10 New Landmarks That Considerably Add to the Charm of Mexico's Mazatlan

pinnable image

This wasn’t our first time in Mazatlan. It’s my third and my husband's fifteenth (see this previous post on classic landmarks of Mazatlan). A City Tour was something we did not think we were going to do again. But it was free for all El Cid’s Elite members. So on one Wednesday morning, we joined a whole bus full of eager first-timers. To my surprise, there are new landmarks that either I had not noticed before or are truly new. As a matter of fact, when we went around in our car or used public buses, we found even more. Here are the ten new landmarks that have considerably added to the city's charm.  

From the City Tour

The Zona Dorada or Golden Zone is a shopping zone just a block away from El Moro. It was built to supplement Old Town shopping. It was here where I found a beautiful silver Aztec-inspired pendant during my first City Tour. Sadly, it didn't have matching earrings. On this second City Tour, we stopped at a brand new Jewelry Store (#1). It features a huge silver lion for a mascot. I finally found my matching earrings. 

pinnable image

After the shopping zone, we quickly reached the Malecon, the longest boardwalk in Latin America, and perhaps the world, at all of 21 kilometers. There was a colorful Mazatlan City Sign (#2) that surprised me. It is a great addition to all the classic monuments that are memorials to life in Mazatlan built along the boardwalk (the Family, the Pulmoniya, the Lady, the Fisherman’s Memorial, and the Dolphins. Maybe I didn't notice it before but I was also surprised by the Baseball Monument (#3). It was curious but then I found out that baseball is a very important sport for all Mazatlan residents.

Soon after the monuments and the fishermen’s section of the Malecon, we reached the Punta de Clavadistas or Divers’ Point (#4). This was another new thing for me because we did not go this far before. There were two divers who regaled us with their skills at jumping to the sea from the high 50-ft cliff, avoiding the huge rocks, and returning to the small park (to do it all over again), swimming against the big waves hitting the rocks.  

pinnable image

The last stop of our City Tour was lunch at Roca Mar fronting the Malecon. It was our chance to taste something else other than El Cid food (good Mexican Cazuelitas). On the way there, I saw for the first time the Acuario Mazatlan (Mazatlan Aquarium) (#5). In writing this article, I found out that it actually opened in 1980. There are shows of sea lions, divers, and even sharks. I guess I have not been that much interested because I have always preferred to see animals in the wild for some time now.

From Days Out

On a separate day out, we visited Juarez Market (#6), the other large market in Mazatlan that overflows every Sunday morning. We took the Cerritos Juarez bus from El Cid. We got off to a labyrinth of streets around the original concrete building near the church. Those streets were teeming with people peddling their wares: from clothes, toys, and housewares to fruits and vegetables, shrimps and fish, meat and poultry, and even all kinds of cakes. In fact, it is where I found Dior knock-off sunglasses for just US$10. I went back for another pair before going home.

cakes galore at the flea market

the art piece we bought with the artist Dory

Every First Friday of the month, there is an Art Walk at the Centro Hispanico (#7) near Old Town Mazatlan. We took the Sabalo Centro bus from El Cid and got off at the Mercado. There are about fifty galleries included where many paintings, photography, sculptures, jewelry, and other decor art are offered. At about the time we were ready to go back to El Cid on Feb. 1, we found a unique wooden collage of classic painting-like photographs of sixteen Mazatlan doors at the Beaupres Gallery. Bill returned with the car the next day to pick it up. It proved right that we drove down to Mazatlan with our car despite the warnings (see this previous post on our drive down to Mazatlan). What a find!

But the newest developed area in Mazatlan is to the north of the city. Every time we drive there, we feel we are back in the US. Sear's, Walmart and Sam's Club (#8), Mazatlan Galleries Mall (#9). and a new Centro de Convenciones (#10) are its most important landmarks. We do a lot of shopping there for toiletries, clothes, and gifts. It is also where we watch English movies. Finally, at the state-of-the-art Mazatlan International Center (Centro), you will find the world's largest mural, a three-dimensional mosaic of tile called the "Sea of Cortez." Lovely to look at both up close and from afar, it measures 25x59 meters, made from 105 panels of 3x5 meters each.

Sea of Cortez at the Convention Center

With a population of 650,000, Mazatlan is not just a resort town like the other beach capitals of Mexico. An old city with many landmarks that you wouldn’t want to miss,  its beauty comes from its colorful history and thriving economy, not entirely based on tourism. Called the Shrimping Capital of the World, it is founded on both agriculture and aquaculture. My previous post was on two small Mexican towns, one to the north, the other to the south. I have yet to write on four other day trips from Mazatlan. We will be kept busy. There may even be another future post on new landmarks that will again considerably add to Mazatlan's charm.

another pinnable image