|
|
|
|
|
MEXICO’S VAST LANDSCAPE ranges from vibrantly colored canyons and tropical rainforests rich with wildlife to welcoming beach resorts and lively, culture-rich cities. Within the country’s 760,000 square miles you can find an incalculable number of great ways to explore this cultural and natural wonderland. Still, it’s fun to try to make the numbers add up.
— Cheryl Farr Leas
|
|
|
1,950 miles
of border stretch from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean, connecting
Mexico with California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas.
1,243 miles,
or nearly two-thirds of the U.S./Mexico border, mark the path of the mighty
Rio Grande.
31 states (and one federal district, home to sprawling, lively, red-hot Mexico City) make up the vibrant nation, which is roughly three times the size of Texas.
1 eastbound sightseeing train departs per day from Chihuahua City, the eastern terminus of Mexico’s Chihuahua-al-Pacifico Railroad, for the sunny Pacific Coast.
86 tunnels and 37 bridges carry the train through the Copper Canyon, which many believe surpasses the Grand Canyon in beauty.
|
|
120 beaches line more than 3,602 miles of ocean and gulf coastline.
1,000 species of birds are found in Mexico, 200 more than in the U.S. and Canada combined, making the country a feathered frenzy for birders.
10,000 gray whales make Mexico their winter home, migrating annually from the frigid Bering Sea to cavort in Baja California’s balmy offshore waters.
5 miles per hour is the gray whale’s cruising speed — so it’s no wonder it takes the leviathan two months to complete the 5,000-mile trip, swimming day and night.
|
|
300 species of cactus, ranging from colorful, many-paddled prickly pears to thick, towering saguaros and flowering agaves, thrive in Baja California’s Sonoran Desert, the most biodiverse desert on earth.
63 feet is the height of the world’s tallest cactus, in the Sonoran Desert.
4.3 million cubic yards is the volume of the Great Pyramid at Cholula, the largest pyramid in the world, located just outside Puebla. This magnificent monument to the plumed serpent god Quetzalcoatl is 900,000 million cubic yards larger than Egypt’s largest pyramid, the Great Pyramid of Giza.
81 degrees Fahrenheit is the average high temperature in the month of December in Puerto Vallarta, the crown jewel of the Pacific Coast.
350 days of sunshine per year make Baja California Sur an ideal winter playground.
|
Getting There: Offering nonstop service to 30 destinations in Mexico, Continental has more weekly flights from the U.S. to Mexico than any other airline and serves more destinations in Mexico from the U.S. than any other carrier.
Sources: Dorling Kindersley Eyewitness Travel Guides: Mexico; Fodor’s Mexico 2006; Frommer’s Online; Lonely Planet Online; Rio Grande/Rio Bravo Basin Coalition; Visitmexico.com; Weatherbase.com
Photographs courtesy of: VisitMexico.com
|
| |
|
|
| |
 |
|
|
|
