The below is the lecture sent from UR's teacher Felipe, which is about brief information about Mexico. Please read it.

MONTERREY

 

 

Our city, Monterrey, was founded in 1,596, that was 75 years after the Spaniards conquered México, so, our city is 412 years old.

 

It is located 150 miles south of Laredo Tx, in the middle of a huge desert that covers the USA south (Nevada, Colorado, Utah, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas)   and México north (Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila and Nuevo León).

 

In this big desert, in the past centuries, lives the nomads apaches and comanches native Americans, and also attack the villages in all this region until the 19^th century middle. In that Century, they fought as near 20 miles of Monterrey.

 

The american natives that use to live in all over this desert, live in the same way. So, you can find metates (used for to grind the corn), and sarapes (blankets) , at the museums in Phoenix Az or here in Monterrey.

 

Monterrey was a little village until the XIX century late years, when the Industrial Revolution hits Monterrey with around ten big factories that were stablished in our city,  between 1880 and 1920, mainly iron and steel firms, that made that many farmers of all over the Mexico north-east, come to work Monterrey with their families and making Monterrey grow up until this day, when Monterrey has 3; 416,000 people, being the third biggest city in México and the 79^th in all over the world.

 

Today, Monterrey is full of factories that forms steel, cement, brewery and glass clusters.

 

We have around 45 universities in town, and the Universidad Regiomontana is the third best university of them, with around 8,0000 students.

 

Monterrey, the Knowledge City”

Since 2004, our city is working in another large project named, “Monterrey, the Knowledge City”, like other cities in the world, like :  

      San Francisco y San José California, EUA

      Bangalore, India

      Boston, EUA

      Estocolmo, Suecia

      Munich, Alemania

      Barcelona, España

      Bilbao, España

      Melbourne, Australia

      Sophia Antipolis, Francia

What is a Knowledge City?

The Monterrey, International City of Knowledge project seeks to create a better future for Nuevo Leon, a future where economic growth is the result of innovation, within the framework of an alliance between Society, Businesses, Academic Institutions and the Government; in a city with social and cultural infrastructures for the service of its citizens”.

The 6 Basic Strategies

1. To redesign the agenda for the Nuevo Leon educational system.
2. To attract research centers and and innovation and technological development businesses, in addition to promoting existing centers.
3. To promote innovation in existing businesses.
4. To create new innovative businesses.
5. Urban and Cultural equipping that brings about Knowledge Parks and promotes creativity.
6. To spread the new culture.

 

Because this project, today, Monterrey is “The best city in Latin America for to do business”

 

 

HOW DO WE SPEND OUR FREE TIME

The Monterrey weather is around 100oF at summer and 40oF at winter.

In summer, we use to make outdoor parties with grilled meat and beers.

Usually, at the weekends, most of the families get together, grandfathers, fathers, children and grand children.

Many times, because there is someone´s birthday or wedding or first communion, because most of we are catholics.

Many people goes the Saturday afternoon to the football game. We have two professional teams, The Rayados and the Tigres. The games start at 5 PM and end at 7 PM.

The stadiums can get about 40,000 fans each

 

Usually, when two people introduce each other, they ask: Are you Tigre or Rayado? Because I am…..

If they are fans of the same team, they spend hours and hours talking about “Their team”.

If not, they spend hours discussing what is the better team.

Monterrey is a young city, and there is a lot of night clubs (We call it “antros”, like if they are very poor clubs) where the people can spend time drinking, dancing and listening all kind of music, from rock to Mexican country music.

In Monterrey, there is a lot of clubs at the very old downtown, “El barrio antiguo”

Or, more exclusives, in San Pedro, about 20 minutes in car from the downtown.

Also, there are several “Rodeos”, where there is Mexican country music and rodeo contests.

At the Sundays, after the church, many peoples take the road and goes to the Ranch, if they have one or goes to eat at some road restaurant, or goes to a swimming pool.

FOOD

Because we are very near of the border, we have here a lot of American Food Franchises, like Mc Donald, Karls Jr, Dominos Pizzas, Burger King, Etc.

We have also Sushi restaurants, and Chinese restaurant.

The most typical dish here is the Cabrito, little goat, that is cooked when eats only milk, because its flavor is better.

Also, we have a lot of grilled meat restaurants and many places where we can buy tamales, that are meat or beans inside a corn paste wraped in a corn leaf.

We drink a lot of soda with our meals at noon. At night, usually the people drink beer with the dinner

The most of the people here usually wears jeans, T shirt and American brand tennis shoes.

A few use cowboy boots and hat.

 

 

 

CONCLUSION

Monterrey is a growing city, full of young people, universities and maquiladoras. The life here is very fast.

Here, like in all México, there is a huge economic inequality between the people

 

But many people of other cities and states keep coming to our city because they know that they can get a job here and a school for them and their children.

 

The same thing made our fathers or our grandfathers many years ago.

 

LINKS

 

 

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monterrey

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuevo_Le%C3%B3n