MY NEW JOB

Pressing the 'publish' button on a new blog post is always a leap of faith. There it goes, hurling into cyberspace--but is anybody out there? Reader responses tell me yes, but, let's face it--most people do not comment on all the blog posts they read. So it was a great surprise and pleasure to receive an email recently inviting me to be part of a new initiative sponsored by the Mexican Tourism Board. I will be one of 24 writers who will initiate the program Mexico Today, as it is called in English. Marca Pais--Imagen de Mexico is a joint public and private sector initiative designed to help promote Mexico as a global business partner and tourist destination. The program aims to shine a light on the bright side of Mexico--something we don't see enough of these days. Anyone who's been following my blog knows that I have been an unabashed Mexico team cheerleader from the start. It's an honor and a thrill to have been handed a bigger megaphone.I invite you to follow me and my fellow team members on the Mexico Today Facebook page and also on Twitter.

Disclosure: I am being financially compensated for my work in creating content as a contributor to the Mexico Today Program. All stories, articles and opinions presented are completely my own.

WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE SPANISH WORD?

If you are one of the 500 million people in the world who speaks Spanish, you might be interested in ElDiaE, a worldwide internet event happening this Saturday, June 18.
It is sponsored by the Instituto Cervantes , a non-profit group that promotes the study and teaching of the Spanish language.

Several prominent people were asked to name their favorite word in Spanish. Antonio Banderas likes alegria, Shakira chooses meliflua, Cuban ballet diva Alicia Alonso opts for bailamos.
Personally, I've always been fond of the word bodega, with its variety of vowel sounds, and the chance to pronounce the beautiful Spanish 'd' which softly mixes the English 'd' and 'th' sounds.
And it's so much more poetic than its English equivalent 'storeroom'.

You can vote on the website (http://www.eldiae.es/vota-tu-palabra) or send me your favorite Spanish word here.

MUSEO DEL CHOPO

If you've never been to Mexico City's Museo del Chopo, now's a good time to go. The building itself, a cast-iron gem from 1902, was re-opened last year after a 3-year facelift. Currently, there's an impressive show of 26 large-format paintings, on display until August 10. These (mostly abstract) paintings are huge--some more than 30 feet long--and include work by some of the most important artists working in Mexico today (the Castro Leñero brothers, Irma Palacios, Boris Viskin, etc.). Click here for a preview.

The Museo Universitario del Chopo, to use its complete name, is located at

Calle Dr. Enrique Gonzàlex Martinez no. 10, Colonia Santa Maria la Ribera. It's just two blocks from either metro or metrobus stop Revolucion, near the intersection of Insurgentes and San Cosme. It's open 10 to 7, closed Mondays, 30 pesos entrance.

For more help finding the museum, copy this text:

Museo Universitario del Chopo, Ciudad de México, Distrito Federal, México

then put it in the search box of google maps.