Discover the spirit of a Mexican town

It has been 10 years since I graduated from college. Since that time, my friends and I have been planning a reunion trip, but for a reason or another, we hadn’t done it yet. Some of them could be the lack of interest from some of the members of the group, expensive places, lack of time, and many more. This is what encouraged me to take the initiative and begin to research a short trip that wasn’t that expensive, that offers us a great experience in food and drink, and many adventures.

Where to go with little money?

After coming in and out from, literally, all travel-website; I notice that the best choice was a trip to Mexico. Specifically, to Tequila, Jalisco. It had everything we could possibly wish for: good food, an exciting town, and many places to have fun. Besides, the idea of discovering the heart and soul of Mexican heritage was terrific.

As my friends and I, all live in Guadalajara, and we haven’t been to tequila before, there were many complaints about the destination.  Waiting for all my friends to do the needed arrangements was the worst part. However, when we were boarding the Jose Cuervo Express, it was worth it.

In the wagon, a Maestro Tequilero gave us some of the finest Jose Cuervo Express® tequila, in what they called a professional tasting.

Then we arrived at Tequila, a beautiful town of around 50,000 inhabitants, located between Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta. Its name comes from the Nahuatl word “Tecuilan” or “Tequillan”, meaning a place of work or a place of cutting. Also, the ancient indigenous peoples who lived in this area were called Tecuilas.

Tequila was founded in April 1530 but was officially classified as Villa until 1824. I was amazed that the artisanal drink that bears the name of this town, was born here and dates back centuries.

After a tour of Jose Cuervo® “La Rojeña®” Distillery, the oldest distillery in Latin America, my friends were delighted with the trip experience so far, where we remember all of the good time we had in college, catching up of what is happening in the life of each of us, while we had some delicious margaritas. Shortly after, we had a lot of free time to enjoy Tequila. Appointed “Pueblo Mágico” because of its wide cultural riches, natural beauty, and historical relevance, it is an enchanting town full of folklore, colors, and traditions.

One of the traditions that my friends and I enjoyed the most was contemplating the El Señor de Los Rayos statue. Some of the inhabitants told us that they carry the statue around the town before the rains arrive, in a procession praying for the rain to come without storms and bring an abundant harvest, since agriculture is an essential part of this Pueblo-Mágico lifestyle.

By the time we leave the statue’s place, we were all starving. So, we ate at the Hotel Villa Tequila restaurant. As a group, we enjoyed a fine live barbecue with salad bars and dressings, complements, and side dishes.

All my friends were delighted with the choice I made when I planned the trip experience to Tequila. After lunch, we enjoyed a Mexican Show at the Jose Cuervo Express and went to the agave fields with “Jima”, an agave harvesting demonstration.

All my friends and I had a great time in Tequila. When the bus left, all of us promised to gather as soon as we can to live another amazing adventure at Mundo Cuervo in Tequila.