Vanessa's year in Mexico City: Why is Toluca so important?

Yesterday, I traveled 1 hour north of Mexico City to the city of Toluca, which is the capital of the State of Mexico and the seat of the state government. Toluca is a hot spot at the moment as prospective 2012 presidential candidates prepare to announce their campaigns. One such candidate is the darling of the PRI (the oldest political party in Mexico) and governor of the State of Mexico, Enrique Peña Nieto.

I accompanyed Rotarian Maricarmen to a luncheon and health workshop in a small pueblo (town) in Toluca, home to may Otomi indigenous people. I learned some key Otomi phrases:

Tonda Pa (Buenas Tardes / Good day)

Tzengua (Hasta Luego / Goodbye)

Mago (Ya me voy / I'm leaving)

The lunch was officially Mexican: we ate chicken with mole (delicious) with rice and beans...and it would not have been complete without an after-lunch drink of tequila! (I had mine with Squirt, a grapefruit flavored soda..commonly served on ice with lime and salt...known as a Paloma).

On our way back, we drove through downtown Toluca and then stopped in La Marquesa, a fun area of rows and rows of little restaurants serving local delicacies of ant eggs and trout..all along the highway. I am told that this is a very popular stop on the weekends. It is very colorful with bright pink and yellow tablecloths and signs in bold green and blue and purple.