It’s probably safe to say, that when asked which fruit is the most popular fruit in the world, the majority of Americans and Canadians would respond with apples or bananas. That response would be normal, but far from accurate.

To the astonishment of most North Americans, mangoes are consumed worldwide by a factor of three to one over bananas and ten to one over apples. Although mangoes are still considered to be exotic fruits in America, ranking as number 24 of the top 25 fruits consumed in the US, they are considered to be staples in India, South Asia, China, and Latin America; often being referred to as “the king of the fruits”. Evidently, those in the many far corners of the world have learned something that has yet to be discovered in North America!

There are over 2,000 different varieties of mangoes ranging in size from a few ounces to as much as four pounds. One thing they all have in common is their nutritional value; mangoes are a fantastic source of vitamins C and E, niacin, potassium, iron, and beta carotene which converts to vitamin A in the body.

The fresh, ripe mango is a very juicy and sweet fruit with a unique and delicious taste. Some mangoes have a soft and pulpy texture similar to an over-ripe plum, while others have a firmer flesh similar to that of a cantaloupe.

Mangoes are widely used in chutney, fruit bars, cereal products, juices, pies, ice creams, and even milk shakes. Although a little messy due to their high juice content, they can be enjoyed simply by slicing the fruit as you would a peach or pear.

Okay, now that we know what the most popular fruit in the world is, we must determine from where in the world these mangoes come. Mangoes are grown throughout the tropics but India is by far the largest producer and consumer of mangoes in the world. In fact, for more than 6,000 years, mango trees have been a status symbol in India. Behind India are other areas within South Asia and parts of Australia. It wasn’t until the 19th century that mangoes were introduced to parts of Africa, South America, Hawaii, and Mexico.

For years, India has been unsuccessfully negotiating the exportation of mangoes to the US, however just recently some agreements have been finalized, clearing the way for exportation of mangoes from India to the US. In return, they will allow the US to export peas, beans, almonds, and would you believe, Harley Davidson motorcycles to India. Of those mangoes that currently make their way to the US and Canada, approximately 80% come from Mexico with the majority being grown in the Mexican state of Nayarit which is on the same latitude as Hawaii.

Nayarit, one of Mexico’s 31 states, is located along the Pacific Ocean having its southern border with the state of Jalisco. The beautiful tourist destination and retirement community of Puerto Vallarta lies at the border of these two states with its downtown area or El Centro located in Jalisco and Nuevo Vallarta located in Nayarit. Puerto Vallarta is located at the northern end of the Mexican Riviera and just recently, Fonatur, the National Tourism and Development Board of Mexico, has coined the term Riviera Nayarit for that section of pristine and majestic Pacific shoreline in the state of Nayarit. As a note of interest, Fonatur has recently earmarked billions of dollars for a 15 year development program that will include more than 20,000 new condos and villas with the associated infrastructure. This entire area is surrounded by mango orchards where approximately 1.5 million metric tons of mangoes are grown annually, making Mexico the third largest producer of mangoes after India and China.

After vacationing in Vallarta two or three times a year for 15 years we decided to move there in 1997 and make Vallarta our permanent retirement destination. We bought our dream villa on the mountainside with a panoramic view of Banderas Bay in an area known as the Beverly Hills of Vallarta. One of our first projects was to landscape the

We all know that Puerto Vallarta, Mexico is a world famous resort destination and retirement haven. We also know that just about all of the Mexican Riviera cruise ships make Vallarta a normal port of entry providing the visitors with numerous fun and exciting things to do, sights to be seen, side tours to be taken, beautiful beaches to enjoy, etc., but few tourists ever really get to know the area, customs, and local history.

Puerto Vallarta is located in the state of Jalisco; the third largest state in Mexico with the Capital of Guadalajara which is the second largest city in Mexico. The greater metropolitan area of Guadalajara (including Zapopan, Tonala, and Tlaquepaque), has a population of approximately 4,000,000 residents, thus making it about the same size as Los Angeles, the second largest city in the US. Puerto Vallarta is the second largest city in Jalisco with a population of 350,000 people, nestled in the Sierra Madre foot hills along the shoreline of Banderas Bay on the Pacific Ocean.

At 3,000 feet deep, Banderas Bay is one of the deepest natural bays in the world with the Sierra Madre Occidentals to the north, the Sierra Madre Del Sur to the south, and the Trans National Volcanic Axis Range to the east. All three of these substantial mountain ranges converge at Banderas Bay, where more than 60 million years ago when dinosaurs roamed the Earth, these mountain ranges were formed as the planet?s crust changed forever. Much more recently, only about a million years ago during the Pleistocene age , volcanoes erupted in the region exposing a land rich in mineral wealth containing vast deposits of gold, silver, lead, zinc, copper, tin, and

The word opal was derived from the Roman word opalus (to see a change of color) as they popularized the opal around 100 BC and prized this gemstone above all other precious stones believing the holder to be charmed with good fortune. The Mexican fire opal, sometimes referred to as cherry opal, precious fire opal, sun opal, girasol (Spanish for sunflower), and Quetzalitzlipyollitli (gemstone of the bird of paradise) by the Aztecs, was used by the Mayas and Aztecs during the past millennium for ritualistic purposes and in various mosaics. Today, connoisseurs say that fire opals bestow courage, stamina, will-power and energy on the wearer; the warm, fiery orange-red colors are said to have a positive effect on the psyche and convey a profound sensation of warmth, peace and harmony.hundreds of other minerals. As a result, Mexico became the world?s leading producer of silver for centuries and has only recently fallen to second position in the world. A great portion of the Mexican silver has been mined in this region within a 100 miles of Vallarta.

Due to the rich volcanic soil, all tequila in the world comes from this area in Jalisco. With plenty of tequila, there was also a mood for music and dancing! Consequently, in this area within 100 miles of Vallarta, Mariachi music evolved (a symbol of the Mexican Revolution) as did the Mexican Hat dance (the Mexican national dance).

Much of the rich soil in the Vallarta region is also ideal for farming and with the location being on the same latitude as Maui, Hawaii, the climate is perfect for growing many fruits and vegetables. One example being mangos, where Mexico is the third largest exporter of mangos in the world.

Now that we know the area around Vallarta is rich with mineral and agricultural wealth, let?s take it a step further. It just so happens that approximately a dozen distinct classifications of minerals with hundreds of varieties exist in Mexico. As an example, the silicates class alone, contains more than 60 different minerals such as jadeite, zircon, topaz, and quartz, a subgroup of which includes amethyst. The carbonates class consists of bismutite, calcite, magnetite, dolomite, etc. while the sulfates class has gypsum, barite, cuprotungstite, etc.; many of these minerals being used for industrial applications. Finally, the mineraloids class which contains amber, obsidian, and opal; minerals that are frequently carved, ground, cut, and polished for objects of art, jewelry, etc.

Many of these minerals, including most opals, were formed during the Cretaceous period and brought to the Earth?s surface during the Pleistocene age. Of the 25 or so varieties of opals, the fire opal is the only naturally faceted opal and the most significant fire opal deposits are found in Mexico. One of the two largest sites for mining the Mexican fire opal, which just so happens to be the ?national gemstone of Mexico?, is located near Magdalena, Jalisco; a small city located approximately 100 miles east of Vallarta that can be visited from PV during one of the ten hour day tours. Magdalena is in a region laden with igneous rocks, obsidian, volcanic lava, and more than 300 opal mines.

Mexican fire opals consist of silicon dioxide or silica spheres arranged in an orderly pattern with iron oxide dispersed throughout. It?s the iron oxide that gives the Mexican fire opal its distinctive brilliant flame-like colors of yellow, orange, and red. The three most important attributes of the fire opal are body colors, transparency, and play of color (differing colors when viewed from various angles). The greater the play of color, the more precious the gemstone. Because most opals are not faceted, they are generally displayed in the cabochon form. However, since fire opals are often found naturally faceted, they can be cut, polished, and mounted as cabochons or faceted stones.

Opal is the lucky stone of those born under the Aries sign and it is the birthstone of Libras. For those of us fortunate retirees in Vallarta that happen to be Libras, we?re able to obtain these spectacular birthstones virtually in our ?back yard?. For those of you visiting Vallarta and just want to possess one of these prized gemstones, there are numerous fine jewelry stores in town; a number of which specialize in Mexican fire opals.

Now that you have a better appreciation for fire opals and where they come from, you?ll have one more reason for visiting and or retiring in Puerto Vallarta; the most magnificent resort destination on the Mexican Riviera, where brilliant fiery sunsets and opals abound.

Jim Scherrer has owned property in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for 25 years and resided there for the past eleven years. The mission of his series of 45 articles pertaining to retirement in Puerto Vallarta is to reveal the recent changes that have occurred in Vallarta while dispelling the misconceptions about living conditions in Mexico. For the full series of articles regarding travel to and retirement in Vallarta as well as pertinent Puerto Vallarta links, please visit us at Puerto Vallarta Real Estate Buyers? Agents and click on ARTICLES.

The Panama Canal has been called ?the big ditch?, ?the bridge between two continents? and ?the greatest shortcut in the world?.

One look at the immensity of the Panama Canal, and you will understand why a French company with a labor force of 10,000 men went bankrupt trying to excavate it. The project, while conceived in 1534 by Charles I of Spain, began in 1882 and ended seven years later in disaster with over 22,000 people dead from disease and pestilence.

The United States took over the assets of a French company in 1902 and began the process of finishing the canal.

It is a epic story, appreciated best by transiting the canal by ship, viewing what many historians say changed the face of the industrial world.

This 51 mile water tollway shaved over 7,900 nautical miles off the distance between New York and San Francisco.

Sailing the Panama Canal not only offers a rich detailed and fascinating history narrated by an on-board Canal historian; it is the natural beauty that surprises most of all – an ever changing panorama of jungle clad hills, shimmering Lake Gatun, the high arched span of the America?s Bridge, and of course the intricate workings of the locks and gates themselves.

As you approach the canal from the Atlantic you travel through 7.2 kilometers of dredged channel. Your ship then proceeds for a little over 11 kilometers slightly westward before reaching the Gatun Locks. Huge ocean liners are lifted, as if they were toys, 85 feet by three sets of locks, to the level of Gatun Lake. This lake resulted from damming the Chagres River and broaching the Continental Divide. This combined with the Gaillard Cut was a feat equal to digging a trench 10 feet deep by 55 feet wide from New York to California.

Passing through Gatun Lake to the mouth of the Gaillard Cut and down the 13 kilometer channel, you arrive at the Pedro Miguel Lock, which has a drop of 31 feet. This lock borders Miraflores Lake, about 55 feet above the level of the Pacific. Your ship continues about 2 kilometers through Miraflores Lake and reaches two Miraflores Locks. These locks lower your ship to Pacific tidewater levels. Leaving the Miraflores Locks you continue 4 kilometers to Balboa on the Gulf of Panama.

From the deck of your ship or your own private balcony, you?ll marvel as the locks open one into the other. The locks are double to allow one ship to be raised while another is being lowered. The lock chambers on the Panama Canal are 1000 feet long and 110 feet wide. Transit time through the canal is usually seven to eight hours. As a counterpoint, there is the natural wonder that surrounds the man-made one; a lush, virgin rain forest; impenetrable and inviolate, except for the canal. Imagine yourself watching the sun rise in the Atlantic and set in the Pacific. Visit Mayan ruins and colonial cities.

You can watch cliff divers plunge from dizzying heights or hike in a cloud forest where hummingbirds dart in greater numbers than crows back home.

Early in 2000 the United States turned over 100% control of the canal to Panama after jointly sharing its protection and control since 1977. The final cost of the canal US$336 million dollars which is less than the cost of the new cruise ships that pass through.

While transiting the canal is an incredible experience, remember your cruise, depending upon itinerary, will also take you to places like Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica; Cartegena, Columbia; Santa Cruz; Zihuatanejo and Hualtulco, Mexico or perhaps Ocho Rios, Jamaica; Oranjestad, Aruba or possibly Willemstad, Curacao and Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic.

Engineered as carefully as the Canal itself, these cruises combine just the right number of exciting ports with long, leisurely days at sea. And no matter which direction you go, you?ll discover a remarkable collection of wonders, both natural and man-made.

Stay tuned, this year marks the start of a great expansion of the Panama Canal, another engineering marvel, but that is a whole other story…

Sid Kaplan
Cruise Vacations Guide

During the past 15 years, International Living magazine has calculated its Annual Global Retirement Index; a resource intended to assist retirees and future retirees in evaluating and comparing the world’s most popular retirement destinations. It is based on a number of criteria, giving various weights to each, depending on its importance to retirees. Listed below are those criteria considered with their individual weighting:

? Cost of Living?20%

? Health Care?20%

? Special Benefits?20%

? Real Estate?15%

? Entertainment, Recreation, and Culture?10%

? Climate?5%

? Safety and Stability?5%

? Infrastructure?5%

Believe it or not, until this year, Panama had topped the list for the past six years. It still has plenty to offer retirees, however this year, with 30 countries being analyzed and ranked, it fell to fourth position. Ahead of Panama in third position, was Italy with its beautiful cities, its fine weather, and of course, its historic sites. In second position was, of all countries, Ecuador, which moved all the way up from the tenth position last year. Ecuador offers an extremely low cost of living, great weather, beautiful land, a growing economy tied to the US dollar, and a stable political environment. It might be a well kept secret, but Ecuador is becoming a land of opportunity and retirees are taking advantage of it.

Now, for the number one ranked country in the world for retirement; MEXICO! Aside from the fact that Mexico is extremely convenient to the US and Canada, that Mexico’s Senior Citizens