Drop Pod: Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico
Some day, I want to travel the world with my camera. Until then, I curate the best of what other people shared from their travels in Drop Pod. I drop in on a spot in the world from Google Maps and explore the culture around it through blogs, photos, and Google's Street View.
In this inaugural entry, we go to the capital of the Mexican state of Veracruz: Xalapa. Pronounced like jalapeno, which actually means from Xalapa!
The name jalapeño is Spanish for "from Xalapa", the capital city of Veracruz, Mexico, where the pepper was traditionally cultivated.
Contributors to Wikimedia projects
Travel blogging usually focuses on major sights, tourist attractions, and stuff like that. I find that boring. On the flip side, putting focus on an out of the way spot that isn't prepared to be a tourist attraction risks making it one. It's a hard balance to strike, and I don't know if I'll get it right. But I'll try!
Contributors to Wikimedia projects
The name Xalapa comes from the Classical Nahuatl roots xālli (pronounced [ʃaːlːi], 'sand') and āpan ([aːpan], 'place of water'), which means approximately 'spring in the sand'. It's classically pronounced [ʃalaːpan] in Nahuatl, although the final /n/ is often omitted.[citation needed] This was adopted into Spanish as Xalapa.
Here are some photos I found from Xalapa on Flickr that are just neat, show a little of the local cultures, and/or show local wildlife.
Part of a larger collection you should check out.
