oppinion on guadalajara

Afro-Cuban music? Not in Mexico except maybe out in Yucatan or Veracruz. Its an ok place to stay a year, but its no Buenos Aires. Just a big modern city with nice Mexican touches here and there. You could do worse, but you could also do better.

I lived in Guadalajara for a year and enjoyed myself, it's nice when you are going to school because you have and instant social network. No it's not BA, but it is a lovely safe city. For afro-cuban music you could check out el boguidito del medio on Vallarta, and there was another cuban place on Chapultepec, the Mutualista downtown had salsa nights on thursdays if i remember correctly, certainly not a huge thriving scene but there if you know where to look. Throughout the year Guadalajara hosts an International Mariachi festival, one of the best international book fairs I've ever seen (accompanied by an array of cultural events), a good film festival and much more, lots to keep you entertained.

The "Buenos Aires" of Mexico is Mexico City. Plain and simple.

We live in Guadalajara. The locals consider Guad to be the center of the universe and themselves the most sophisticated people on the face of the earth. In reality it's a small town with a lot of hayseeds living here.

I don't know about Guadalajara's being a small town full of hayseeds, as I've never been there. But many from the city I've met have had the same belief that #4 mentioned. I got so sick of listening to one tapatio extol the virtues of the city and go on about how EVERYTHING is better in Guadalajara (even going so far as to say that the city has the BEST gay clubs in THE WORLD), that it got to the point where I'd just scream "Just go back there and stop talking about it!"

I was nt born in Guadalajara but I love the city. I dont think it's "a small town" at all. Yes, there are many hayseeds living there but also many intellectuals, artists, and expatriates. It depends on what kind of people you interact with, really. Regarding the gay scene, I would not say they have best clubs in the world but certainly they're good fun and cheap, even for Mexican standards, and the gay scene is large and diverse. One more observation, having the International Book Fair (FIL), the most important exhibit of Spanish-language books in the world, guarantees that many cultural activities take place. This year the FIL has a guest of honor, Colombia, so be ready for very good free concerts. More info. http://www.fil.com.mx/ingles/i_index.asp

I do live and work here and have been here for a while. I am a little tired of the city and especially the winter air pollution, but it is a friendly and generally safe place, and the weather is incomparable. Buenos Aires sounds interesting and I have thought of visiting it, but I have found Argentines pretty arrogant and certainly not Tapatios. Yeah, maybe a little proud in a harmless way about their city but its a city with much cultural wealth if you are looking for that and, yes, it is a very tolerant and very gay friendly place. Besides that, it has some of the best weather in the world!! And I have traveled to a lot of countries in my life to make this comparison

I love Guadalajara and live about 40 minutes away. It is a big city but not crazy like the DF. Some prefer Monterrey but Guad is central and many other places are close. There really are no blacks in Mexico like there are in Cuba, Colombia, Venezuela or Caribbean islands. 99% of the blacks you see are tourists.

Have you thought about Cartagena, Colombia?

I lived in Guadalajara for 8 months and never got used to having catch a bus for approx 1 hour to get anywhere! It is a nice city but I tired of it quite quickly and used the time based there to travel the rest of Mexico fairly extensively. I met one Mexican lady from the South who summed up Guadalajara as a place where the people are more bothered about the size of their car than anything else...I have to say from my experience it was not far from the truth.

I would probably head to a smaller town like Guanajuato or Oaxaca for a more Mexican experience with less US influence...