1. México means “in the navel of the Moon”. From the Náhuat language “Metztli” (moon) and “xictli” (navel). The Aztecs pronounced it as “Meshico”, but the Spaniards wrote it México (because the pronunciation of “j” did not yet exist in their language!)

2. The meteorite that by crashing caused (it is believed) the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 thousand years ago, fell in the Yucatan Peninsula, precisely in the country of Chicxulub. This crater was found in 1981 while searching for oil fields. How not to notice a 180 km diameter crater?

3. The inventor of color TV was the Mexican Guillermo González Camarena, who at the age of 23, in 1940, registered the first patent for a color television system.

4. The smallest volcano in the world is called CUEXCOMATE and is located in Mexico in the city of Puebla. It is an inactive volcano is only 13 meters tall.

5. Mexico is the largest producer of silver in the world; The largest consumer of Coca Cola per capita; The country that has the most Taxi’s (about 60,000); Mexico City is the city with the most museums; Mexico has the most expensive telephone service in the world (related to cost of life).

6. Chapultepec Castle in Mexico City is the only castle built on the whole American continent.

7. The Mayan calendar (317 AD) andThe Aztec calendar (1300 AD) count the same number of days (365) as the modern calendar.

8. Mexico City is the eighth richest city in the world.

9. In the Mexican flag, green represents hope, white represents union and red commemorates the blood shed by the heroes of the nation. The eagle and the snake on the cactus in the center indicate, according to Aztec legend, the most important city of the Aztec civilization, on which Mexico City would later be built.

mexicoo curiosities (2)
Mexican flag close-up

10. A very important holiday for Mexicans is Mother’s Day, celebrated on May 10th. In Mexico, the mother is a fundamental figure. It’s so important that if you wanted to tell someone that he is a smart person, mexican people say “tienes madre”.