With the Spaniards' arrival to Tenochtitlán, Mexican culture as we know it began to emerge with their racial, cultural and spiritual merging with the diverse pre-Hispanic inhabitants of those lands. The Concheros dances about which native Mexican, Alfredo Martinez, speaks to us, are just one representation of this fusion.

Valeria Guerra and Karina Barbosa, students of journalism and biotechnical engineering, respectively, at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education, also known as Monterrey Tech, in Monterrey, Mexico, tell us a bit about their daily activities, the school and the city of Monterrey itself.

Belanova is appreciative and proud that so many of Latin America’s and Mexico’s biggest stars, such Joselo and Coti saw fit to take the time to join them on their tour. The band is humble, but not without ambition; they have set their sites beyond the habla hispana, seeing potential fans in Australia, Italy and even Japan.

Why is it that some musicians have such synergy together? Belanova describes the fusión that is created when each distinct musical personality comes together, and how this unique “fusion” has brought them from after-class practice to stadium-filled tours.

After a thorough examination of the dog, Huesos, the veterinarian recommends to his owner to seek out specialists for some of the issues particular to him.

The owner of "Huesos" [Bones] the dog takes him to meet a new veterinarian and find out about his general health.

A Mexican stunt double, whose experience lies primarily in film and TV, visits a theater in hopes of signing up for classes to gain experience in a different genre.

Guillermo the shaman, an expert in Mayan cosmology, explains the origin of and symbolism behind the Mayan word "chamamán" as well as some other interesting aspects of their belief system.

Doctor Emilia Garbonel explains some of the many medical benefits of treatment with vitamin C.

We are at Mexico City’s public university talking with Manuel. He tells us about the contrasts that exist within his neighborhood and what he thinks about the relationship between the United States and Mexico.

Economics is all about the production and consumption of goods and services. Usually, we associate it with numbers and acronyms but in the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana they see the people behind the data. Crista is one of those students willing to chat about her school and her city.

Ana is very happy to be a student at the UAM [Autonomous Metropolitan University]. She says that the UAM is one of the best Universities in Mexico: it is affordable, flexible and offers academic excellence.

Paty loves her university as much as she loves her city. In this video she tells us about the wide variety of museums and other interesting places that Mexico City has to offer.

Viviana really enjoys studying Political Economy at the UAM [Autonomous Metropolitan University]. She tells us about her major and the plans that she has for the future and shares some insights about the large social gap that exists in Mexico.

If you go to the beach and just sit on the sand, this could be your chance to change things. Instead of just contemplating the waves and watching the surfers, embrace the ocean: Start surfing with some basic lessons from our friends in Costa Azul Surf Shop.

We love surfing and we love nice, friendly people. In this one small store in Los Cabos, we ran into two of our favorite things. Come hear the owner and a star employee share their knowledge of different boards. They’re very helpful with beginners.

You may know the baraja española, the Spanish deck of cards, with its classic renderings of kings and knights in four suits. Our illustrator friend Antonio Vargas created a uniquely Mexican baraja with native imagery drawing from the pre-Columbian Aztec, Olmec, Toltec and Mayan cultures.

Our surf-loving friend Antonio Vargas is a talented illustrator with a varied career. Here we see some of his more commercial work and some of what he does for fun—like an illustrated magazine and notebook doodles.

These guys are partially obsessed with stardom, or at least with astronomy. Now they’re talking about “el núcleo de Belanova,” the core of their energy.

We skip backstage once again to get some final thoughts from La Gusana Ciega, learning a bit more about their career and personnel changes. Like many of Mexico’s popular bands today, they got their start at a Mexico City club called Cocotitlán, which is also the name of a municipality well known for its corn festival.

Juan is a seller of large garden plants in the fashionable La Condesa neighborhood of Mexico City. Luckily for us, he was willing to tell us a little about his lovely merchandise, most of which grows native in the lush mountains of Oaxaca.

Could it be that the “Tu Rock es Votar” campaign resulted in a closer Mexican 2006 election, one that ironically left the youth feeling more disillusioned than ever? Felipe Calderón Hinojosa edged out Andrés Manuel López Obrador by such a thin margin that the losing side demanded a total recount, which was not granted. The ensuing cloud surrounding the election left a bitter taste in the mouths of many Mexicans.

Armando David Ortigosa decided that something needed to be done to motivate the young people of Mexico to participate in its presidential election. He looked north for inspiration, where the “Rock the Vote” campaign used pop stars to try and get young voters to the polls. The Mexican equivalent became known as Tu Rock Es Votar.

As it turns out the young Arturo Vega, Mexican emigré actor and artist in New York, lived below a girl who was seeing a young man named Douglas Glenn Colvin (who would come to be known as “Dee Dee Ramone”). The two visionaries got to talking…