My husband and I lived in Spain a little over 3 years when we were first married. We worked as missionaries with an organization, now called, Ambassadors Football (that’s the soccer kind of football). We met the most wonderful people in Spain. One talented lady from our church named Tere was, and I am sure still is, an amazing guitar player. I wish you could hear her play flamenco style!
Anyways, her daughter Paula married Phil, a friend of ours from Mexico about 5 years ago. They live in Mexico now where they started an Ambassadors Football Mexico Office. And that whole rabbit trail leads to 13 year old Pepe, who was kind enough to answer these interview questions. Pepe is a friend of Phil’s, and I am very happy to introduce him to all of you. So without further delay, meet Pepe from Mexico.
Q: Thanks so much for agreeing to do this intervilew Pepe. I’m sure our readers will be fascinated to learn about Mexico. First of all, can you tell me what the capital of Mexico is? How many people live in that city? And where can I find Mexico on a world map?
A: The capital of Mexico is Mexico City. 21.2 million people live in Mexico City. Mexico is directly south of the U.S. So if you look at a map of the U.S. Mexico is directly below the states Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.
Q: Could you describe Mexico’s flag? Tell me a bit about the colors and design and why they were chosen?
A: The flag of Mexico has three color bands. One is red. That means that the people spilled blood on the battle for freedom. The other one is white. That means the unity of the people. And the last one is green. That represents the independence and the hope. And in the middle of the flag there is an eagle eating snake.
Q: What language(s) is/are spoken in Mexico? Can you tell us the words for “Hello, how are you?” in that language?
The language Mexicans speak is Spanish, and “hello, how are you” in Spanish is, “Hola. Cómo estas?” Here is a short song you can listen to that includes this phrase.
Q: I think my readers are just as excited about Christmas as I am. And I am super curious about how you celebrate Christmas in Mexico. What are some Christmas traditions in Mexico? How does your family celebrate Christmas?
A: Well, in Mexico we celebrate Christmas like everybody. We put up the tree, we stay with family, we make a letter to Santa about what we want and then we open the presents. I celebrate Christmas with the family. We eat, all my cousins play some table games and if we have an opened present, we play with our present.
Q: I decided to dig a little further, so I also asked Pepe’s friend Phil some question about Christmas in Mexico. Phil, is it traditional to eat tamales on Christmas Eve?
Yes. We eat tamales, turkey, bacalao (cod fish) and buñuelos.
Tamales are commonly eaten on Christmas Eve in Mexico
Buñuelos are also eaten on Christmas Eve in Mexico
Q: Phil, did you grow up participating in Las Posadas? Is this something most Mexican families participate in?
A: Yes I grew up with the posadas, everyone partakes in them. It is a celebration that all of Mexico enjoys at least a few times during Christmas. According to some research I did on the internet, December 16th marks the start of the annual Posadas Navideñas in Mexico. Posada is a Spanish word for “inn”, and the Posadas Navideñas, which recall events leading up to the Nativity of Jesus, are a huge Christmas tradition in Mexico. A Posada begins with street a procession that re-enacts Mary and Joseph’s search for an inn on their way to Bethlehem and is akin to a street-theatre musical.
Las Posadas Procession
Q: Pepe, returning to you, what are some popular places to visit in Mexico? And where do you recommend our readers visit if they were to win a dream vacation to your home country?
A: Some popular places to visit in Mexico are: Cancún, Cabo San Lucas, Puebla, Chiapas, Veracruz and Acapulco. And if you won a dream vacation to Mexcio, I recommend you visit Cabo San Lucas or Cancún.
El Arco (The Arch) of Cabo San Lucas
Beach of Cancún
Pepe, thank you so much for answering these questions! Our readers and I have certainly learned a lot about Mexico. I hope you have a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! If anyone has any questions for Pepe, be sure to leave them in the comment section below.
This post is so interesting! Definitely learnt something new. I can’t believe how many people live in Mexico City. It’s more that five times the size of the country I live in. Merry Christmas Pepe!
Niamh @Simply Earnest.com
Yes, according to this source, Mexico City is the 9th largest city in the world in terms of population!
What a fun post!!! Thanks for answering all these questions and sharing about Mexico, Pepe!!