Assuming too much.....

Being in Michoacan we are exposed to a lot of talented artisans and craftsman. I never really thought that people NOB ( north of the border ) would know that Mexico's handycrafts are for the most part regionalized.

Ok, yes I am sure that a lot of the crappy stuff some vendors sell are made in some small mega pueblo in China, but anything that has some craft or beauty and time to it is indeed made in Mexico.

One of my amigos who lives on the east coast of Mexico had mentioned that they purchased a nice bamboo curtain. Bamboo? Even though we have bamboo in Michoacan I have never seen anything craft-wise done from it. Check out the beautiful handiwork he was able to purchase for almost nothing. Here

We do have publos that specialize in reed furniture, baskets and anything else you could possibly think of making with them.

We have pueblos that make pine furniture, the whole town is know for making pine furniture. It's not like a few shops make something else, everybody makes the same kind of stuff. As you drive by , there are shops having half there store stuffed on the road that they bring in every night.

One of the other villages makes cast aluminum outdoor furniture, another 10 kilometers down towards Morelia is a village that makes fine bedroom and dining room sets, out of fine local hardwoods.

Santa Clara Del Cobre down the hill from us to the south is know for it's copper crafts. It's not uncommon for friends of ours to request a copper sink or two annually. A nice bathroom hand hammered copper sink that goes for $400 dollars in the states, can be purchase for about $ 75 dollars.
I feel somewhat connected to Santa Clara, since during the construction of the house here more than a decade ago about 350 meters of 00 copper cable was donated one night to the smelting artisanal copper supply.
There are towns that are know for their silver jewelry, Tasco is one of many, other place do glass blowing, some do ceramics, lots of places do pottery , wood carvings and clothes.

For some reason the shoe factories are on the east coast of Mexico, while the majority of agriculture is on the west coast.

You would be surprised on how rich and fruitful the country is with resources and talent, that being said you, I still hear quite frequently....." Oh, you live in Mexico, how does it feel living in a 3rd world country?"

There are some people that you just can't talk to, that would understand anything but what they have been subjected to for years..........

Come on down, the weather is good, the food is plenty and their is lots of stuff to do and see for yourself.
Now, unless you are afraid of getting your head chopped off, murdered while having coffee sitting in an outside cafe or my preference, shot by a jealous husband.
But before you start believing that, look up how many people were murdered in Chicago last week, compared to lets say Acapulco........
I rest my case.