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Time
differences
Mexico is 7 hours behind France.
Telecommunications
To call Mexico from
France dial : 00 52 + the town code + the n°
of your correspondent.
Mexico City = 5
Merida = 99
(Within the country, to phone Mexico City from the
provinces dial 90).
To call France from Mexico dial : 98 33.
Emergencies : 08.
The
Press
The main daily papers in Mexico are :
El Dia, El Economista, El Financiero, El Nacional,
El sol de Mexico, El Universal, Excelsior, La
Jornada, La Prensa, Novedades, Reform, Uno Mas
Uno.
21
- Airports
Mexico City's
international airport, Benito Juarez, is situated
13 kms from the town centre.
A taxi from the airport to town costs about 80
FF
Other international airports in Mexico are in :
Acapulco, Ciudad Juarez, Culiacan, Chetumal,
Chihuahua, Duango, Guadalajara, Mazatlan,
Monterrey, Reynosa, San Luiz Potosi, Tampico,
Tijuana, Torreon, Zaca tecas, Zihuatanejo
22 -
Car rental
An international driving licence and a passport are
necessary to rent a vehicle, you will also need a
credit card to give a guarantee and to pay for
petrol, taxes and insurance.
Minimum age for driving : 25 years old.
Petrol stations are quite
numerous on the main roads, but you should still
fill up before doing any long trips. It is better
not to drive after nightfall.
The roads are in very bad condition, except for a
few major highways which are exceptionnally
expensive.
If you should break down, there is a free breakdown
service given by the "green angels" of the tourist
office.
Avis
has several agencies in Mexico.
To phone the central reservation office :
national reservations : 001 800 2 888 888
international reservations : 001 800 712 1112
Some other agencies :
Acapulco:
52 74 62 0075/66 9039
Aguascalientes:
airport 52 49 16 1211, Fiesta Americana hotel 52 49
71 1119
Cancun
: airport : 52 98 86
0221/0222/0223, centre 52 98 83 0004
Chihuahua
: airport 52 14 20 1919
Ciudad
Juarez : airport 52 16 33
0750
Cozumel
: airport 52 987 2 0219
Guadalajara
: airport 52 3 6885784/6885656
Hermosillo:airport52
62 61 0700/0701
La
Paz :
airport
52 112 4
6312
Merida
: 52 99
84 2020/2134
Mexico
city :
airport
52 5 762 3688/3262, centre 52 5 533 1336/5 511
2228
Saltillo
:52 84 88
13 63
San Jose del Cabo :
airport
52 114 6 0388/0201/0234/0235
Tampico :
airport
52 12 28 0585
Tijuana :airport
52 66 83 2310
Veracruz :
airport
52 29 34 9623
Zacatecas :
airport
52 498 5 1100
All Avis cars are completely equipped, have done
less than 15,000 kms and have an average age of 3
months. The vehicles are carefully prepared and
checked between each rental using a procedure
containing 7 obligatory control points. The cars
are rented with a full tank.
Renting from Avis automatically means that the car
passengers, renter and/or driver are covered by a
third party insurance as well as an insurance
covering repatriation and the immobilization of the
vehicule in case of an accident.
You can reserve a car :
- from your travel agent
- from the international reservation centre at 0
820 05 05 05
- or from any Avis agency
Avis has an interactive network worldwide, a client
can reserve a car instantly from anywhere in the
world.
We recommend that you pay
your rental using your accredited Avis card or with
another credit card accepted by Avis : American
Express, Visa, Mastercard, Diners.
Through a simple free membership system, Avis gives
identity and/or payment cards, which are a real
help for a rapid and efficient service.
REASSURING : No on-line
payment, you can pay Avis directly at the agency
when you return the car
RAPID : Avis has the quickest car rental
reservation service on the web
ECONOMICAL : The cheapest rates on the market are
available on the Avis microsite
COMPLETE : You can rent a car anywhere in the
world.
The Avis network : 5000 agencies in 172 countries,
is now on-line!
EFFICIENT : Find your town (you don't have to fill
in the country), enter the date and click on
estimate
PRACTICAL : You only have to fill in 4 boxes and
you will receive an e-mail confirming the
reservation.
You can even rent a vehicle at the last minute just
round the corner or ... on the other side of the
world.
24
- Your suitcase
From November to March take light clothing,
preferably in natural fibers (cotton, linen) if you
are staying on the coast. Autumn-style clothes :
sweaters, a warm jacket, for Mexico City and the
tierras templadas.
The rest of the year take summer clothing, a few
sweaters for a cool evening, or airconditioning,
and a light raincoat.
Information
zocalo = the central square
barrios = districts
ejido = collective lands
guayabera = white pleated shirt that the men
wear not tucked in their trousers
platicar = to gossip
ahorita = immediately
momentito = wait a bit
mariachis = groups of traditional
musicians
cantinas = very simple little
restaurants
propina = a tip
Public
Holidays
1st January : New Year
5th February : Constitution Day
21st March : birthday of Benito Juarez
29th March : Good Friday
1st April : Easter Monday
1st May : Labour Day
5th May : National Day
16th September : Independence Day
20th November : Revolution of 1910
12 th December : fête of Our Lady of
Guadalupe
25th December : Christmas
Gastronomy
some typical dishes :
- enchiladas : cornflour pancakes stuffed with
chicken
- barbacoa : kid cooked in banana leaves
- ceviche : raw fish
- tacos : meat fritters
- tortilla : cornflour pancake
- tamales : mixture of cornflour, meat and hot
pepper wrapped in banana leaves
- rancheros : eggs with chili sauce on a
tortilla
- mejicana : scrambled eggs with tomatoes and
chili
- poc chuc : slices of marinated pork fillet
- pollo pibil : marinated chicken, wrapped in
banana leaves and baked in the oven
- barbacoa : bits of mutton or goat cooked in
banana leaves
to drink : beer, tequila and mezcal.
Shopping
amber, leather, hand
woven fabrics, embroidery, pottery, hammocks,
panama hats, sarapes (kind of a poncho), sombreros,
jewellery
Try and buy your souvenirs in the villages in which
they are made if possible, not only will you pay
less but you will also be sure that the artisans
get the money for their work
Tipping
Officially it is up
to you, but it is nevertheless highly appreciated,
particularly by pump station attendants and room
service ladies who have extremely low salaries. The
children who help customers in supermarket parkings
live from what they make, as do parking
attendants.
Be careful, in restaurants, if you pay by credit
card, the Mexican forms often have a propina
(tip) space. Fill this in yourself if you don't
want an unscrupulous waiter to do it for you!
Normally you leave 10-15% of the total of the bill
as a tip.
Banks
Banks are open from
Monday - Friday from 8.30 am to 5.30 pm and
Saturday mornings. No French bank has a counter in
Mexico City.
Guides
Guides and
novels
The Big Mexican Guide : bibliothèque du
voyageur, Gallimard
Mexico, Guatemala : guide du routard, Hachette
Mexico : guides Arthaud
Le Rêve Mexicain or la Pensé
Interrompue : by JMG Le Clézio,
Gallimard
Mexico Mosaïque : by C Frérot,
Autrement
The most limpid region : by Carlos Fuentes,the best
known Mexican writer
The labyrinth of solitude : by Octavio Paz, Nobel
Prize for Literature
Business guides :
Industrial costs 2000- 352 pages - Bancomext (tel
01 42 86 60 00)
The airport sector - Trade Commission in Mexico
City - 108 pages ed. CFCE ref S12814-99N
Importation circuits and the distribution of wines
and spirits -Trade Commission in Mexico City - 525
pages - ed. CFCE ref IBSN 2289535394
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