will be people who say that this is impossible and cannot be done. Just as there were people saying that if we were meant to fly we would have been born with wings. Just as there were people saying that electric lighting was impossible, ships could never be made out of steel, there would never be radios in cars, flying to the moon was absolutely impossible, there would never be phones that we can practically carry around, buildings higher than a few stories would collapse under their own weight, and so on...

Remember that cell phones also have room for improvement:

https://markmeekprogress.blogspot.com/2009/06/cell-phone-projection.html?m=0 

My solution for global warming is simple, although that doesn't necessarily mean it will be easy, and involves the humble lawnmower:

https://markmeekprogress.blogspot.com/2009/06/solving-global-warming.html?m=0

Guadalajara And Mexico's West Coast

 Guadalajara is the largest city in Mexico, after Mexico City which we have previously visited. It was named for the city of the same name in Spain. The city has been involved in extensive conflict. It was a focal point of the War of Independence, against Spain, the Reform War, the French Intervention and, the uprising against the government during the time of Santa Anna.

Today, Guadalajara is known as Mexico's IT center. It is the major city near Mexico's west coast. In Mexico, the name of Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla is often seen. This was the Catholic priest who initiated the uprising in Mexico that led to independence. The bell that he rang is at the National Palace in Mexico City. It is for him that Guadalajara's airport is named, and there is a statue of him in the city.

Let's start our look at Guadalajara inside the city's cathedral, in the old section of the city. Notice how Palacio Municipal, the city hall, bears a resemblance to the National Palace.

https://www.google.com/maps/@20.6768147,-103.3473433,3a,75y,87h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-mrKHARxj5SM%2FVWNe11ziaAI%2FAAAAAAAAOoQ%2F4vSwwWCFBQAsMvooWbTyBQ5ZT3aBmJ3UQCLIB!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh4.googleusercontent.com%2F-mrKHARxj5SM%2FVWNe11ziaAI%2FAAAAAAAAOoQ%2F4vSwwWCFBQAsMvooWbTyBQ5ZT3aBmJ3UQCLIB%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya340.29248-ro-0-fo100%2F!7i10240!8i5120

Not far from the cathedral is a really magnificent building, although nowhere near as old as the cathedral. The following scenes begin inside the Expiatorio Temple of the Blessed Sacrament. This follows the Mexican pattern of a cathedral or large church facing the main square of a city.

https://www.google.com/maps/@20.673563,-103.3587516,3a,75y,189h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s--P-rdSGiot8%2FWAZoJnV3VAI%2FAAAAAAAAALc%2FwN62Yf7COiQkwZpGTeXIhT2mqwzPuUhLACLIB!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2F--P-rdSGiot8%2FWAZoJnV3VAI%2FAAAAAAAAALc%2FwN62Yf7COiQkwZpGTeXIhT2mqwzPuUhLACLIB%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya240.04652-ro-0-fo100%2F!7i6144!8i3072

This is a new development in Guadalajara, known as Puerta Hierro.

https://www.google.com/maps/@20.7190511,-103.418629,3a,75y,128h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-8DMhhAgrBsc%2FVKrdfFnIT4I%2FAAAAAAAADWA%2FBPS5H4VGLwUThktmDhxmueq-rVh6PNMuACJkC!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh3.googleusercontent.com%2F-8DMhhAgrBsc%2FVKrdfFnIT4I%2FAAAAAAAADWA%2FBPS5H4VGLwUThktmDhxmueq-rVh6PNMuACJkC%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya319.07336-ro0-fo100%2F!7i10240!8i5120

This is an upscale residential area, in the western part of Guadalajara.

https://www.google.com/maps/@20.6670851,-103.4293591,3a,75y,347.66h,89.2t,0.59r/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sCpPX7ppxh-djh2-LlAKy3g!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo1.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DCpPX7ppxh-djh2-LlAKy3g%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D217.34372%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Along the west coast, in the general area of Guadalajara, are the "beach cities" that draw so many visitors. The northernmost of these beach cities is Mazatlan.

https://www.google.com/maps/@23.2007365,-106.4218444,3a,75y,68.9h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s-OBwYfaCu-es%2FV56yggWIfzI%2FAAAAAAAABx0%2FmAmdLTrQd8Yy4MF98iAI6jlAJ08Q_BF0QCLIB!2e4!3e11!6s%2F%2Flh6.googleusercontent.com%2F-OBwYfaCu-es%2FV56yggWIfzI%2FAAAAAAAABx0%2FmAmdLTrQd8Yy4MF98iAI6jlAJ08Q_BF0QCLIB%2Fw203-h100-k-no-pi0-ya67.22296-ro0-fo100%2F!7i11000!8i5500

Moving southward, the next of Mexico's west coast "beach cities", and the one closest to Guadalajara, is Puerto Vallarta. Notice the crown on the steeple of the church, reminiscent of St. Giles Cathedral on our visit to Edinburgh.

https://www.google.com/maps/@20.608244,-105.2347922,3a,75y,337.35h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sRCJ4ECdlhazSgp6PvoQeoQ!2e0!3e2!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DRCJ4ECdlhazSgp6PvoQeoQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D356.29742%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Furthest south, the best-known of Mexico's west coast beach resorts is Acapulco.

https://www.google.com/maps/@16.8594051,-99.8726984,3a,75y,136.95h,89.76t,0.61r/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sZf8iUZk0f6OE_SV9wtV-uA!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo1.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DZf8iUZk0f6OE_SV9wtV-uA%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D214.5%26pitch%3D-3%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Finally, we come to Mexico's glamour city of Cuernavaca. It is not on the coast and is much closer to Mexico City than to Guadalajara. A lot of wealthy Mexicans own homes here, and it is a favorite destination for ex-pat Americans. The following scenes of Cuernavaca begin in the Cortes Palace.

https://www.google.com/maps/@18.9210681,-99.2333439,3a,75y,9.23h,90.21t,-0.18r/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1svDq7t0nS1gQvHs_gpFPkxw!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo1.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DvDq7t0nS1gQvHs_gpFPkxw%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D113.65605%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Here is a neighborhood in Cuernavaca.

https://www.google.com/maps/@18.8709009,-99.2077252,3a,75y,86.41h,90.9t,1.45r/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s4A5tdn6JOWZEXwYr4CCGrQ!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D4A5tdn6JOWZEXwYr4CCGrQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D175.56566%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Mixed Feelings About Urban Renewal

It is about fifty years since construction of the Spadina Expressway was halted in Toronto. This was considered as a major victory for preservationists everywhere.

The Spadina Expressway was to be a quick route between north of Toronto and downtown. The northern part was built but was halted before it got to downtown. It only ended up going as far as Eglinton Avenue. The part of the expressway that was completed is now known as Allen Road.

I get the impression that there is at least some mixed feelings about the expressway not being completed, or at least not extending further south, at least while waiting in rush-hour traffic.

We cannot have it both ways. Most cities were built before cars came along. On the one hand we want to preserve historic neighborhoods. On the other hand we don't want to spend a half hour stuck in traffic and then another half hour looking for a place to park. Something has got to give.

The Cross-Bronx Expressway has been blamed for just about everything. But what would the Bronx be like today without it?

Building a highway through a city is a perilous thing to do in that it can change the whole economic dynamic of the city. One of the most controversial urban renewal projects anywhere is the Kensington Expressway across the East Side of Buffalo. I am also sure that construction of the Interstate 190 across Niagara Falls, NY has resulted in major economic changes to that city, boosting the business district to the east of the highway at the expense of downtown Niagara Falls.

Here is a link to the posting, on the world and economics blog, about the economic and social impact of highways that were built through the city in Buffalo and Niagara Falls:

http://markmeekeconomics.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-controversy-surrounding-urban.html?m=0

Scotland

We have already visited Scotland's two major cities, Edinburgh and Glasgow, this is a look at the rest of Scotland.

When leaving Scotland once, the incongruity occurred to me that I had not seen a McDonald's. There are McDonald's restaurants in Scotland but I had not seen one. This is by far the best-known Scottish name yet it has nothing to do with Scotland. The founders of McDonald's were not even named McDonald, Ray Kroc bought a food stand that had been owned by the McDonald brothers and kept the name because people were familiar with it.

In medieval times, Scotland won independence from England but the "Union of the Crowns" took place in 1603 when James VI of Scotland also became James I of England. This was a so-called "personal union" where a king rules more than one country. But that does not necessarily mean that the two countries are fully united. A more recent personal union in Europe was the Austro-Hungarian Empire, ruled by emperor Franz Joseph, although the two countries were still separate with a citizen being either Austrian or Hungarian, but not both.

James I was the beginning of the House of Stuart in England. James I, king James VI of Scotland, had acceded to the throne of England also when his cousin, Elizabeth I of England, died childless. That was the end of the House of Tudor, the most famous king of which was Henry VIII and who was the father of Elizabeth I. The main event during the House of Tudor was the Reformation. The main events of the House of Stuart would be the inter-Protestant English Civil War between the Anglicans and the Puritans and then finally the actual union between England and Scotland in 1707.

James I of England is the king that is best-known today for having commissioned the King James Bible, which we saw in the posting on this blog "Hampton Court Palace And The King James Bible".

Unity between England and Scotland was driven by ending up on the same side of the Reformation. But independent Scotland had been an ally of France. The French crown was held by the House of Bourbon. There were also active junior lines. The final French monarchy had actually been the House of Orleans, which was deposed for good in the series of revolutions that swept Europe in 1848. This was even after the House of Bourbon had been reinstated after the time of Napoleon.

Another junior French royal line was the House of Guise. It never held power in France but is best-known for the fact that one of it's would-be princesses, Mary of Guise, would reign in Scotland by marriage to James V. Mary of Guise wanted to keep Scotland Catholic and separate from Protestant England but it would be her grandson, James VI of Scotland, that would become a Protestant and also reign as James I of England, and would commission the King James Bible.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_of_Guise#/media/File:Attributed_to_Corneille_de_Lyon_-_Mary_of_Guise,_1515_-_1560._Queen_of_James_V_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg

Before joining England to form Britain, Scotland had it's own colony in what is now Panama and the name of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia means "New Scotland".

The area around Falkirk, south of the Firth of Forth and between Edinburgh and Glasgow, used to be Scotland's center of steel production. Scotland had both the iron ore and coal necessary for the first phase of the Industrial Revolution. Scotland's James Watt improved the steam engine that had earlier been invented in England and today the unit of electrical power is named for him. But the town has a long history dating back to the Middle Ages. The great steel mills are gone and here is a look at Falkirk now.

There are multiple scenes following. To see the scenes, after the first one, you must first click the up arrow ^, before you can move on to the next scene by clicking the right or forward arrow, >. After clicking the up arrow, you can then hide the previews of successive scenes, if you wish.

https://www.google.com/maps/@55.9998523,-3.7816391,3a,60y,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s1KUIpjhzN5kqU6uDrYmqgg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

The Firth of Forth is the water inlet that separates the northern (Highland) and southern parts of Scotland. In this photo of Edinburgh, from the travel photo blog of Europe, the stretch of water seen in the background is the Firth of Forth.

http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/3879/3734/1600/dc_250920.jpg

Here is a residential area of Dunfermline, which is just north of the Firth of Forth. This was the hometown of Andrew Carnegie, the steel magnate that we saw on our visit to "Pittsburgh". There is a well-known old abbey in Dunfermline that was the burial place of Scottish kings. An abbey was the church of a monastery, some of which were on the scale of cathedrals. The preaching of John Knox changed Scotland from a bastion of Catholicism into one of the most Protestant of nations, but the churches of former Catholic monasteries are still called abbeys.

https://www.google.com/maps/@56.0717341,-3.4407717,3a,60y,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s8WfoxGV2jkkn6wFEgHYe3Q!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

(Note-Some abbeys that were in locations that were not suitable for active churches were simply abandoned after the Reformation. The ruins of such abbeys are seen in many places in Britain. Monasteries were a Catholic practice that was not used by Protestants. Remember that we saw Tintern Abbey in the posting on this blog, "The Reformation At 500").

Kirkcaldy is also on the north shore of the Firth of Forth, and is known as the birthplace of Adam Smith who was the developer of the modern economic theory of capitalism.

https://www.google.com/maps/@56.1103215,-3.1622827,3a,60y,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sZK09Nn30CqJ3NT6910MlQA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Dundee is about a thousand years old and, formerly known for textile production, is today considered as Scotland's center of education.

https://www.google.com/maps/@56.4599387,-2.9722619,3a,60y,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s0tmcyNAEaDNDSieaePPq0w!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Aberdeen is a medieval city that is now Britain's center of oil production from the North Sea.

https://www.google.com/maps/@57.1497201,-2.0974353,3a,60y,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sZy9b1_7tyiCgZnEVBIG45w!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 

Iverness is Scotland's city of the far north and the Highlands. It is a medieval city but the castle is only from the Nineteenth Century, although it is on the site of previous castles.

https://www.google.com/maps/@57.4748736,-4.2292128,3a,60y,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1siUBUpfz2nCTT1p9msBM37A!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Scotland has four "Ancient Universities". An amazing time was the Eighteenth-Century Scottish Enlightenment. Scotland has contributed to the world far and away out of proportion to it's population.

One story that must not be forgotten is that of Encyclopedia Britannica. This is the predominant encyclopedia in the English-speaking world in the days before Wikipedia. It was founded in Edinburgh as a way to categorize Scotland's relentless quest for knowledge.

The oldest of the Ancient Universities is St. Andrews University, which was founded in 1413. It is the Scottish version of Oxford or Cambridge.

https://www.google.com/maps/@56.3415127,-2.7938725,2a,60y,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s8wuPtrBGc7UDTTyNgVn1iw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

The second oldest is the University of Glasgow. It was founded in 1451 but has been at it's present location since the Nineteenth Century. The papal bull that founded the university is famously missing, having been taken to Paris by a Catholic sympathizer when Scotland joined the Reformation, and it has never been found.

https://www.google.com/maps/@55.8725446,-4.2897168,3a,60y,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sMEgHAmh5XskwbTziXZxzvQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

Remember that we saw the tower at the University of Glasgow on the travel photo blog of Europe.

http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/3879/3734/1600/dc_250922.jpg

The next is the University of Aberdeen, founded in 1495. Notice the steeple in the shape of a crown that is reminiscent of that on St. Giles Cathedral that we saw in our visit to "Edinburgh". St. Giles is the central church of Presbyterianism, which is Scotland's particular brand of Protestantism.

https://www.google.com/maps/@57.1639692,-2.1020483,3a,60y,73.91h,99.91t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1seouRPbf6nLxubrsproQIXA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

The final one of the "Ancient Universities" of Scotland is Edinburgh University. Unlike the other three, it was founded after Scotland joined the Reformation so that it began with a royal charter rather than a papal bull.

https://www.google.com/maps/@55.9437246,-3.1884638,2a,60y,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sN1tdtvOjzOLnV_JjMYeWDQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Scotland is also known for it's mountains. It is much more mountainous than England. The summit of Ben Nevis is the highest elevation point in Britain.

https://www.google.com/maps/@56.7968853,-5.0030823,3a,75y,217.78h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipPQgVy6aa4C_eaBLNLMZUKrcm78NKE6psHn9lw!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipPQgVy6aa4C_eaBLNLMZUKrcm78NKE6psHn9lw%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi0-ya20.002712-ro-0-fo100!7i10240!8i5120

The Nature Of The Inanimate Universe

One way to define life is by what it is not, by pointing out the differences between living things and inanimate matter. Also I believe that the way to understand the inanimate universe is to be sure that we are seeing it the way it really is by separating out our own nature from what the inanimate universe is without us.

Color is the first thing which comes to mind that does not really exist in the inanimate universe. There is really no such thing as red or blue or green outside of ourselves. Color is just the way our eyes and brains interpret different wavelengths of the visible light that we can see. Have you ever seen anything that is color-coded, such as signs or wires? Well, the way we see it, everything is actually color-coded.

Optical illusions, of course, do not really exist. There is really no blue sky or rainbows or sun dogs. Optical illusions are even less real than colors.

Words do not exist at all outside of our vocabulary. Everything is really numbers being manifested. Numbers do exist but words don't. Words are just a high-level perspective view of ours. 

What I refer to as "Truth Pairs" do not exist outside of ourselves and other living things. There is no such thing as true or false, negative and positive, good and bad, or right and wrong. There are the electric charges that we refer to as positive and negative, but that is just a matter of our definition. True and false is just a matter of our perspective. We are more complex than our inanimate surroundings and so there is not enough information there for everything that we can conceive of to be true, so we perceive true and false. But, outside of living consciousness there is no such thing as false.

The peak, or optimum, factor is seen only in living things. It does not exist in the universe of inanimate matter. Living things have optimum conditions and amounts of such things as temperatures, food, physical activity and, sleep. This optimum tends to reach a peak, after which it declines. Processes in inanimate matter, such as flames and stars, just have a condition of the more matter, fuel or oxygen the better, which is an upward slope and not the peak pattern.

Quality and quantity is often referred to in human dealings. But in the universe of inanimate matter there is no such thing as quality, there is only quantity. Quality is just a perspective of living things.

Beauty is a form of quality that absolutely does not exist in the universe of inanimate matter. There is only numbers being manifested. There is no such thing as verbal description or quality or beauty.

In the universe of inanimate reality there is no such thing as a coincidence. This is just a random reduction in apparent complexity, as seen from our perspective. You see a person at the bus station on one side of town, and then just happen to run into them in the store on the other side of town. In the inanimate universe there is no such thing as a coincidence because it is only something that is perceived by beings of higher complexity than our surroundings, such as ourselves.

Sometimes we hear a saying like "It's an art not an exact science". This represents what I refer to as "realm sets". I define realm sets as either simple or complex. Simple and complex realm sets tend to exist in pairs. A simple realm is where a statement has to be either true or false. A complex realm is where two opposite statements can both be true. An obvious example of a simple realm is mathematics. An example of a complex realm is politics or economics, two opposite opinions can both have some validity, and the best position may be a compromise between the two. Mathematics is a simple realm not only because a mathematical statement must be either true or false but because we must completely understand something to describe it with numbers. Science is related to mathematics but we can use words, instead of numbers, to describe something that we do not completely understand. Art is a more complex realm than science because, unlike science or mathematics, art cannot really be "wrong" or incorrect. It is an expression of the effect that something has on the artist, rather than precise facts or measurements about it.

Entropy is often cited as a primary principle of how the universe operates. Entropy favors one direction over the opposite direction, the breaking down of the complex into the simple. An often-cited example of entropy is the placing of an open bottle of ink in an aquarium full of water. The ink will gradually disperse throughout the water. The principle of entropy is that it is a lot easier for the ink to disperse from the bottle throughout the water than it is for the ink to go back into the bottle. But every meaningful example of entropy that I have ever seen involves either living things, such as the complexity of a body being broken down after death, or things that have been made by living things, such as the bottle of ink and the aquarium. There is no meaningful examples of entropy in the universe of inanimate matter.

Negative numbers do not really exist. Our number system has a number line of positive numbers in one direction and negative numbers in the opposite direction. By convention two negative numbers multiplied produces a positive number, a positive and a negative number multiplied produces a negative number and two positive numbers multiplied produces a positive number. Adding a negative number to a positive number is the same as subtracting the number from the positive number. But my conclusion is that negative numbers do not exist in the universe of inanimate reality. Negative numbers have a starting point of zero and there cannot be less than nothing. Negative numbers exist only in things of human creation, such as debt. Temperature scales have below zero temperatures but these scales are of artificial human creation. A correct scale of temperature, in line with how the inanimate universe operates, begins at Absolute Zero so that there is no negative temperatures.

In the inanimate universe there is no such thing as top and bottom, front and back, or left and right. Planets and stars rotate, with a north and a south pole. But neither pole can really meaningfully be said to be the "top" or the "bottom" of the planet or star. It is only living things, or things made by living things such as houses, that have a definable top and bottom. The same can be said for front and back. No star or planet or galaxy has a meaningful front and back. But it is only living things with free will, including humans, that have a meaningful front and back. Plants have a definable top and bottom, but not a front and back. There is no such thing as the front and back of a tree. Left and right, of course, is meaningless in the universe of inanimate matter because defining it requires a front and back. I see the fact that people tend to be left- or right-handed as a matter of complexity. Left- or right-handedness is information and is a result of the brain being more complex than the body.

Alphabetization, as I refer to it, does not exist in the universe of inanimate matter. Alphabetization means something that doesn't make sense except as a subdomain of a larger whole. Consider a human foot, for example, a foot by itself doesn't make any sense, except as part of the human body. But that is not true at all of an inanimate object, such as a rock. A rock makes just as much sense whether it is within a planet, on the surface of the planet, or floating around in space.

Here is a link to a posting about the same subject, "The Universe With Us And Without Us":

http://markmeeksideas.blogspot.com/2018/11/the-universe-with-us-and-without-us.html?m=0

The Paradox Of Knowledge

We generally consider having knowledge to be a good thing. But have you ever wondered if knowledge can be a disadvantage, if there can be such a thing as "knowing too much"?

It depends. If we just want to know what is then knowledge is a good thing. But if we are trying to create something new then it can be a disadvantage.

We have heard of a person being considered as not the best person for a particular job because they "know too much about the wrong way of doing things". The French Revolution is generally considered as initiating the modern political era. What was notable about it is that it was conducted mostly by young people lacking in political experience.

But that was what enabled them to create a new political order. If they would have been experienced they would have gone with what they knew and would never have been able to create a new order.

Albert Einstein once famously said that "imagination is more important than knowledge". When Einstein came up with his first theory of Relativity he was not a professional scientist. He was working as a patent clerk.

Maybe if he had been a professional scientist he never would have come up with his breakthrough new theory. His mind might have been too set in "things as they are".

In remember that when I came up with my cosmology theory, which is my version of string theory, I really didn't know much about string theory, which was first introduced in 1968. I had once read an article about the concept that what we perceive as particles, such as electrons, are actually strings and there are more spatial dimensions than the three that we can see.

I had picked up a book about string theory. It was a long book and I don't remember the name of it. I got about a third of the way through the book when I noticed that there is a relatively simple solution that makes so many unsolved mysteries of the universe just fall right into place.

I had been wondering what time exactly is but could find no answer anywhere. I noticed that a fundamental principle of science seemed to be the assumption that we have an unbiased view of the universe. But what if we don't? I concluded that we do not have an unbiased view of the universe, we see it as we do not only because of what it is but also because of what we are. 

The reason there was no satisfactory explanation of what time is was because we were looking in the wrong place, in the realm of physics. Time was actually within us, the movement of our consciousness along the bundles of strings comprising our bodies and brains at what we perceive as the speed of light, which also has no real explanation as to why it was that particular speed.

If I had a degree in cosmology, or if I had "known" all about it, the probability is that I would never have been able to take a "leap" outside the box, and to come up with a new way of looking at it. My mind would have been too locked into the existing ways of looking at it.

In the past many people who have made discoveries have been self-educated, or mostly self-educated. A university education is a wonderful thing but it inevitably means learning to think like everyone else. A self-educated person hasn't learned to think like everyone else, at least not to the same extent, and are therefore better suited to notice the things that no one else has noticed.