If you’re looking for in-depth and level-headed news coverage, it’s hard to beat the Economist. There was a great article in the August 27 issue on Mexico’s economy, with a look at what’s going right there and how their roller coaster ride compares to that of red-hot Brazil. Read the full article here online.

There are all kinds of interesting tidbits about Mexico in there, from its overpriced monopoly telephone system (see the graph here) to its current trend of stealing manufacturing business back from China as wages in the latter keep rising. What’s most interesting to me is its comparison to Brazil, the current poster child for developing economy growth, but a country plagued with very serious problems. Here are some examples.

- Brazil, which is less dependent on business with the United States, has grown to double the size in GDP of Mexico (now #2) in just 10 years.

- Mexico did $400 billion of business with the U.S. last year, behind only Canada and China.

- The World Bank says Mexico is the easiest place to do business in Latin America (and is ahead of Spain). Their schools are also ranked the highest in Latin America.

- Despite all the attention on the drug war in Mexico, Brazil actually has a higher murder rate and the violence is less concentrated in one region. In Mexico’s Yucatan state, the homicide rate is on par with Belgium.

- The richest man in the world, Carlos Slim, is Mexican. Last year his worth rose by $20.5 billion. (A monopoly knows no recession, apparently.)

So what does the future hold? From a tourism standpoint, Mexico is in better shape than Brazil, despite all the bad publicity. There’s no reciprocal visa fee, it’s cheaper than Canada and the U.S. for hotels and restaurants, whereas Brazil is now more expensive, and flight connections are both easy and reasonably priced. The World Cup and Olympics are coming to Brazil though, so all bets are off then. Price sensitivity will fly out the window.

The slogan of Mexican airline Interjet translates to “fly better and more for less.” In my experience, it holds true: the price is right, often as low as Aerobus, but without fee piled upon fee to jack up the final price.

The experience is a pleasant surprise as well, with the kind of amenities you would expect from a legacy airline in the old days: drink service with cocktails, snacks, and smiling attendants ready to make you comfortable. The airline even has its own in-flight magazine, though it’s in Spanish only. The wide body Airbus A320 I was on from Mexico City to Merida had leather seats and a seat pitch greater than Aeromexico offers on many flights.

Internet flies to more than 20 airports from its hub in Mexico City. Yes, Mexico City proper: most flights are from Terminal 1 of MEX, not Toluca—though they do fly from that airport as well. Their destinations include Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta, Hermosilla, Merida, Cancun, and Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo. They also hit a lot of business center cities.

One interesting stop on their itinerary for travelers is Chetumal, in the very south of Quintana Roo state. From there can scoot across the border and be in Belize. (Or hang around and check out bargain property prices around Lake Bacalar.) They also fly to Guatemala City.

The check-in process was a little funky in Mexico City as each agent had his/her own line instead of all of them feeding into a “next available” situation. When four guys in front of me decided to check eight overweight and oversized bags, that automatically adding 20 minutes to my wait time, even though I was next in line. But everyone gets and assigned seat and everyone checks in by zone. You can check one bag up to 25 kilos for no extra charge. In other words, they act like you’re a customer instead of a fee generation machine. Very civilized. Here’s another nice touch:

Interjet is the only airline that grants you, via Internet, the functionality of name changing. For only 250 pesos plus TAX per passenger-segment, you can assign your place to anyone you wish, it doesn’t matter that your round trip has been used partially.

I would gladly fly Interjet any time I have the opportunity in Mexico. There’s no first class luxe experience, but since economy treatment here is as good as business class on most U.S. airlines, I’ll take it. Especially when I pull up their easy-to-use website in both Spanish and English. Right now, for instance, you can fly from Mexico City to Chiapas for under $200 round trip. Or Guadalajara to Los Cabos for about $30 more.

See more at the Interjet website.

After a year of living at 6,500 feet in central Mexico, every day walking past centuries-old buildings on pedestrian-only streets, it’s back to strip-mall Florida. For now. I’m buying a house here though, so I’ll be back.

Guanajuato is not really known as a great food city and since it has about 1/100th of the gringos you find down the road in San Miguel de Allende, there are few restaurants going all-out to lure the big bucks from foreigners. Should you find yourself in this city though, here are some places definitely worth checking out.

Dish from the Guanajuato Mole Festival

Las Mercedes – This is the closest you’ll get to showy gourmet dining in the city itself. (The fanciest spot around, Ik Etznab, is in Santa Rosa.) It’s in a lovely house with a view on one of the city’s many hillsides. With wood beams and chandeliers overhead and family recipes taken up a few notches on the presentation scale, this is a great spot for a romantic dinner.

Real de la Esperanza – At more than 7,000 feet in altitude, this hilltop restaurant is above the fantastic Valenciana church and has panoramic views of the city and mountains. It’s a great place for outdoor dining on a nice afternoon, or you can eat inside the building, which was rebuilt to resemble the adobe chapel that once stood on the site. Herbs are grown on the grounds and there are a lot of dishes here that don’t show up on many other menus. There’s also a great playground to keep the kids occupied, with a zipline even!

El Abue – My wife and I probably went to this restaurant just off Barratillo Plaza a half dozen times and the food was always excellent. It serves salads, wheat bread, a range of wine by the glass, and apple pie, so it attracts a mainly gringo crowd that’s tired of beer and enchiladas. (Despite that, the website is in Spanish only, but you can see their menu there.)

Casa Valadez – This is the most expensive restaurant by the main Jardin Union triangular plaza in the center, but it’s almost always full, mostly with Mexicans. That’s a testament to its consistently good food no matter what you order, including the best steaks in town. Everything is presented with flair and the gracious waiters are polished and experienced. It also has the nicest bathrooms in town, which the ladies appreciate…

If you’re up for Italian food, check out El Gallo Pitagorico or La Capallina, both right in the center.

There is also a fine restaurant in the top hotel in town, Villa Maria Cristina. It’s on the second floor though, and they don’t advertise locally, so the only people who eat there are hotel guests.

There’s plenty of great street and market food if your tastes aren’t so upscale. (It’s hard to beat a fantastic tamale that was less than a dollar.) Did you have an especially memorable meal somewhere else in Guanajuato? Leave it in the comments!

In June we’ll be posting detailed reviews of the three top hotels in Mazatlan, Mexico and after that a story on the real estate scene there. Meanwhile, here’s a video tour of luxury resort Pueblo Bonito Emerald Bay so you can get a feel for the pool, beach and rooms. Enjoy! (P.S. – If you don’t see the video below, hit “refresh” on your browser.)

I just spent a week in Mazatlan, soaking up the atmosphere and checking out some hotels we’ll be adding to our reviews.

Mazatlan has a different feel than most other Mexican beach resorts because it has a real history and some architecture that goes beyond the new blocky concrete resorts look. This was a major port city in the 1800s and there are a lot of interesting historic structures built during that time and spruced up in recent years.

In some cases, a mere sprucing up wasn’t enough. The historic Angela Peralta Theater opened in 1881 but eventually fell into disrepair and sat abandoned. After lots of effort and fundraising to avoid demolition, the theater was rebuilt and restored, opening again in 1992. I was fortunate enough to catch a dance performance there. Here’s what it looks like before the crowds file in.

The heart of the old city is Machado Square, where restaurants and bars are indoor/outdoor affairs. Locals, tourists, and expats spend hours at cafe tables soaking up the atmosphere and enjoying fresh seafood. There are frequently music shows going on in the square or at specific restaurants like Pedro & Lola. (Save room for the banana pie—trust me.)

If you stay at Casa Lucila, which I’ll be posting a review of soon, you can walk to all this from a seaside location a few blocks away. If you love it so much you can’t bear to leave, there are houses for sale in the old city…

See more at GoMazatlan.com