In the middle of the last cen- tury listening to the stories my grandfather told me about his annual winter visits down South to Old Mexico, I acquired a great desire to see it for myself. Thirty-three years later I am driving South down highway 15 in my too-big motorhome I read a big highway sign that said “MAZATLAN CENTRO” with an arrow pointing straight ahead and another “PLAYA” pointing right. I went on to Centro not knowing what a Playa was. Within minutes I was on a too-narrow-2-lane one-way street with cars, trucks and pedestrians going everywhich way around me. I thought maybe my motorhome was on fire or something the way people seemed to look at me. I came to a street with tall palm trees down the middle, turned right and very quickly spotted many old houses. I looked for a place to park to get some photos of these but there was no place big enough. I spotted a tiny white arrow on a tiny black sign pointing to the right tacked upon the corner of this old house and turned onto it. Very old, old houses lined this street for as far as I could see in front of me. Small houses placed right next to each other painted in all kinds of vivid colors. This street became narrower and I had to be careful of parked cars. Slowly I went on looking for another street I could turn onto for the one I was on was leading me to big trouble. I came to a small park with very old grand houses around it. I wanted to stop but nowhere to park. As I approached the next intersection I looked for little arrows, none to be seen I made a left turn and started to drive down this street but in front of me was a white Volkswagen with the driver waving his hands. Wrong-way on a one way street built for horse and buggies in a motorhome is not the place to be. I soon understood what a Mexican standoff really means and backed up. I went on to the next intersection and this time I spotted the little arrow high up on the corner of another great houseold house and made a left. According to my road atlas the Pacific ocean was here in Mazatlan somewhere and I looked forward to camping out on some nice quiet beach all by myself. I continued on my little newly found one-way street in awe at all the very old architecture promising myself to return here to do some serious photography.

With these thoughts running through my mind my little street ends at the Pacific Ocean lit up in sunset colors like I had never seen before. On this wide two-way street I followed the coast right to the end of it where I found a group of campers on the beach and got permission to park and stay the night. I camped there on the beach for five months discovering the wonders of Mazatlan and Mexico. After I went back home, made the necessary arrangements and came back to Mazatlan where I have lived now for 19 years. Little did I know when I drove down that little street towards the Pacific Ocean that 19 years later I would be writing this article in one of those old houses since turned into a magnificent and spacious office. Throughout the years here I have done commercial photography work for most of the hotels, restaurants. Private business and state government. I truly love and admire all the people I have met in these adventures. But my real love in Mazatlan is that old section that I first passed thru that first day. It gives me the feeling that I am stepping back in time. When I am in that area I can easily imagine a horse and buggy going down the street or a man and his burrow hauling his wares. The entire area is very relaxing to me and when I’m at any one of the several side walk cafes in the area I truly do not ever want to leave for it gives me a feeling of tranquility that I have never felt any other place on earth. It took me about a year to get back to that area that’s been named “Old Mazatlan” and recently “Historical Center”. To me it will always be Old Mazatlan, but since I have finished the first phase of my first work of the area I am calling it “The New Old Mazatlan” for my own personal feelings. I take great pleasure in inviting everyone to come view the first public exhibition of my collection of illustrated photos of “ The New Old Mazatlan”. (“El Nuveo Viejo Mazatlan”) at Angela Peralta Theatre from Friday November 9th thru Sunday November 25th, 2001. From 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., daily. There is a small fee of 5 pesos per person to enter the Theatre which is used to help maintain this wonderful building and you can walk through the red velvet curtains and see the marvelous interior as it was originally. Signs will direct you upstairs to the Galleries of History and Photography.