Our stay in La Paz coincided with
Revolution Day, a holiday celebrated throughout Mexico on the third Monday of
November commemorating the start of the Mexican Revolution by Francisco Madero
in 1910.This major armed struggle began
with an uprising against longtime autocrat Porfirio Diaz and lasted for the
better part of a decade until around 1920.Over time the Revolution changed from a revolt against the established
order to a multi-sided civil war and is often said to be the most important
sociopolitical event in Mexico.Wealth,
political power, and access to education were concentrated among a handful of
families, overwhelmingly of European descent known as “hacendados” who
controlled vast swaths of the country by virtue of their huge estates.Foreign companies from Great Britain, France,
and the United States also held interest in Mexico.Most people in Mexico were landless, laboring
on the vast estates or in the mines for little more than slave wages.We decided to ride our bicycles into town on
Revolution day and discovered a delightful parade coming down the main
boulevard – senoritas and senores were in colorful costume riding horses as children
looked-on and played nearby; a true community event with lots of family fun.
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