MORE ABOUT VALLE

VALLE DE BRAVO

Valle de Bravo is a small town located in Estado de México. It is located on the shore of the Lake Avandaro at the south west of Mexico City and at the west of Toluca. It takes two hours to get there from Mexico City and 1 hour from Toluca, by car. Actually the only way of getting there is by car.

Valle is very well known as a touristic place. The town's principal economic activities center on tourism. It is a very popular location for weekend visits, especially from residents of Mexico City and Toluca. Holidays such as New Year’s Eve and Semana Santa bring large numbers of visitors to the town leading to strong recommendations to arrange lodging well in advance.

 Many people from México City snd Toluca have a weekend house in Valle de Bravo especially in Avandaro.  Most of people choose Avandaro as the place to have a house because it is a lovely place and it has some marvelous views of the lake and they also can have a dock and own some boats. But besides Avandaro, you can find a house near Valle de Bravo centre which, I think, is a better idea because Avandaro is not that close to Valle’s centre and you have to get there by car or boat, but if your house is in Valle you can walk anywhere you want to go.  Nevertheless, houses in Avandaro are more beautiful than the ones in Valle.

Having a car or even using a car in Valle is not an option. Streets are so narrow that cars have to go one by one and the traffic jam is terrible.  Besides the streets have some stony pavement and they are steep and the direction in which cars should be going is upwards. The most feasible way to go on the street is by a four wheel motorcycle or simply walking.

Valle de Bravo, even though is a small quiet town, offers us a lot of things to do. There is the lake in which people practices water skiing, sailing, or go on a kyak. Swimming in the lake is not an option because it is full of water lily and it makes swimming very dangerous, many people had drowned in the lake because they get stuck with the water lily and they can’t swim back towards the surface. Also water lilies are the reason why the water looks green. Many years ago, the government department that is in charge of the ecology, got some manatees to put them in the lake so they could eat the water lily. This wasn’t possible because people who lived in than zone ate the manatees.

In 1937, the Federal Commission on Electricity began plans for an electrical plant called Ixtapantongo, later called the "Miguel Alemán" hydroelectric system. Construction began in 1938 and ended in 1947 ending with a Villa Victoria Dam that flooded 2,900 hectares, creating the current reservoir which extends all the way to the state of Michoacán. The electrical plant generates 458,775 kilowatts per hour and forms a part of the water system supplying Mexico City. With the creation of the lake came the development of exclusive resort facilities such as hotels, golf clubs, country cabins, sailing clubs and a myriad of restaurants.

Some touristic attractions are:

Temple of Santa María Ahuacatlán was originally a chapel when it was started in 1864 but has been converted into a church which is still under construction.The main altar contains a Black Christ which is still worshipped.Inside the church are extremely large canvases by Phillippa, an English artist who was recently commissioned. These canvases depict the relationship between Mazahua legend and the Black Christ.

The Parish of Saint Francis of Asisi used to have two very large naves constructed by the Franciscans, one nave for the Spanish and one for the indigenous people. All that is preserved from the 17th century are the baptismal font, the holy water font and a carving of Saint Francis which is located in a vaulted niche in the present-day main nave. Other, more recent features of the church include murals and Italian oil paintings. The main bell was cast during the Mexican Revolution. The third and main nave was constructed in the 1950s in which all residents of the town participated; however, this project was not terminated until 1994.

The Joaquín Arcadio Pagaza Museum is dedicated to the conservation, research and spread of the region's cultural history. It features objects that were the property of Don Joaquín Arcadio Pagaza, a notable person here. It displays paintings and sculpture from local, national and international artists. It also supports literature by sponsoring conferences, films, theatre and other events. It also offers courses and workshops in fine arts, music and literature as well as a library.

The Municipal Boardwalk and Dock, on the edge of Lake Avandaro, is the main attraction in the town. There are a number of restaurants on the boardwalk and some that float alongside the dock. On weekends, artists display and sell their work here. Boats for excursions on the lake can be rented here as well as horses.It's an artificial lake where you can practice water sports and enjoy trips on a yacht or on a boat. On the banks of this river there are more than 42 nautical clubs. It is great for navigation, sailing, and water-skiing.

Two cultural festivals are celebrated in Valle de Bravo every year: Festival Vallesano and Festival de las Almas.

Festival Vallesano in celebrated each March and participate in sporting, horseback-riging, art exhibitions and food-tasting events as well as cultural and musical performances

The largest annual celebration is the cultural festival known as the Festival de las Almas which has occurred each of the last five years in late September or early October. It includes events centered on film, dance, art exhibitions, music, literature, workshops and theater, as well as Day of the Dead altars.

Valle is one of the best places in México for spending a weekend and getting relaxed. It has incredible natural sceneries and is very rich in Mexican culture.