Huatulco, Mexico

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Huatulco ("Bahías de Huatulco"), centered around the town of La Crucecita,
is a tourist development in Mexico. It is located on the Pacific coast in
the state of Oaxaca. Huatulco's tourism industry is centered around its nine

bays thus the name Bahias de Huatulco but has since been unofficially
shortened to simply Huatulco. You will find a wide variety of accommodations

from rooms for rent, small economy hotels, luxury oceanfront villas,
vacation condominiums, bed and breakfasts, along with several luxury resorts

standing on or near the shores of Tangolunda Bay. The Camino Real Zaashila,
Quinta Real Huatulco, Las Brisas, Dreams Resort & Spa (Formerly the Gala
hotel) and the Barceló are examples of the most popular larger resorts in
the area. Huatulco is located in the state of Oaxaca where the foothills of
the Sierra Madre del Sur Mountains meet the Pacific Ocean approximately 500
km south of Acapulco, Guerrero.

History

Legends say the Toltecs and Quetzalcoátl came from this area. Quetzacoátl,
according to a later legend, set an enormous and indestructible cross, which

has never been found. Various people have passed through this area,
including the Chatmos, the Zapotecs and the Mexicas.

After the Spanish Conquest, Huatulco thrived as a port under Hernán Cortés'
control serving as a vantage point for Spanish galleons and a distribution
centre for supplies on the Pacific coast. The latter half of the 16th
Century saw Huatulco attacked by Francis Drake and Thomas Cavendish - both
of whom left their prints on the region's history and legends that continue
to this day.

Until resort development began in the 1980s, Huatulco was little known
except as a coffee-growing area. In 1984, FONATUR (Fondo Nacional de
Turismo), a government agency dedicated to the development of tourism in
Mexico, acquired 21,000 hectares of land to develop a tourism center,
similar to that in Cancun. The existing population was relocated to Santa
María Huatulco. The plan resulted in the improvement of roadways and other
infrastructure. It also has populated areas mixed with "green zones" to make

the area more ecologically-friendly. In fact, this is one of the cleanest
developments in Mexico.

In addition to the beaches, one can explore and shop in the small
communities of Bahias de Huatulco, such as Santa Cruz, La Crucecita, or old
Santa María Huatulco (the municipal seat). When doing so, one can travel
between the communities by bus or taxi. The entire area has a "small town"
feel about it and is rarely crowded with tourists with the exception of the
Christmas and Semana Santa holiday periods.

About 80% of all tourism in Bahias de Huatulco is domestic in nature. Only
about 20% of Huatulco's tourism is foreign, mainly because international air

access is limited. Bahias de Huatulco has a small international airport just

20 minutes from the main resorts in Tangolunda Bay. The peak season for
foreign tourism is typically from December through April.

Geography

Huatulco is divided into four main districts. Tangolunda is the area where
the upscale resorts are located; Santa Cruz is a small town with the main
marina and Santa Cruz beach; La Crucecita, is another small town just inland

from the beach area that provides support services to the resort, and Chahué

is an area between Santa Cruz and Tangolunda.

The Bahias de Huatulco, (Bays of Huatulco) are actually made up of a series
of nine bays and numerous small coves stretching along 26 kilometers of
jagged coastline, including 36 white sandy beaches. The most centrally
located bay is Bahía de Santa Cruz, which is just south La Crucecita. It is
also the center of commercial and tourist activities, with a large pier
where yachts and cruise ships dock. Many resort offerings are found here
such as hotels, craft shops, discothèques, bars, restaurants, excursion
agencies, sailboat excursions as well as scuba diving, snorkeling and jet
skis for rent. The Capilla de Santa Cruz is where many weddings and baptisms

are celebrated next to the sea. Playa Santa Cruz, is the best known of the
beaches here. It is 250 meters long, with soft white sand and turquoise blue

water.

To the west of Santa Cruz, the beaches are less developed; in fact most of
this area belongs to the Parque Nacional (National Park) Huatulco. This is a

protected area (Área Natural Protegida) created in 1998. It contains 6,375
hectares of lowland jungle and 5,516 hectares of marine areas, encompassing
the bays of Bahía Maguey, Bahía Órgano, Bahía Cacaluta, Bahía Chachacual and

Bahía San Agustín. In these bays live the most important coral communities
of the Mexican Pacific. 723 species of animals live in the park as well as a

number of species of colorful fish, and it is open to scuba diving,
bird-watching and hiking. In 2006, the park received certification from
Green Globe, mostly due to it management of potable and waste water, the
first resort in the Americas to do so, and the third in the world. Bahía
Órgano is named for the cacti that grow there. It is 240 meters long and
only accessible by boat. Bahía Maguey is about 1/2 km long and is accessible

by car. Both these bays have fine, white sand and waters of various colors
of blue and green. Bahía Cacaluta and Bahía Chachacual are only accessible
by boat, but there are absolutely no human constructions of any kind. Bahía
San Agustín is the furthest west and the largest of all the bays. It has 1
km of beaches between 20 and 80 meters wide. There are also small islets
inside the bay itself. Large portions of the Bahias de Huatulco resort area
are located within an "ecological zone"; much of the area is protected from
future development, and the area is serviced by modern water and sewage
treatment plants so that no waste goes into its pristine bays. Huatulco has
been awarded the Green Globe certification, and it is the only resort in
Mexico to receive this prestigious award (Green Globe is the worldwide
benchmarking and certification system for the travel and tourism industry
across the triple bottom line of economic, social and environmental
management).

Climate

Sunshine can be expected about 330 days a year with the average temperature
of 28C. The dry season extends from December to May and the rainy season is
from June to November. The amount of precipitation has a definite effect on
the local vegetation, being brownish in the dry season and very green in the

rainy season.

Coffee plantations

There are a number of coffee plantations which are still in operation and
give tours, including Finca (farm) Las Nieves, Finca Monte Carlos, Finca
Margaritas, Finca El Pacífico and Finca La Gloria. Finca El Pacífico is
known for the organic coffee it produces called "Pluma Hidalgo," and it is
surrounded by waterfalls and ravines. Finca La Gloria is known for the
butterfly sanctuary "Mariposorio Dain Biguid", where dozens of species of
butterflies can be seen and the "Llano Grande Falls". The Río Copalitilla
has its source here as well.

Transportation

Despite the improvements in infrastructure, Bahias de Huatulco is not as
easy to get to as other resorts like Cancun. The drive south from Acapulco
on Federal Highway 200 has over 300 speed bumps (Topes). Driving from Oaxaca

city, the state capital is not any easier because Highway 135 is also full
of speed bumps. Highway 190 has fewer but it's a much longer road with many
curves due to the mountainous terrain.

Bahias de Huatulco has an airport, the Bahías de Huatulco International Airport, which is served nationally by Mexicana, Interjet, and Magnicharters, from other Mexican airports. Internationally and First Choice fly here from the U.S., Canada and Europe.

Kegagalan akibat OBAMA

Kegagalan melakukan sesuatu atau menciptakan sesuatu yang kita inginkan,
tentu saja harus dimaknai sebagai ketidak maksimalan dalam melakukan proses
eksekusi maupun ketidak maksimalan dalam proses niat dan berfikir.
5 (lima) pola fikir yang mengganggu terciptanya kesuksesan adalah :
O jo dumeh (Jangan sombong), kesombongan adalah dosis kepercayaan diri yang
berlebihan, merasa hanya diri sendiri yang mampu dan orang lain tidak mampu,
akan membuat kita tidak memiliki kewaspadaan untuk membuat action-action
terukur serta langkah antisipasinya untuk menggapai target yang kita
inginkan.
B ondo nekad (Tanpa perhitungan), didalam sebuah kesuksesan membutuhkan
skenario dan perencanaan yang matang. Sukses tidak pernah sekedar berbekal
kemauan yang kuat, tetapi harus diikuti dengan "tahu caranya" dan "tahu
mempertahankannya".
A ngger-angger sing nerak wewaler (Dengan segala cara), menghalalkan segala
cara untuk meraih yang kita inginkan akan menjauhkan kita dari kebahagiaan
pada saat kita mendapatkan apa yang kita inginkan.
M erkengkong (Mengambil keputusan dengan ragu-ragu), setiap kali perjalanan
kehidupan memasuki fase perubahan menuju lebih baik, maka akan memunculkan
berbagai pilihan. Mengambil keputusan dalam posisi keragu-raguan adalah awal
dari sebuah proses yang membuka peluang tidak berhasilnya lebih besar.
A na takerane ( Ada ukurannya), pola fikir bahwa semua orang ada ukuran
suksesnya masing-masing adalah pembunuh spirit nomor 1.

Extracted from : www.peopledeveloppeople.com

Mazatlán, Mexico

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding
municipio (municipality) for which the city serves as the municipal seat is
also called Mazatlán. It is located at 23°13′N 106°25′W / 23.217°N 106
417°W / 23.217; -106.417 on the Pacific coast, just across from the
southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.

Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning "place of the deer." The city was founded
in 1531. By the mid-1800s a large group of immigrants had arrived from
Germany. These new citizens developed Mazatlán into a thriving commercial
seaport, importing equipment for the nearby gold and silver mines. It served
as the capital of Sinaloa from 1859 to 1873. They also influenced the music,
banda, which is an alteration of Bavarian folk music, and also started the
Pacifico Brewery on March 14, 1900.

Mazatlán, with a population of 352,471 (city) and 403,888 (municipality) as
of the 2005 census, is the second-largest city in the state (after Culiacán)
and Mexico's largest commercial port. It is also a popular tourist
destination,with its beaches lined with resort hotels. A car ferry plies its
trade across the Gulf of California from Mazatlán to La Paz, Baja California
Sur. The municipality has a land area of 3,068.48 km² (1,184.75 sq mi) and
includes smaller outlying communities such as Villa Unión, La Noria, El
Quelite, El Habal and many other small villages.

History

Until the early 19th century, Mazatlán was a humble collection of huts
inhabited by indios whose major occupation was fishing, according to Abel
Aubert du Petit-Thouars, a French explorer. In 1829 a Filipino banker named
Machado arrived and established commercial relations with vessels coming to
Mazatlán from far off places such as Chile, Peru, the United States, Europe,
and the Asia Pacific. By 1836 the city had a population of between 4000 and
5000.

The city has seen some turbulent times. During the Mexican-American War
(1846-48) the U.S. Army took the city and, in order to avoid the shelling of
the city, the Mexican army abandoned it. Almost twenty years later, on the
morning of November 13, 1864, a French man-of-war fired on the city twelve
times but there were no casualties; Mazatlán then became part of the Mexican
Empire under Maximilian (vestiges of French influence may still be found in
the architecture of many buildings in Centro Historico). On November 13,
1866, the Mexican general Ramon Corona expelled the imperialists from
Mazatlán.

On June 18, 1868, William H. Bridge, captain of HMS Chanticleer, blockaded
the port and threatened to shell the city on June 22. The captain had taken
umbrage after local Customs Authorities seized 23 ounces of gold from the
paymaster of the ship.

The City of Mazatlán has the dubious distinction of being the second city in
the world after Tripoli, Libya, to suffer aerial bombardment (although the
local historical display at the plazuela affirms that Mazatlán was the
first). During the Mexican revolution of 1910-17 General Venustiano Carranza
(later president), intent on taking the city of Mazatlán, ordered a bi-plane
to drop a crude bomb of nails and dynamite wrapped in leather on the target
of Neveria Hill adjacent to the downtown area of Mazatlán. The crude bomb
landed off target on the city streets of Mazatlán, killing two citizens and
wounding several others.

During the Gold Rush, fortune hunters from the United States East Coast
sailed from New York Harbor and other Atlantic ports to Mexican ports in the
Gulf of Mexico. Debarking, the aspiring miners travelled overland for weeks
to Mazatlán, where they would embark from the port to arrive in San
Francisco in another four to five weeks.

Mazatlán's lighthouse (El Faro) began to shine by mid-1879. The lamp had
been handcrafted in Paris, containing a big oil lamp with mirrors and a
Fresnel lens to enhance the light. Since the light was static, in the
distance it was often mistaken for a star. By 1905 this lamp was converted
to a revolving lamp. Today, the 1000 watt bulb can be seen for 30 nautical
miles (60 km). Near the lighthouse shore, famous "divers" (called this even
by the Spanish speaking inhabitants of Mazatlán) perform daring jumps off
high rocks into the Pacific Ocean for tips from onlooking tourists.

Angela Peralta (1845-1883), a Mexican opera diva famed throughout the world,
died of yellow fever in Mazatlán shortly after her arrival in the port.
Legend has it she sang one last aria from her hotel balcony overlooking the
Plazuela Machado. Her memory is held dear by Mazatlécos to this day, and the
restored Teatro Angela Peralta by the Plazuela keeps her memory alive.

Mazatlán is also the hometown of Pedro Infante, one of the most popular
actors and singers of the golden years of the Cinema of Mexico.

Mazatlán was well regarded by film stars such as John Wayne, Gary Cooper,
John Huston, and others of their generation as a sportfishing mecca. The
hotels along Olas Altas flourished during the 40's, 50's and 60's supporting
this vibrant trade.

In the 70's, tourism in Old Mazatlán declined as other, newer venues opened
on the expanses of beach to the north of the city. As an example of Mazatlán
s tourism expansion, one of the largest timeshare providers in Mexico, Mayan
Resorts was founded in 1975 with the inauguration of Paraíso Mazatlán
(Mazatlán Paradise). This time also saw the expansion of the Hotel Playa
Mazatlán and the construction of many others, a trend that continues to this
day.

As the 21st Century begins, the Centro Histórico has been rediscovered by
newcomers and locals alike, spurring a renaissance of restoration and
entrepreneurial endeavors. Once-fine homes that had fallen into literal ruin
have been restored to their former glory and house families and boutique
businesses. The city has assisted in upgrading infrastructure, such as
better water, sewer and electrical services.

Climate

The climate regime of the municipality of Mazatlán is transitional Tropical
wet and dry with a marked dry season in the winter; however, as it is at the
transition zone with the semi-arid climate to the north (BSh), the dry
season is longer than most areas of similar classification. The wet season
(July to September) is short, very rainy, and very humid.

During the 1940-1980 period, the municipality saw an average annual rainfall
of 748 mm, a maximum of 215.4 mm in 24 hours, and 90.4 millimeters in one
hour. During this same period, the average annual rate of evaporation was
2146.80 mm. The prevailing winds are from the northwest at an average speed
of 5.0 meters per second.

Culture and contemporary life

Mazatlan is home to the Teatro Angela Peralta, located on the Plazuela
Machado. Originally built from 1869 to 1874, the Teatro, completely restored
from 1987 to 1992 to its 19th-century splendor, houses a concert hall,
galleries, an art school and a highly regarded conservatory of music and
dance.

Artists such as classical musician Enrique Patron de Rueda and the Machado
Orchestra perform regularly. The Sinaloa Symphony, local productions and a
diverse program of touring artists keep the Teatro busy throughout the year.

The Plazuela Machado, located in Centro Histórico, serves as the cultural
hub of the city featuring open air restaurants, pageants, public art
exhibits, a weekly craft fair and nightly entertainment. Calle Constitución,
the only through street, is closed to vehicle traffic in the evenings from
Thursday through Sunday.

Mazatlán hosts one of the largest celebrations of Carnaval in the world.
Culminating on Fat Tuesday, this weeklong bacchanal attracts visitors from
all over the world with its parades, cultural events and partying.

Airports

Mazatlan is served by Gral. Rafael Buelna International Airport with flights to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Phoenix, Denver, Houston, Minneapolis, Mexico City, Guadalajara, La Paz and San Jose del Cabo B.C.S., Tijuana B.C., and Puerto Vallarta. In addition, numerous bus lines provide transportation to all points in Mexico and to the United States. There is also ferry service to La Paz B.C.S.

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Puerto Vallarta is a Mexican resort city situated on the Pacific Ocean's
Bahía de Banderas. The 2005 census reported Puerto Vallarta's population as
177,830 making it the fifth-largest city in the state of Jalisco. The City
of Puerto Vallarta is the government seat of the Municipality of Puerto
Vallarta which comprises the city as well as population centers outside of
the city extending from Boca de Tomatlán to the Nayarit border (the Ameca
River). The municipality's population in the 2005 census was 220,368.

The city is located at 20°40′N 105°16′W / 20.667°N 105.267°W / 20.667;
-105.267. The municipality has an area of 502.19 square miles (1,300.67 km²)
To the North it borders the SW part of the state of Nayarit. To the east it
borders the municipality of Mascota and San Sebastián del Oeste, and to the
South it borders the municipalities of Talpa de Allende and Cabo Corriente.

Puerto Vallarta is named after Ignacio Vallarta, a former governor of
Jalisco. In Spanish, Puerto Vallarta is often shortened to "Vallarta", while
english speakers call the city P.V. for short. The city occasionally is
spelled or pronounced as Porto Vallarta. Being a Spanish name, Vallarta is
usually pronounced 'vie-arta', not 'val-arta'. In internet shorthand the
city is often referred to as PVR, after the IATA code (ICAO MMPR) for its
international airport.

History

Puerto Vallarta's proximity to the Bay of Banderas, the agricultural valley
of the Ameca River, and the important mining centers in the Sierra have
given the town a more interesting past than most Mexican tourist
destinations. Puerto Vallarta was a thriving Mexican village long before it
became an international tourist destination.

Pre-Hispanic times to the 19th century

Few details are known about the history of the area prior to the 19th
century. There is archaeological evidence of continuous human habitation
from 580 B.C., and there is archeological evidence (from sites near Ixtapa
and in Col. Lázaro Cardenas) that the area belonged to the Aztatlán culture
which dominated Jalisco, Nayarit and Michoacán from approx. 900-1200 A.D.
Unfortunately the limited evidence and relative lack of interest in
occidental Mexican archeology have meant that we still know very little
about pre-historic life in the area.

Spanish missionary and conquistador documents chronicle skirmishes between
the Spanish colonizers and the local peoples. In 1524, for example, a large
battle between Hernán Cortés and an army of 10,000 to 20,000 Indians
resulted in Cortés taking control of much of the Ameca valley. The valley
was then named Banderas (flags) after the colorful standards carried by the
natives.

Also the area appears on maps and in sailing logs as a bay of refuge for the
Manila Galleon trade as well as for other coastal seafarers. As such it
figures in some accounts of pirate operations and smuggling and pirate
contravention efforts by the viceregal government. During the 17th and 18th
centuries the Banderas Valley and its beaches along the Bay of Banderas
served as supply points for ships seeking refuge in the bay. The area also
served as a point where smuggled goods could be sent on to the Sierra towns
near Mascota, evading the customs operations at San Blas, Nayarit.

El Carrizal and Las Peñas - 19th century

During the 19th century the history of Puerto Vallarta, then called El
Carrizal or Las Peñas, was linked to the history of the sierra towns of San
Sebastian del Oeste, Talpa de Allende and Mascota. While today these towns
are considered quaint tourist destinations, during much of the 18th century,
Mascota was Jalisco's second largest town, after Guadalajara. Mascota and
its neighboring towns located in the high plateaus of the Sierra, developed
as agricultural towns to support the growing mining operations in the Sierra

During the 18th century, as Mascota grew, Puerto Vallarta grew with it,
transforming itself from a small fishing and pearl-diving village into a
small beach-landing port serving the Sierra towns. At the time the main port
serving Jalisco was located at San Blas, but the inconvenient overland route
from San Blas to the Sierra towns made Puerto Vallarta a more convenient
alternative for smaller shipments, not to mention smuggling operations which
evaded the tax collectors at San Blas. Puerto Vallarta also became a
vacation destination for residents of the Sierra Towns, and by the mid 19th
century, the town already had its regularly returning population of
vacationers. Most of the early settlers in Puerto Vallarta were families who
had left the Sierra towns for one reason or another.

1859 saw an important turning point for the small village, then known as Las
Peñas. That year the Union en Cuale mining company took possession of land
extending from Los Arcos to the Pitillal river and extending back up into
the Sierra for miles. The Union en Cuale company was owned in part by the
Camarena brothers of Guadalajara who had developed a small trade in oil palm
in Las Peñas. The purpose of the government's sale of the land to the
company was to provide for shipping, fishing and agricultural support for
the mining operations which were growing quite quickly in the Sierra.

The official founding story of Las Peñas and thus of Puerto Vallarta is that
it was founded by Guadalupe Sánchez Torres, on December 12, 1851, as Las
Peñas de Santa María de Guadalupe. Unfortunately the record of Sr. Sanchez's
purchase of property in Las Peñas dates the sale to 1859. Also even as early
as 1850 the area was already peopled by fisherman, pearl divers, smugglers
and foragers, all of whom had something of a permanent existence in the area
Given the existing historical documents it is simply impossible to date the
first permanent settlement in the area,

There is however no doubt the development of Las Peñas into a
self-sustaining village of any significant size happened in the 1860s as the
mouth of the Cuale area was exploited to support the operations of the newly
enfranchised Union en Cuale company. As such 1859 marks the beginning of
Puerto Vallarta as a village. Twenty years later, by 1885, the village
comprised about 250 homes and about 800 residents.

The early Municipality - early 20th century

In 1918, the village was elevated to municipality status and renamed after
former state governor Ignacio Vallarta. During the early years of the 20th
century most of Puerto Vallarta was owned by the Union en Cuale company
controlled by the American Alfred Geist. Mr Geist sold land only in large
plots at prices that were quite high for the time and otherwise leased the
land on short term leases. To remedy this situation and to enable the new
municipality to develop, the citizens petitioned the government for a land
grant based on the new constitution's provisions. In 1921 the Local Agrarian
Commission approved a grant of some 9,400 hectares (23,000 acres or 39
square miles), with the land to be expropriated from the Union en Cuale
company. The grant was established as an ejido holding (a farming
cooperative administered by the government). Legal squabbling over the size
of the land grant, and the ejido status of the properties involved would
stymie growth in Puerto Vallarta into the 1960s, as developers were
reluctant to build anything too substantial on land for which one could not
obtain clear title. (Ejido land is controlled by individuals who are given
licenses to use it, but it could not be sold, subdivided or leased.)

During the Cristero War the municipality was twice taken over by Cristero
forces (April 1927 and January 1928). After it was recaptured for a second
time, the national government stationed a small garrison there under Major
Ángel Ocampo. The garrison was stationed near the mouth of the Cuale River
and is responsible for planting many of the palms that now line the beaches
on near the mouth of the Cuale River to help limit beach erosion during
heavy rains in October 1928. One casualty of the skirmishes was local pastor
Padre Ayala who was exiled to Guadalajara for his role in fomenting the
local revolt. He died there in 1943, though his remains were returned 10
years later and interred in the main parish church of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

As mining activities in the Sierra waned in the early years of the 20th
century, Puerto Vallarta and the agricultural valley to the North of the
city became important destinations for those leaving the Sierra towns and
looking for a place to settle. Many of those who arrived had family members
already living in Puerto Vallarta, and the pattern of migration that ensued
turned the town into a collection of more or less extended families, giving
it the cohesion of a typical sierra town.

Also from 1925 until 1935 the Montgomery Fruit Company operated in the area
around Ixtapa. Friction with the state government over labor issues
eventually led to the venture being abandoned, but for ten years it provided
an important source of employment in the area.

The first airplane service arrived in 1932, with electrical service on a
small scale arriving about the same time. The first suspension bridge over
the Cuale went up in 1933. The city's first plumbing system was started in
1939. In 1942 Puerto Vallarta was finally connected by road to Compostela,
Nay. Until then the only access to Puerto Vallarta was by sea, air, or by
mule trails to the sierra towns. Also in 1942 in the New York based magazine
Modern Mexico the first advertisement for a Puerto Vallarta vacation
appeared, sponsored by the Air Transport Company of Jalisco. By 1945 the
company was landing DC-3s in Puerto Vallarta (carrying 21 passengers).

By the 1950s Puerto Vallarta had started to attract Americans, mostly
writers and artists in search of a retreat from the USA of the era of
Eisenhower and McCarthy. Gringo Gulch began to develop as an expatriate
neighborhood on the hill above the Centro. The city also attracted Mexican
artists and writers who were willing to trade the comforts of life in the
larger cities for its scenic and bucolic advantages.

In 1956 the Mascota mule trail was replaced by a packed dirt road. 24-hour
electrical generation arrived in 1958. A new airport arrived in 1962
connecting Puerto Vallarta with Los Angeles via Mazatlán, and the Mexican
Aviation Company began offering package trips.

By the early 1960s the population had started to spread beyond the Centro
and Gringo Gulch, and the Colonias of 5 Diciembre (north of the Centro) and
Emiliano Zapata (south of the Cuale River) began to grow.

The modern resort - 1960s to the present

Four influences converged during the 1960s and early 1970s to launch Puerto
Vallarta into its trajectory toward becoming a major resort destination.

First the federal government finally resolved century old property disputes
involving the status of communal land originally appropriated from the Union
en Cuale mining company to be parceled out as farms. The communal (ejido)
status of the land had stifled development in the town for much of the 20th
century. The transition to private ownership of much of the land within
present city limits culminated in the appropriation of much of the land in
1973 and the establishment of the Vallarta Land Trust (Fideicomiso) to
oversee selling the land and using the revenue to develop the city's
infrastructure.

Second, the American director John Huston filmed his 1963 film The Night of
the Iguana in Mismaloya, a small town just south of Puerto Vallarta. During
the filming, the US media gave extensive coverage to Elizabeth Taylor's
extramarital affair with Richard Burton, as well as covering the frequent
fighting between Huston and the film's four stars. The subsequent publicity
helped put Puerto Vallarta on the map for US tourists.

Third, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Mexican government invested in
the development of highways, airport and utility infrastructure, making
Puerto Vallarta easily accessible both by air and ground transportation for
the first time. The city's first tourist boom occurred in the late 1960s and
early 1970s because of this work. During those years most tourists in Puerto
Vallarta were Mexican, and the reason they started travelling to Puerto
Vallarta then was because the trip between Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta
was made sufficiently convenient because of the governments investment in
infrastructure.

Finally, in 1968 the municipality was elevated to the status of a City. The
change in status reflected the renewed interest shown by the federal and
state government in developing the city as an international resort
destination.

Also significant was the August 1970 visit of US President Richard Nixon who
met with Mexican President Gustavo Díaz Ordaz in Puerto Vallarta for treaty
negotiations. The visit showcased Puerto Vallarta's recently developed
airport and resort infrastructure, and thus contributed to the growing
visibility of the city as a resort destination.

Prior to 1973, hotels in the city tended to be modest, and only two large
sized luxury hotels existed (the Real and the Posada Vallarta). After 1973
Puerto Vallarta experienced rapid growth in the number of larger luxury
hotels, culminating in 1980 with the opening of the Sheraton Buganvilias. In
1982 the peso was devalued and Puerto Vallarta became a bargain destination
for US tourists. Consequently the mid-80s saw a marked and rapid rise in the
tourist volume. This in turn fueled more development, for example the Marina
which was started in 1986. By the early 90s development of other
destinations in Mexico like Ixtapa and Cancún caused a slump in travel to
Puerto Vallarta.

It was also during the early 1980s that Puerto Vallarta experienced a marked
increase in problems related to poverty. While the devaluation of the peso
brought record numbers of tourists to the area, it also stifled investment
and thus construction. So while more and more workers were arriving in
Puerto Vallarta to try to cash in on the booming tourist trade, less and
less was being done to accommodate them with housing and related
infrastructure. So during the mid 1980s the city experienced a rapid growth
in impromptu communities poorly served by even basic public services, and
with a very low standard of living as the boom of the early 80s leveled out.
During the late 1980s the city worked to alleviate the situation by
developing housing and infrastructure, but even today the outlying areas of
Puerto Vallarta suffer from poor provision of basic services (i.e. water,
sewage, roads) as a legacy of the early 80s.

In 1993 the federal Agrarian Law was amended allowing for more secure
foreign tenure of former ejido land. Those controlling ejido land were
allowed to petition for regularization, a process that converted their
controlling interest into fee simple ownership. This meant that the property
could be sold, and it led to a boom in the development of private residences
mostly condominiums, and a new phase of Puerto Vallarta's expansion began,
centered more on accommodating retirees, snow-birds, and those who visited
the city enough to make purchasing a condominium or a time-share a
cost-effective option.

Climate

Puerto Vallarta's climate is typical Tropical wet and dry with a marked dry
season in the winter. The high temperature and variations in humidity can
make July through September nearly intolerable. It has pronounced wet and
dry seasonal variation, with sudden monsoon-like rains from July through
September, normally for a few hours in the evenings.

The average daily high temperature is 86 °F (30 °C); average daily low
temperature is 70 °F (21 °C); average daily humidity is 75%. The rainy
season extends from mid June through mid October, with most of the rain
between July and September. August is the city's wettest month, with an
average of 14 days with significant precipitation. Even during the rainy
season precipitation tends to be concentrated in large rainstorms.
Occasional tropical storms will bring thunderstorms to the city in November,
though the month is typically dry. February, March and April are the months
with the least cloud cover.

Prevailing winds are from the southwest, and most weather systems
approaching Puerto Vallarta are consequently weakened as they pass over Cabo
Corriente. Thus even during the rainy season Puerto Vallarta's weather tends
to be mild compared to other areas along the Mexican Pacific coast.

Hurricanes seldom strike Puerto Vallarta. In 2002 Hurricane Kenna, a
category 5 hurricane, made landfall about 100 miles (160 km) northwest of
Puerto Vallarta, and the city suffered some damage from the resulting storm
surge. In 1971 Hurricane Lily, a category 1 hurricane, caused serious
flooding on the Isla Cuale, prompting the city to relocate all of its
residents to the new Colonia Palo Seco.

Tourism trends

Puerto Vallarta was once named as La Ciudad Mas Amigable en el Mundo (The
Friendliest City in the World), as the sign reads when entering from Nayarit
Today, the presence of numerous sidewalk touts selling time-shares and
tequila render the city's atmosphere more akin to tourist-heavy resorts like
Cancun and Acapulco, but overall the city's reputation remains relatively
undiminished.

Tourism makes up roughly 50% of all economic activity in Puerto Vallarta
according to puertovallarta.net. The high season for international tourism
in Puerto Vallarta extends from late November through March (or later
depending on the timing of the College Spring Break period in the USA.) The
city is especially popular with US residents from the West Coast because of
the number of convenient flights between Puerto Vallarta and Los Angeles,
San Francisco and Seattle. The air routes between Puerto Vallarta and Los
Angeles and Puerto Vallarta and San Francisco are by far the most heavily
traveled of all air routes to the city.

Puerto Vallarta is also a popular destination for domestic tourists. It is a
popular weekend destination for residents of Guadalajara (tapatíos), and a
popular national destination for vacations such as Semana Santa (the week
preceding Easter) and Christmas. Also in recent years Acapulco has
experienced a rise in drug related violence and consequently Puerto Vallarta
has absorbed a lot of the Mexico City resort vacation business (Acapulco has
long been a common destination for tourists from Mexico City).

Puerto Vallarta has become a popular retirement destination for US and
Canadian retirees. This trend has spawned a condominium development boom in
the city.

Rapid growth in tourist volume in Puerto Vallarta has given rise to rapid
growth in hotel and rental apartment construction. This growth has spilled
over from the city limits into Nuevo Vallarta in the neighboring state of
Nayarit. The area is one of the fastest growing regions in the Americas.

LGBT Tourism

Guadalajara and Acapulco were common vacation destinations for gay men and
lesbians from Mexico City and, especially, the United States and Canada in
the 1980s and 1990s. However, since that time, Puerto Vallarta has developed
into Mexico's premier resort town as a sort of satellite gay space for its
big sister Guadalajara, much as Fire Island is to New York City and Palm
Springs is to Los Angeles. It is now considered the most welcoming and
gay-friendly destination in the country, dubbed the "San Francisco of Mexico
It boasts a gay scene, centered in the Zona Romántica, of hotels and
resorts as well as many bars, nightclubs and a gay beach on the main shore.
Puerto Vallarta has been cited as the number one gay beach destination in
Latin America.

Lic. Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport

The Lic. Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport comprises a commercial
international section and a general aviation section.

The commercial section has a single runway, 3,100 meters in length and 45
meters in width, capable of handling all current traffic without
restrictions. The airfield is capable of handling 40 takeoffs or landings
per hour. The airport has 11 active gates, three serviced directly from the
terminal, and eight serviced remotely using shuttle buses.

As of 2006 the active airlines utilizing the commercial section were:
Aerocalifornia, Aeromexico, Air Canada, Alaska, American, Aviacsa, Azteca,
Continental, Magnicharters, Northwest Airlines, Mexicana and US Airways.

The general aviation section handles small planes leaving for San Sebastian
del Oeste, Mascota, and other towns in the Sierra and along the Coast. It
has 18 loading positions and shares the commercial airfield.

During the high season the airport handles approximately 300,000 passengers
a month. During the low season it handles about half of that volume. During
2006 the airport handled a total of 2.8 million passengers. One fifth of
those were domestic passengers and four fifths were international.

Landmarks in Puerto Vallarta

* Parish Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe - Col. Centro

* Púlpito and Pilitas (Pulpit and Baptismal Font) - Col. Emilio Zapata -
two rock formations at the South end of Los Muertos Beach. El Púlpito is the
tall headland and Las Pilitas are the formation of rocks beneath it. Las
Pilitas was the original location of the Boy on a Seahorse sculpture (El
Caballito) now located on the Malecón. There are two streets in the Olas
Altas area named after the rock formations.

* Playa Conchas Chinas (Chinese Shells Beach) - Fracc. Amapas - the city
s most secluded beach, located to the South of the headland which forms the
boundary of Los Muertos beach.

* The Malecon - paved walkway along the seashore in Col. Centro -
especially popular during the Sunday evening paseo. It features a collection
of contemporary sculptures by Sergio Bustamante, Alejandro Colunga, Ramiz
Barquet and others. The Malecon was extensively rebuilt in 2002-2003
following damage from hurricane Kenna.

* Mercado Isle Cuale and Mercado Municipal Cuale - there are two large
public markets in the Centro along the banks of the Cuale selling a variety
of artisanal and souvenir goods, and the Isla Cuale has a number of souvenir
vendor shops as well. The Isla Cuale was also famous for its cat population.
The Island was a lower class suburb until flooding during Hurricane Lily
(1971) forced residents to be relocated. They were moved to Palo Seco (which
means for dry stick) and the Island was converted into a site for
restaurants, shops and a cultural center.

* Cuale Archaeological Museum - on the West side of the Isla Cuale, the
museum presents a significant collection of local and regional pre-Hispanic
art in a number of informative displays. The museum also houses a small
gallery for showing contemporary art.

* John Huston statue on Isla Cuale - dedicated on the 25th anniversary
of the film's release and honoring Huston's contributions to the city. John
s son Danny was married in a ceremony that took place at the statue in 2002.

* Plaza de Armas (Ignacio Vallarta) / Aquiles Serdan Amphitheater (Los
Arcos) - the city's main plaza - site of public concerts both at the
bandstand in the Plaza de Armas and on the stage in front of the arches
across the street.

* City Hall - a modern city hall laid out using a traditional courtyard
plan. There is a tourist office in the SW corner, and on the landing of the
main (West off the courtyard) stairwell there is a modest naive style mural
by local artist Manuel Lepe.

* Saucedo Theatre Building (Juarez at Iturbide) - Built in 1922 in a Belle Epoque style reminiscent of architecture of the Porfirato. The theater presented live shows and films on its first floor, and the second floor housed a ballroom. The building has been converted to retail use.

Menghadapi Masalah Hidup

Simak judulnya. "Menghadapi Masalah Hidup". Bukan "Menjalani Masalah Hidup".

Lebih berat bagi kita untuk keluar dari persoalan kehidupan, jika kita masih

terbenam dan tenggelam di dalamnya. Seketika kita meniatkan untuk
menghadapi", sadarilah bahwa kita sebenarnya sudah "keluar" dari persoalan.

Apa yang penting bagi kita adalah menjawab pertanyaan, "what's next?".
Ketiadaan jawaban atas pertanyaan ini, akan membuat kita kembali "masuk" ke
dalam persoalan. Ya, memang, magnet dari setiap persoalan cenderung sangat
besar. Tak bisa kita pungkiri ini adalah tentang seni hidup yang butuh
pembelajaran. Jika perlu seumur hidup. Mari kita pelajari bersama.

1. SADARI

Maka, upaya terbaik kita yang pertama adalah sebuah kesadaran tentang
keberadaan persoalan itu dan tentang pemahaman bagaimana memisahkan "diri"
dari "masalah". Sebagian besar dari apa yang tertulis di sini adalah seni
tentang itu.

"It isn't that they can't see the solution. It's that they can't see the
problem."
G. K. Chesterton

2. TERIMA

Jangan tolak keberadaan masalah. Jika ia memang ada dan nyata, terima dulu.
Pisahkan dua hal ini; "ada masalah" dan "saya ada masalah". Ketika kita
merasa frustrasi, maka kita sebenarnya sedang dalam kesulitan untuk
memisahkan dua cara pandang ini. Be aware.

"You won't find a solution by saying there is no problem."
William Rotsler

3. SOLUSI ADA DI DALAMNYA

Setiap persoalan, dipastikan selalu membawa bibit penyelesaian. Dan yang
namanya bibit, sifat alamiahnya adalah pantas untuk tumbuh. Maka persoalan
atau masalah, adalah tentang bagaimana Tuhan sebenarnya sedang menumbuhkan
dan mendewasakan kita.

"If you don't have any problems, you don't get any seeds."
Norman Vincent Peale

4. SELESAIKAN

Masalah hanya akan berlalu jika diselesaikan.

"The best way to escape from your problem is to solve it"
Dr. Robert Anthony

"The best way out is always through."
Helen Keller

Belajarlah tentang cara dan pola yang sistematis dalam menyelesaikan masalah

Belajarlah auditing untuk berbagai persoalan.

5. NAIKKAN LEVEL BERPIKIR

Masalah kita muncul pada sebuah tingkat atau cara berpikir. Masalah itu akan

bisa diselesaikan hanya jika kita menaikkan tingkat berpikir kita. Ini bisa
dilakukan dengan mempelajari seluk beluk persoalan dan dengan melatih pola
berpikir problem solving.


"Problems cannot be solved at the same level of awareness that created them.

Albert Einstein

Cara yang paling mudah: Turunkan tingkat kepentingan dari masalah. Ini bisa
dilakukan dengan mengajukan berbagai pertanyaan yang menguji tingkat
kepentingan masalah.

Latihan ini akan membiasakan himmah (kecenderungan, hasrat, niat, tekad,
kehendak, semangat, sikap menyukai atau menyenangi, kecintaan) hati dan pola

pikir kita, ke hal-hal lain yang jauh lebih baik untuk diri kita.

"Apakah masalah ini memang benar-benar masalah?"
"Apakah 'ini masalah' adalah hanya cara pandang saya saja?"
"Adakah sesuatu yang lebih baik dari apa yang menjadi masalah itu?"

Banyak sekali hal yang kita anggap masalah, sebenarnya hanya persoalan remeh

"Masalah" semacam ini bisa selesai justru dengan tidak menganggapnya
sebagai masalah.

Hadapilah hanya yang memang benar-benar masalah.

6. JIKA PERLU: TULIS

Jika kita anggap perlu, tuliskanlah masalah yang kita hadapi. Berikan semua
rincian yang bisa kita pikirkan. Dengan melakukan ini, kita akan bisa mulai
mengorganisir, memilih, dan memilah pokok-pokok permasalahan yang kita
hadapi.

7. CARI SOLUSI

Kita tak akan menemukan, jika kita tidak mencari.

Selalulah berupaya untuk mencari solusi. Ketahuilah, jika kita mencari kita
pasti akan menemukan. Kita mungkin tidak tahu kapan, tapi pasti, pasti kita
temukan. Teruslah mencari.

Sabar, tidak putus asa, dan pantang menyerah.

8. GUNAKAN WAKTU DENGAN BIJAK

Isilah waktu kita dengan mencari, menemukan, dan mengembangkan solusi.
Jadilah manusia yang berorientasi pada solusi. Berhentilah mempertanyakan,
dan mulailah bertanya. Mempertanyakan adalah tanda belum menerima, dan
bertanya adalah sebaliknya.

Gunakan hanya sedikit waktu untuk masalah, dan segeralah bergerak mencari
solusi.

9. PROPORSIONAL

Jangan biarkan masalah kita menjadi lebih besar dari pada diri kita sendiri.

Ingatlah bahwa "sering", belum tentu sama dengan "besar".

Setiap masalah akan menjadi aturable (bisa di-manage), manakala masalah itu
bisa diterjemahkan menjadi pecahan-pecahan kecil dari langkah-langkah yang
perlu kita ambil.

10. BERSIKAPLAH BENAR

Kembangkan dan latih sikap yang tepat untuk setiap masalah. Berlatihlah
untuk terampil menerapkan Prinsip 10/90 dari Stephen Covey. 10% adalah fakta

90% adalah sikap.

Jika sudah terbiasa, maka yang biasa kita sebut dengan "masalah" akan
menjadi "pengalaman belajar" dan "kesempatan".

"10% of life is made up of what happens to you. 90% of life is decided by
how you react."
Stephen Covey

11. JANGAN LIHAT MASALAH YANG TAK ADA

Gunakan kekuatan imajinasi kita untuk mencari solusi. Jangan gunakan untuk
membayang-bayangkan masalah yang tidak ada.

Semoga bermanfaat.

Bahkan, bersama satu kesulitan, ada dua (at least) kemudahan. Kemudahan
pertama adalah ketika kita "menghadapi" dan bukan"menjalani". Kemudahan
kedua adalah ketika kita menggeser fokus kepada yang Maha Pengasih dan Maha
Penyayang.


Dari materi oleh Chuck Gallozzi dengan komentar dan tambahan semampu saya.

Ikhwan Sopa
Master Trainer E.D.A.N.
http://milis-bicara.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/motivasi

Puerto Quetzal, Guatemala

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Puerto Quetzal is Guatemala's largest Pacific Ocean port. It is important
for both cargo traffic and as a stop-off point for cruise liners.

It is located in Escuintla department, alongside the city of Puerto San José
which it superseded as a port in importance to the country's maritime
traffic during the 20th century.

Menjadi Bahagia Itu Mudah

Mengapa ada orang yang "miskin",
namun kelihatannya mudah bahagia?

Sebaliknya, mengapa ada orang yang, walaupun telah memiliki banyak hal dalam
hidupnya, sulit untuk merasa bahagia?

Bila begitu, apa sih yang membuat rasa bahagia itu?
Sebenarnya, untuk menjadi bahagia itu mudah.

Yuk, mari kita uji apakah Anda seorang yang mudah merasa bahagia?

Lengkapilah pernyataan-pernyataan di bawah ini dengan kata-kata yang spontan
terlintas dalam pikiran Anda.

Saya merasa bahagia, kalau …
1. ___________________________
2. ___________________________
3. ___________________________

Sudah?
Sekarang, mari kita periksa jawaban Anda;
Bila jawaban Anda adalah sesuatu yang sulit dan belum Anda miliki,
maka Anda adalah seorang yang sulit merasa bahagia.
Lha, untuk menjadi bahagia saja syaratnya berat.

Contoh;
Saya merasa bahagia kalau kaya.
Saya merasa bahagia kalau punya rumah.
Saya merasa bahagia kalau jadi direktur utama.

Artinya,
kalau Anda belum kaya atau punya rumah atau jadi direktur utama, Anda tidak
merasa berbahagia?

Namun, bila jawaban Anda adalah kejadian sehari-hari,
sesuatu yang sederhana,
sesuatu yang mudah Anda peroleh,
atau sesuatu yang telah Anda miliki,
maka Anda dapat berbahagia sepanjang waktu dalam kehidupan Anda.

Contoh;
Saya berbahagia kalau melihat anak saya tersenyum.
Saya merasa bahagia kalau melihat matahari terbit.
Saya merasa bahagia kalau berangkat kerja.

Apakah Anda akan selalu melihat buah hati Anda tersenyum? Sering?
Apakah Anda akan melihat matahari terbit besok atau lusa? Bisa?
Apakah Anda masih berangkat kerja besok? Masihkah?

Teman-teman yang baik,

Berbahagialah!
Karena bahagia itu meyenangkan.

Sederhana-lah!
Karena sederhana itu mudah.

Mulai-lah!
Untuk bahagia saja kog dengan syarat berat!

Berbahagialah!
Hari ini juga ...

Sumber Inspirasi: Mario Teguh

Corinto, Nicaragua

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Corinto is a town of 17,000 (1995 population) on the northwest Pacific coast
of Nicaragua in the province of Chinandega. The municipality was founded in
1863 and was named in honour of the Greek city of Corinth.

Economy

It was a railroad terminus and Nicaragua's largest Pacific port. It has its
own Container terminal and is able to manage a wide variety of cargo: liquid
bulk, containers, cars, etc.

United States Intervention

On May 2, 1896 U.S. Marines land in Corinto to protect U.S. interests during
political unrest.

On January 25, 1922 the USS Galveston landed a detachment of U.S. Marines at
Corinto, to reinforce the Managua legation guard during a period of
political tension.

While supporting the Contras against the Stalinist Sandinista government in the 1980s, U.S. Forces mined the harbor of Corinto. On October 10, 1983 an attack destroyed 3.2 million gallons of fuel. It is believed that this attack was directed by the CIA and carried out by U.S. Navy Seals.

Puntarenas, Costa Rica

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Puntarenas, which means "Sandy Point" in Spanish, is the capital and largest
city in the province Puntarenas, Costa Rica, at the Pacific coast. The
eponymous and oddly shaped province has its largest section in the South,
far from the capital.

Its port, Caldera, is one of the main ports in the country. Some 100,000
live in the city and close towns. With beaches on the Pacific Ocean, it also
attracts many tourists, especially surfers. It is also a possible stopover
point for the touristy Monteverde, further inland.

History

First known as Villa Bruselas in colonial times, Puntarenas was discovered
by Hernán Ponce de León in 1519. Despite the use of the Gulf of Nicoya as an
entryway to Costa Rica's inland territory, the port of Puntarenas was not
developed until 1840 when coffee production in the highlands reached
exportable volumes. In 1845 the Congress of the Republic declared Puntarenas
a duty free port (with the exception of Cognac and hard liquor). Originally,
the coffee was brought to port in oxcarts via a trail through the mountains.
In 1879, a stretch of railroad track was completed which connected
Puntarenas with the town of Esparza (one of the country's earliest Spanish
settlements, founded in 1554, a decade before the Central Valley began to be
colonized) where the oxcart trail came out of the mountains. Eventually, the
railroad was built all the way through to San José and service was
inaugurated in 1910.

With the railroad connection to the Central Valley, the Pacific port's
activities continued to be a major part of the region's economy throughout
the 20th century. However, due to the aging and deterioration of the port
facilities and the need to accommodate the much larger vessels of modern
shipping fleets, a new port was constructed in the 1980s to the south of
Puntarenas. The site chosen was Caldera, where ships had anchored during
colonial times.

Bedanya Bosan Dan Malas

"Waspadalah jika Anda mudah jenuh atau gampang bosan! Bakat leadership Anda
mungkin cukup tinggi."

Semalam, setelah menyiapkan materi leadership "Tranforming Leaders" untuk
para anggota dewan, saya merenungi sesuatu. Sesuatu yang benar-benar menarik
karena menciptakan sebuah cara pandang baru. Cara pandang yang menurut saya
lebih empowering alias memberdayakan. Cara pandang yang bisa merubah
paradigma kita selama ini tentang rasa bosan. Saya lalu mengupdate status
dengan ungkapan sebagaimana paragraf pertama di atas.

John Adair, dalam salah satu buku leadershipnya, mengungkapkan bahwa salah
satu karakteristik seorang leader yang ideal dan terus tumbuh, adalah
memiliki kualitas toughness atau keras hati (dan mungkin juga keras kepala)
yang sehat. Para leader dengan kualitas pribadi yang demikian, adalah mereka
yang demanding alias penuntut, dan pada saat yang sama sering merasa tidak
nyaman di dalam lingkungannya.

Ya, tidak nyaman alias bosenan!

Rasa tidak nyaman itu muncul karena standar tinggi yang mereka ciptakan
sendiri. Segala hal di sekitar mereka, cenderung lebih cepat menjadi
membosankan karena di mata mereka semua itu segera menjadi di bawah standar.

Rasa tidak nyaman inilah yang seringkali menciptakan fenomena "out of the
box", "terobosan", "breakthrough", "kreatifitas", "trend", dan sebagainya.
Dengan kata lain, kebosanan yang dikontrol dengan baik dan terarah sangat
mungkin akan menciptakan fenomena kebangkitan atau terobosan.

Maka, jika Anda mulai merasa bosan dengan pekerjaan, profesi, atau bisnis
Anda saat ini, waspadalah! Anda mungkin punya bakat leadership yang tinggi.
Jika Anda bisa mengontrol, menginvestigasi, dan mengelola kebosanan dengan
baik dan terarah, sangat mungkin rasa bosan Anda itu, yang selama ini adalah
"kendala" dan "masalah", akan berbalik 180 derajat menjadi "peluang" dan
tantangan".

Agar kita bisa melakukan pergeseran "paradigma kebosanan" dari masalah dan
kendala, menjadi peluang dan tantangan, maka poin-poin berikut ini layak
Anda pertimbangkan.

1. Segala sesuatu tidak diciptakan dengan sia-sia. Segala sesuatu punya
makna untuk memantaskan dan membesarkan Anda.

2. Rasa bosan harus dibedakan dari rasa malas.

3. Kemampuan membedakan bosan dari malas, bisa berarti perbedaan besar dalam
hidup Anda, saat ini dan di masa depan.

BOSAN

Jika Anda merasa bosan, Anda cenderung meninggalkan yang ada dan mencari
yang baru. Anda cenderung melupakan yang di tangan dan mulai mencari dunia
luar. Jika Anda bosan, apa yang ada mulai terasa tidak nyaman, dan kemudian
Anda mulai mencari-cari alternatif. Anda bosan jika Anda merasakan sesuatu
yang monoton dan begitu-begitu saja.

Anda harus memastikan, apakah Anda benar-benar merasa bosan atau hanya
merasa malas. Anda harus melakukan uji kriteria.

Yang berikut ini adalah pertanyaan yang merupakan turunan dari konsep John
Adair, tentang elemen mutlak di dalam leadership, yaitu The Leader, The
Situation, The Team.

"Apa yang sebenarnya saya inginkan?"
"Apa yang bisa saya lakukan sekarang?"
"Siapa yang bisa membantu saya?"

The Team - Pertanyaan terakhir itu krusial, sebab ciri dari seorang leader
adalah kemampuannya untuk mendapatkan pengikut dan pendukung.

The Situation - Pertanyaan yang di tengah juga krusial, sebab memulai segala
bentuk transformasi harus dimulai dari diri sendiri.

The Leader - This is You - Pertanyaan pertama paling krusial, sebab itu
adalah tentang kejelasan visi alias vision clarity. Paling krusial karena
secara langsung mengacu kepada eksistensi dan tujuan keberadaan diri.

Jika jawaban yang Anda peroleh dari ketiga pertanyaan itu, ternyata masih
terkait sangat erat dengan segala hal yang melekat pada diri Anda saat ini,
yaitu pekerjaan Anda, profesi Anda, karir Anda, bisnis Anda, lingkungan dan
organisasi Anda, maka bisa jadi; Anda cuma malas!

Jika Anda yakin bahwa jawaban Anda memang mengacu kepada berbagai hal baru
dan berada di luar sana, maka sangat mungkin Anda perlu menetapkan ulang
visi dan misi Anda.

Bosan adalah tentang kejelasan visi, tentang keyakinan dan tentang
keterikatan Anda pada visi itu.

Bosan adalah tentang WHAT.

MALAS

Secara sederhana, fenomena kemalasan bisa dideskripsikan begini.

Anda tahu bahwa itu baik, pantas, dan layak untuk Anda. Anda berhak, Anda
sebenarnya menginginkannya, dan Anda sebenarnya tahu bahwa Anda memang bisa
mendapatkannya.

Anda hanya sedang terkooptasi oleh keadaan temporer. Anda hanya sedang
kebingungan dalam memilih cara untuk menuju ke sana. Dalam konteks ini, Anda
hanya perlu berfokus untuk kreatif dalam menjawab pertanyaan yang di tengah.

"Apa yang sekarang bisa saya sikapi, putuskan, dan lakukan tentang semua
ini?"

Malas adalah tentang motivasi.

Malas adalah tentang HOW.

Waspadalah dalam mengindentifikasi perasaan Anda.

Bosan adalah tentang vision clarity, malas adalah tentang motivasi.
Bosan adalah tentang WHAT, malas adalah tentang HOW.

Semoga bermanfaat.

Ikhwan Sopa
Master Trainer E.D.A.N.

Puerto Chiapas, Mexico

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tapachula is a municipio (municipality) and city with a hot, humid climate
in the Mexican state of Chiapas. It is located in southern part of the state
on the Soconusco coastal plain, near the border with Guatemala, at 14.91° N
92.27° W. In the 2005 census the population of the municipality was 282,420
people, whereas the city of Tapachula had a population of 189,991 (more than
two-thirds of the municipality's total). The city and the municipality both
rank second in the state in population, behind Tuxtla Gutiérrez.

The city has one of the highest GDP per capita in Mexico, and it is known
sometimes as "Perla del Soconusco" ("Pearl of Soconusco").

Culture

The population mix is culturally diverse. From Native Americans and Mestizos
Spanish, German, Chinese, Japanese, French and several others. The
International Fair of Tapachula is celebrated during March with cattle
agricultural and commercial exhibition.

Important newspapers are the Tapachultecan "El Orbe" and the Soconuscan "El
Diario del Sur"; radio can be received from both Mexico and Guatemala.

Important politicians, scientists, and artists were born in Tapachula, like
Fray Matías de Córdova and Amparo Montes. During the history of the city
several foreign cultures had influence in the rich history of the city. The
Germans came during the coffee boom and created German villages and
haciendas where their descendants live today, and haciendas like: Hamburgo,
Bremen, Germania, etc. still remind us of the first Saxons of the area. The
Japanese and the Chinese also left a strong influence in Tapachula, in the
cuisine and architecture. They came to construct railroads and were the
first Asian immigrants in Latin America. Italian, French and other expats
descendants still live along the Spanish, Mestizo and Indians of the region.

Migration

Tapachula is also known as the point at which the undocumented migrants from
Central America begin their trek northward in search of jobs, and a better
life. Before Hurricane Stan devastated the Soconusco region, a train system
carried large numbers of these migrants weekly to the north.

Metropolitan area

Tapachula has an extensive metropolitan zone that includes several suburbs
including beaches like Playa Linda, Puerto Madero, Viva Mexico a downtown
Tapachula and even a Cruise Harbor named Puerto Chiapas (2005). The postal
code for Tapachula is 30700.

Education

The city is an exemplary cultural hub with strong involvement from the
government of Mexico changing trends of literacy around this city. Although
there are not that many universities, most majors are offered from law and
accounting (UNACH, CEST), to medicine and civil engineering (IESCH,
Tecnologico de Tapachula), architecture and system engineer (UVG).

Puerto Madero is a former name of the current Puerto Chiapas.

Sebuah Pensil

Seorang anak bertanya kepada neneknya yang sedang menulis sebuah surat.
"Nenek lagi menulis tentang pengalaman kita ya? atau tentang aku?"
Mendengar pertanyaan si cucu, sang nenek berhenti menulis dan berkata kepada
cucunya,
"Sebenarnya nenek sedang menulis tentang kamu, tapi ada yang lebih penting
dari isi tulisan ini yaitu pensil yang nenek pakai."
"Nenek harap kamu bakal seperti pensil ini ketika kamu besar nanti" ujar si
nenek lagi.
Mendengar jawab ini, si cucu kemudian melihat pensilnya dan bertanya kembali
kepada si nenek ketika dia melihat tidak ada yang istimewa dari pensil yang
nenek pakai.
"Tapi nek sepertinya pensil itu sama saja dengan pensil yang lainnya." Ujar
si cucu.
Si nenek kemudian menjawab, "Itu semua tergantung bagaimana kamu melihat
pensil ini."
"Pensil ini mempunyai 5 kualitas yang bisa membuatmu selalu tenang dalam
menjalani hidup, kalau kamu selalu memegang prinsip-prinsip itu di dalam
hidup ini.
Si nenek kemudian menjelaskan 5 kualitas dari sebuah pensil.
"Kualitas pertama, pensil mengingatkan kamu kalo kamu bisa berbuat hal yang
hebat dalam hidup ini. Layaknya sebuah pensil ketika menulis, kamu jangan
pernah lupa kalau ada tangan yang selalu membimbing langkah kamu dalam hidup
ini. Kita menyebutnya tangan Tuhan, Dia akan selalu membimbing kita menurut
kehendakNya".
"Kualitas kedua, dalam proses menulis, nenek kadang beberapa kali harus
berhenti dan menggunakan rautan untuk menajamkan kembali pensil nenek.
Rautan ini pasti akan membuat si pensil menderita. Tapi setelah proses
meraut selesai, si pensil akan mendapatkan ketajamannya kembali. Begitu juga
dengan kamu, dalam hidup ini kamu harus berani menerima penderitaan dan
kesusahan, karena merekalah yang akan membuatmu menjadi orang yang lebih
baik".
"Kualitas ketiga, pensil selalu memberikan kita kesempatan untuk
mempergunakan penghapus, untuk memperbaiki kata-kata yang salah. Oleh karena
itu memperbaiki kesalahan kita dalam hidup ini, bukanlah hal yang jelek. Itu
bisa membantu kita untuk tetap berada pada jalan yang benar".
"Kualitas keempat, bagian yang paling penting dari sebuah pensil bukanlah
bagian luarnya, melainkan arang yang ada di dalam sebuah pensil. Oleh sebab
itu, selalulah hati-hati dan menyadari hal-hal di dalam dirimu".
"Kualitas kelima, adalah sebuah pensil selalu meninggalkan tanda/goresan.
Seperti juga kamu, kamu harus sadar kalau apapun yang kamu perbuat dalam
hidup ini akan meninggalkan kesan. Oleh karena itu selalulah hati-hati dan
sadar terhadap semua tindakan".

From mix sources.

Ilmu Tak Tertulis Suatu Abad

Oleh : Sujiwo Tejo
Saya pendukung calon presiden Jusuf Kalla pada pilpres yang lalu. Demi itu,
saya akhiri riwayat golput sejak pertama punya hak pilih pada era Soeharto.
Tetapi, saya menolak jika pengusutan kasus Bank Century diarahkan untuk
utamanya mendongkel kepresidenan SBY. Biarkan gerakan angket di DPR,
dukungan LSM, demi tegaknya keadilan. Janganlah sejak dini, aneka gerakan
ini diagendakan untuk penggulingan kekuasaan.
Ilmu tak tertulis mengajarkan, pangkat dan kedudukan cuma ngunduh wohing
pakarti. Keduanya buah dari kelakuan masa lampau dari yang bersangkutan
maupun masa lalu orangtua dan nenek moyangnya.
Ilmu tak tertulis juga mengajarkan, pemimpin adalah cermin masyarakatnya.
Keduanya jodoh ibarat suami-istri. Jika suami koruptor, hampir bisa
dipastikan istrinya orang yang korup pula. Kalaupun sang istri bukan
koruptor, karena belum punya pangkat dan kedudukan, setidaknya memiliki
sifat-sifat dasar koruptor. Sirik, rakus, iri, dengki, dendam. Bukankah itu
"Pancasila"-nya korupsi?
Ilmu tak tertulis juga mengajarkan, sebagian besar rakyat, termasuk saya,
mendoakan agar semua pejabat korup. Bawah sadar kita, bawah sadar "aku",
yakni ingsun, tak menaruh hormat kepada pemimpin miskin yang mobilnya kelas
Kijang seperti Baharuddin Lopa atau Sarwono Kusumaatmadja zaman dulu.
Padahal, Sastrajendra Hayuningrat dari pewayangan, salah satu molekul di
antara samudra ilmu tak tertulis, mengajarkan, doa paling manjur adalah
kehendak bawah sadar itu. Doa mujarab bukan yang terucap di mulut, terlintas
di pikiran maupun tebersit di hati. Doa paling cespleng adalah gerakan bawah
sadar kita yang, misalnya, tak menghargai istri pejabat dengan tas jelek,
tidak bermerek. Alias diam-diam membuat doa paling mustajab agar suaminya
korup.
Maka, gerakan angket kasus Bank Century, jika sejak awal diagendakan untuk
mendongkel pemimpin yang diduga korup, sama dengan mendongkel masyarakat itu
sendiri alias membuat kita berantakan dan bubar.
Mahkota raja
Ilmu tidak tertulis mengajarkan, sah seorang pemimpin berbuat kotor untuk
mencapai cita-cita bersama. Ini karena kepemimpinan ada dalam ranah praktis,
lahan kaum ksatria, weisya, eksekutif. Ini bukan tataran teori maupun ajang
pergulatan intelektual yang bisa bersih. Ini bukan arenanya kaum brahmana
yang maksimal kepraktisannya hanya berfungsi sebagai penasihat eksekutif.
Ini tataran yang seru. Ini tatarannya para pelaksana yang harus berhadapan
dengan jutaan manusia dengan berbagai perangai. Jadi bagaimana kita akan
bersetuju dengan gerakan mengusut kasus Bank Century jika sejak awal
diagendakan untuk menumbangkan pemimpin yang diduga kotor?
Ya, pemimpin mau tak mau mesti kotor. Maka Bung Karno pernah bilang strategi
saja tidak cukup. Diperlukan taktik. Tetapi, taktik yang perubahannya
relatif lama juga tidak cukup. Diperlukan siasat yang bisa berubah setiap
detik tergantung sikon. Dalam siasat itu, lebih-lebih pada zaman sekarang,
jer basuki mawa bea alias uang bicara.
Tak heran jika dalam pemilihan Ketua Umum Partai Golkar, calon yang tak
terpilih, Surya Paloh, tidak tegas mengatakan dirinya tidak mengeluarkan
biaya untuk perolehan suara. Ia hanya tersirat mengaku kalah kemampuan
finansial dari kubu Aburizal Bakrie dalam menerapkan jer basuki mawa bea
pada saat-saat terakhir sebelum pemilihan.
Itu baru lingkup partai. Terbayang jer basuki mawa bea sebesar apa lagi jika
seseorang meraih posisi puncak di negeri ini.
Sebenarnya dari kalangan ilmu tertulis, Sartre, sudah ada wanti-wanti,
kepemimpinan, baik cara pencapaiannya maupun cara menjalankannya setelah
kedudukan itu tercapai, tidak mungkin bersih. Secara puitis, Rendra pernah
menyadurnya dalam selarik sajak, "Tanpa tangan-tangan kita kotor, tak
mungkin kita ciptakan itu firdaus...".
Ilmu tak tertulis dari dunia pewayangan mengajarkan, Rahwana, simbol angkara
murka, sebenarnya sudah ingin bunuh diri setelah bertapa 50.000 tahun di
Gunung Gohkarno. Rahwana putus asa berwujud buruk dan sifat jahat. Tetapi,
dewa-dewa tidak mengizinkan. Alasannya, tanpa sisi gelap manusia, dunia tak
terselenggara dalam harmoni hayuning bawono. Maka Rahwana tak mati-mati.
Sukmanya selalu merasuki kaum pemimpin.
Ilmu tak tertulis dari kalangan teater tradisional seperti drama gong di
Bali, degung di Pasundan, atau ketoprak di Jawa mengajarkan, tiap raja
memerlukan mahkota yang indah. Sama halnya tiap pemimpin perlu diberi citra
yang bagus, karena pemimpin bukan rohaniwan yang mungkin suci, tetapi belum
tentu becus memimpin. Pemimpin itu pasti kotor atau setidaknya pernah kotor.
Entah itu kotor karena uang, karena lumuran darah dan air mata pihak yang
tak sepakat.
Jadi, sekali lagi, masihkah kita bersepakat dengan gerakan pengusutan Bank
Century jika niat utama, dan mungkin satu-satunya, penggulingan kekuasaan?
Kearifan tradisional
Ilmu tak tertulis begitu banyak. Itu bukan saja ilmu saat Menkominfo Tifatul
Sembiring membaca bahasa tubuh SBY dan dapat menyimpulkan sikapnya sebelum
SBY resmi mengumumkan sikapnya atas rekomedasi Tim 8. Tetapi, itu juga ilmu
yang digunakan masyarakat untuk sampai pada kesimpulan diam-diam, hanya
melalui bahasa tubuh, tentang siapa sebenarnya Komjen Susno Duadji.
Ilmu tak tertulis adalah semua ilmu yang tidak diajarkan di bangku sekolah
dan kuliah. Mengingat dunia akademis, bahkan untuk mengajarkan teater saja,
memilih teater yang ada naskah tertulisnya, maka yang diajarkan kebanyakan
teater Eropa. Lakon dan kearifan yang terkandung dalam teater tradisional,
tak tertulis, teronggok, dan nyaris punah.
Padahal, kearifan tak tertulis itu bisa memberi tahu kita mengapa reformasi
1998 gagal? Karena reformasi itu didorong seluruh atau di antara
"Pancasila"-nya korupsi: Sirik, rakus, iri, dengki, dendam. Bukan
pertama-tama didorong membuat perbaikan guna meraih kembali kejayaan
Nusantara.
Ilmu tak tertulis mengajarkan kita semua untuk waspada dan hati-hati agar tidak terseret gerakan pengusutan kasus Bank Century jika agendanya cuma penggulingan penguasa yang belum tentu terbukti bersalah. Ilmu tak tertulis hanya membuat kita terpanggil mendukung gerakan itu jika agendanya adalah meraih kembali kejayaan Nusantara guna perbaikan nasib kita bersama. Yang lain-lain, jika pun terjadi, hanya dampak sampingan. [Sujiwo Tejo, Dalang, Kompas, 05/12/09]

Motivasi: Tiga Langkah Menuju Hidup Bahagia

Apakah menurut Anda saya berbahagia? Ya, saya berbahagia. Apakah kehidupan
saya sempurna? Tidak. Dan ketidak sempurnaan kehidupan, adalah kesempurnaan
manusia. Terimalah.

Catatan ini (mestinya) adalah catatan pertama dari seluruh catatan yang
pernah saya buat. Entah mengapa, baru terpikirkan sekarang. Tidak mengapa,
apa yang lebih penting bagi kita adalah terus belajar tanpa henti. Termasuk,
jika harus mundur dulu beberapa langkah, agar langkah kita berikutnya
menjadi lebih berarti, lebih bermakna, dan lebih membahagiakan.

Ada tiga langkah yang bisa kita lakukan untuk mencapai kehidupan yang
berbahagia. Kemanapun kita mencari segala rumusan tentang "berbahagia", maka
sesungguhnya segala rumusan itu bercerita tentang tiga hal ini.

1. MEMAHAMI REALITAS TENTANG "REALITAS"

Apa yang kita sebut dengan "realitas" sesungguhnya terdiri dari dua macam
realitas, yaitu:

Realitas Eksternal
Realitas Internal

Realitas Eksternal adalah segala bentuk realitas yang terjadi pada diri dan
di luar diri kita. Realitas ini adalah segala fakta yang terjadi dan
berlangsung di dalam kehidupan kita.

Realitas Internal adalah bentuk-bentuk pemaknaan yang kita lakukan terkait
dengan Realitas Eksternal yang terjadi.

Apa yang paling penting adalah yang berikut ini.

Setiap kita bereaksi terhadap makna-makna yang kita bangun menjadi Realitas
Internal. Kita bersikap, mengambil keputusan, dan bertindak, dengan
mendasarkan diri pada Realitas Internal.

Jika Anda melihat satu bintang di langit suatu malam, Anda melihat sebuah
realitas keberadaan bintang. Bintang itu bagi Anda, benar-benar ada dan
nyata.

Jika bintang itu berjarak 10.000 tahun cahaya, maka apa yang Anda lihat
adalah gelombang cahaya yang sampai ke mata Anda, setelah berjalan menempuk
jarak selama 10.000 tahun lamanya. Kemudian, Anda memberi makna, bintang itu
"ada" di sana.

Jika bintang itu "nyatanya" sudah meledak 5.000 tahun yang lalu di angkasa
raya dan tinggal menjadi debu yang beterbangan saja, maka sesungguhnya apa
yang Anda lihat, adalah benda yang sesungguhnya sudah tidak ada.

Maka ketika Anda mengatakan melihat bintang, sangat mungkin realitas itu
adalah Realitas Internal, alias pemaknaan yang Anda berikan berdasarkan
hasil pengamatan mata fisik Anda.

Ketika Anda mengatakan bahwa bintang itu sebenarnya sudah tidak ada lagi
karena sudah meledak sejak 5.000 tahun yang lalu, maka realitas yang Anda
maksud adalah Realitas Eksternal, yang telah Anda maknai menjadi Realitas
Internal dengan pikiran dan hati.

Pada realitas yang manakah Anda semestinya bereaksi? Apakah Anda mau tertipu
oleh mata fisik Anda, atau Anda lebih memilih untuk mempercayai mata hati?

Realitas Eksternal berlangsung dan terjadi pada diri dan di luar diri kita.
Realitas Internal berlangsung di dalam pikiran dan di dalam hati.

Dan jika kita memang merasa manusia, manakah yang lebih kita utamakan?

Tuan A, sangat menyukai saya. Dan Tuan B, sangat membenci saya. Dua fenomena
itu, suka dan benci, bisa terjadi pada saat yang bersamaan terkait dengan
suatu obyek, yaitu saya.

Maka perhatikanlah, bahwa sikap dari masing-masing Tuan A dan Tuan B,
sebenarnya tidak terlalu obyektif mengikuti kenyataan yang ada pada saya,
melainkan lebih didominasi oleh makna-makna yang dibangun oleh Tuan A dan
Tuan B sendiri.

Dengan kata lain, Tuan A dan Tuan B memiliki Realitas Internal-nya
masing-masing tentang saya. Dan keduanya, memberi makna, mengambil sikap,
memilih keputusan, dan bertindak dengan mendasarkan diri pada Realitas
Internal itu.

Apapun yang mereka sikapi, putuskan, dan tindaklanjuti terkait dengan saya,
tidak pernah didasarkan pada saya atau karena saya, melainkan pada atau
karena Realitas Internal mereka tentang saya.

Jika Tuan B berkepentingan untuk merubah rasa tidak sukanya pada saya, apa
yang perlu dilakukannya adalah bukan merubah saya, melainkan merubah
Realitas Internal-nya tentang saya.

Jika saya berkepentingan untuk membuat Tuan B menjadi suka pada saya, apa
yang perlu saya lakukan adalah membantu Tuan B, mengkreasi Realitas Internal
yang lebih baik tentang saya. Caranya, dengan menciptakan Realitas Eksternal
saya, yang saya anggap paling membantu Tuan B untuk menciptakan Realitas
Internal-nya yang lebih baik tentang saya.

Jika Tuan B dan saya berkepentingan untuk saling menyukai, apa yang perlu
kami lakukan berdua adalah, mengkreasi Realitas Internal kami masing-masing,
yang kami anggap mendukung kami berdua, dan menciptakan Realitas Eksternal
kami masing-masing, yang kami anggap mendukung kami berdua, untuk saling
kami pertukarkan di antara kami, sehingga berpengaruh baik terhadap
pembentukan Realitas Internal kami masing-masing.

Singkatnya, adalah lebih baik jika Anda terus mengupayakan diri makin
terampil dalam menciptakan dan mengelola Realitas Internal. Sebab, Realitas
Internal Andalah yang lebih banyak akan menjadi realitas kehidupan.

2. MEMILIH REALITAS

Jika Anda sudah menyadari bahwa realitas kehidupan Anda dibangun oleh dua
macam realitas, dan salah satunya ternyata jauh lebih berpengaruh bagi
kehidupan Anda, maka kini Anda punya pilihan:

A. Menerima hidup apa adanya, dengan sekedar menjalani Realitas Eksternal
dan menciptakan Realitas Internal tanpa pola, tanpa arah, dan terseok-seok
ke sana kemari. Dengan ini, Anda adalah obyek dari kehidupan. Anda dipimpin
oleh dunia luar. Dan itu, tidak selalu sesuai dengan cita-cita dan harapan
Anda.

B. Menerima hidup dengan penuh makna. Realitas Eksternal yang terjadi pada
diri Anda, Anda maknai dengan cara-cara yang membuat Anda bisa mencapai rasa
nyaman dan bahagia. Anda membangun Realitas Internal dengan pola, arah, dan
perjalanannya, yang akan makin menyamankan dan membahagiakan Anda. Bonusnya
adalah kedewasaan, kematangan, kepantasan, dan pertumbuhan.

Ketika Anda dilahirkan ke dunia, modal awal Anda adalah kemampuan memilih.
Kemudian Anda tumbuh besar dengan kemampuan itu.

Orang bijak, pemimpin dan tokoh besar, buku-buku yang baik, orang-orang
terbaik, para nabi, kitab suci, dan bahkan Tuhan yang Maha Menciptakan Anda,
selalu mengajari Anda untuk terampil memilih realitas.

Jika Anda terampil, maka Realitas Eksternal adalah bahan baku untuk
membangun Realitas Internal. Segala sesuatu tidak diciptakan dengan sia-sia.
Semuanyanya punya arti, maksud, dan makna. Semuanya adalah bahan baku untuk
kebahagiaan Anda. Dan bahagia, adalah Realitas Internal.

3. MEMELIHARA DAN MENJAGA PILIHAN

Setiap pilihan, selalu punya konsekuensi. Di antara konsekuensi yang paling
berat adalah gangguan atau distorsi yang akan membuat Anda terpengaruh dan
melenceng dari perjalanan menuju kenyamanan dan kebahagiaan.

Maka, dua hal berikut inilah yang perlu Anda asah selalu, sebagai bekal
untuk menjadi manusia yang terampil mengelola Realitas Internal.

A. Selalu menaikkan dan meninggikan nilai dan tingkat kepentingan misi mulia
Anda.

B. Selalu menurunkan dan merendahkan nilai dan tingkat kepentingan berbagai
fenomena yang menjadi masalah, kendala, hambatan, persoalan, gangguan, dan
rintangan yang menghalangi jalan Anda menuju rasa nyaman dan bahagia.

Jika orang menganggap bahwa hidup itu adalah seni, maka seni itu adanya pada
tiga hal ini, memahami realitas, memilih realitas dan memelihara dan menjaga
pilihan realitas. Maka Anda, akan menjadi manusia yang menguasai kehidupan.
Anda bukan korban, Anda adalah pemimpin. Pemimpin kehidupan.

Semoga bermanfaat.

Ikhwan Sopa
Master Trainer E.D.A.N.
Artikel lain:
http://www.motivasi-komunikasi-leadership.co.cc

Huatulco, Mexico

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Huatulco (pronounced wah-TOOL-co) ("Bahías de Huatulco"), centered around
the town of La Crucecita, is a tourist development in Mexico. It is located
on the Pacific coast in the state of Oaxaca. Huatulco's tourism industry is
centered around its nine bays thus the name Bahias de Huatulco but has since
been unofficially shortened to simply Huatulco. You will find a wide variety
of accommodations from rooms for rent, small economy hotels, luxury
oceanfront villas, vacation condominiums, bed and breakfasts, along with
several luxury resorts standing on or near the shores of Tangolunda Bay. The
Camino Real Zaashila, Quinta Real Huatulco, Las Brisas, Dreams Resort & Spa
(Formerly the Gala hotel) and the Barceló are examples of the most popular
larger resorts in the area.

Geography

Huatulco is located in the state of Oaxaca where the foothills of the Sierra
Madre del Sur Mountains meet the Pacific Ocean approximately 500 km south of
Acapulco, Guerrero. Huatulco is divided into four main districts. Tangolunda
is the area where the upscale resorts are located; Santa Cruz is a small
town with the main marina and Santa Cruz beach; La Crucecita, is another
small town just inland from the beach area that provides support services to
the resort, and Chahué is an area between Santa Cruz and Tangolunda.

The Bahias de Huatulco, (Bays of Huatulco) are actually made up of a series
of nine bays and numerous small coves stretching along 26 kilometers of
jagged coastline, including 36 white sandy beaches. The most centrally
located bay is Bahía de Santa Cruz, which is just south La Crucecita. It is
also the center of commercial and tourist activities, with a large pier
where yachts and cruise ships dock. Many resort offerings are found here
such as hotels, craft shops, discothèques, bars, restaurants, excursion
agencies, sailboat excursions as well as scuba diving, snorkeling and jet
skis for rent. The Capilla de Santa Cruz is where many weddings and baptisms
are celebrated next to the sea. Playa Santa Cruz, is the best known of the
beaches here. It is 250 meters long, with soft white sand and turquoise blue
water.


Heading east from Santa Cruz are the bays of Bahía Chahué, Bahía Tangolunda
and Bahía Conejos. These are the more developed areas of Huatulco. Bahía
Chahué is 2 km east of Santa Cruz and its name means "fertile or moist land"
in Zapotec. It has a marina for yachts and 3 principal beaches; Chahué,
Esperanza and Tejón. Even though these are wide beaches, their moderate surf
makes them less-visited than those in Santa Cruz. Three km east of Chahué is
Bahía Tangolunda, which has 5 beaches; Ventura, Manzanillo, Tornillo,
Tangolunda and Rincón Sabroso. Here the water varies between cobalt blue and
emerald green. Most of the better hotels are on this bay. Bahía Conejos is 4
km east of Tangolunda and has various residential complexes. The mouth of
the Río (River) Copalita is here and alongside of it is a long zone of
beaches. To the east of this bay are beaches stretching all the way to the
Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Some of the best surf waves in Mexico are to be
found from these point breaks. Playa El Mojon and Barra de la Cruz are two
of the best and easiest to access. Playa El Mojon has some gorgeous
residences that can be rented out, a great location to explore the surf
breaks further East.

To the west of Santa Cruz, the beaches are less developed; in fact most of
this area belongs to the Parque Nacional (National Park) Huatulco. This is a
protected area (Área Natural Protegida) created in 1998. It contains 6,375
hectares of lowland jungle and 5,516 hectares of marine areas, encompassing
the bays of Bahía Maguey, Bahía Órgano, Bahía Cacaluta, Bahía Chachacual and
Bahía San Agustín. In these bays live the most important coral communities
of the Mexican Pacific. 723 species of animals live in the park as well as a
number of species of colorful fish, and it is open to scuba diving,
bird-watching and hiking. In 2006, the park received certification from
Green Globe, mostly due to it management of potable and waste water, the
first resort in the Americas to do so, and the third in the world. Bahía
Órgano is named for the cacti that grow there. It is 240 meters long and
only accessible by boat. Bahía Maguey is about 1/2 km long and is accessible
by car. Both these bays have fine, white sand and waters of various colors
of blue and green. Bahía Cacaluta and Bahía Chachacual are only accessible
by boat, but there are absolutely no human constructions of any kind. Bahía
San Agustín is the furthest west and the largest of all the bays. It has 1
km of beaches between 20 and 80 meters wide. There are also small islets
inside the bay itself.

Climate

Sunshine can be expected about 330 days a year with the average temperature
of 28C. The dry season extends from December to May and the rainy season is
from June to November. The amount of precipitation has a definite effect on
the local vegetation, being brownish in the dry season and very green in the
rainy season.

Development of the resort area

In 1984, FONATUR (Fondo Nacional de Turismo), a government agency dedicated
to the development of tourism in Mexico, acquired 21,000 hectares of land to
develop a tourism center, similar to that in Cancun. The existing population
was relocated to Santa María Huatulco. The plan resulted in the improvement
of roadways and other infrastructure. It also has populated areas mixed with
"green zones" to make the area more ecologically-friendly. In fact, this is
one of the cleanest developments in Mexico.

In addition to the beaches, one can explore and shop in the small
communities of Bahias de Huatulco, such as Santa Cruz, La Crucecita, or old
Santa María Huatulco (the municipal seat). When doing so, one can travel
between the communities by bus or taxi. The entire area has a "small town"
feel about it and is rarely crowded with tourists with the exception of the
Christmas and Semana Santa holiday periods.

About 80% of all tourism in Bahias de Huatulco is domestic in nature. Only
about 20% of Huatulco's tourism is foreign, mainly because international air
access is limited. Bahias de Huatulco has a small international airport just
20 minutes from the main resorts in Tangolunda Bay. The peak season for
foreign tourism is typically from December through April.

Nearby coffee plantations

There are a number of coffee plantations which are still in operation and
give tours, including Finca (farm) Las Nieves, Finca Monte Carlos, Finca
Margaritas, Finca El Pacífico and Finca La Gloria. Finca El Pacífico is
known for the organic coffee it produces called "Pluma Hidalgo," and it is
surrounded by waterfalls and ravines. Finca La Gloria is known for the
butterfly sanctuary "Mariposorio Dain Biguid", where dozens of species of
butterflies can be seen and the "Llano Grande Falls". The Río Copalitilla
has its source here as well.

Transportation

Despite the improvements in infrastructure, Bahias de Huatulco is not as
easy to get to as other resorts like Cancun. The drive south from Acapulco
on Federal Highway 200 has over 300 speed bumps (Topes). Driving from Oaxaca
city, the state capital is not any easier because Highway 135 is also full
of speed bumps. Highway 190 has fewer but it's a much longer road with many
curves due to the mountainous terrain.

Bahias de Huatulco has an airport, the Bahías de Huatulco International
Airport, which is served nationally by Mexicana, Interjet, and Magnicharters
from other Mexican airports. Internationally , , and First Choice fly here
from the U.S., Canada and Europe.

Large portions of the Bahias de Huatulco resort area are located within an
ecological zone"; much of the area is protected from future development, and
the area is serviced by modern water and sewage treatment plants so that no
waste goes into its pristine bays. Huatulco has been awarded the Green Globe
certification, and it is the only resort in Mexico to receive this
prestigious award (Green Globe is the worldwide benchmarking and
certification system for the travel and tourism industry across the triple
bottom line of economic, social and environmental management).

History

Legends say the Toltecs and Quetzalcoátl came from this area. Quetzacoátl,
according to a later legend, set an enormous and indestructible cross, which
has never been found. Various people have passed through this area,
including the Chatmos, the Zapotecs and the Mexicas.

After the Spanish Conquest, Huatulco thrived as a port under Hernán Cortés'
control serving as a vantage point for Spanish galleons and a distribution
centre for supplies on the Pacific coast. The latter half of the 16th
Century saw Huatulco attacked by Francis Drake and Thomas Cavendish - both
of whom left their prints on the region's history and legends that continue
to this day.

Vicente Guerrero was executed by firing squad here in 1831.

Until resort development began in the 1980s, Huatulco was little known except as a coffee-growing area.

Acapulco de Juárez, Mexico

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Acapulco (Officially known as Acapulco de Juárez) is a city, and major sea
port in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific coast of Mexico, 300 kilometres
(190 mi) southwest from Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep,
semi-circular bay. It is a port of call for shipping and cruising lines
running between Panama and San Francisco, California, United States. As of
the 2005 census, the population of the urbanized area was 616,394, while
that of the administrative municipality was 717,766 people. The municipality
which has an area of 1,882.6 square kilometres (726.9 sq mi), includes
numerous small localities outside of the city. The tourist resort city of
Acapulco is the largest city in the state, far larger than the state capital
Chilpancingo.

The name "Acapulco" comes from the Nahuatl language, and means "place of big
reeds".

Geography

The town was built on a narrow strip of low ground, scarcely half a mile
(800 m) wide, between the shoreline and the lofty mountains that encircle
the bay to the north and east. Access to the town from inland is through the
mountains via a 2-kilometre (1.2 mi) tunnel that was constructed in the
1990s. A passage through the mountains, called Abra de San Nicolas, has been
constructed, and it allows cooling sea breezes to reach the city.

Climate

Acapulco's climate is Tropical wet and dry (Köppen climate classification
Aw), with a marked dry season in the winter and warm to hot temperatures
year-round. Precipitation is heavily concentrated in summer, while winter is
mostly dry and sunny.

History

Pre-Columbian Era

Archeological evidence shows that Acapulco has been inhabited since before
3000 BC. The first vestiges of human presence consist of figures and pottery
made of clay, stone, and ceramics. The pieces found in the coastal region of
Puerto Marqués are the earliest known ceramics from Mexico, and they could
be the oldest in Mesoamerica.

Cave paintings from 1200 BC and petroglyphs have been discovered on Pie de
la Cuesta. They indicate the early presence of fishing settlements, with
agriculture and hunting as secondary activities. In a mountainside near
Palma Sola, situated in the Veladero National Park, calendaric beads and 18
giant granite stones engraved with anthropomorphic, zoomorphic and geometric
details have been found. They were created between 200 BC and AD 600. During
this period, nomadic tribes from the northeast of Mexico entered what is now
the state of Guerrero. Evidence of their presence has been found near the
city.

Spanish colonial period

The first reference to Acapulco in the history of the Viceroyalty of New
Spain was made as early as 1519, by Bernal Díaz del Castillo in his
Historia Verdadera de la Conquista de Nueva España" (True History of the
Conquest of New Spain). Spanish captain Hernán Cortés sent several
expeditionary groups to the Mexican Pacific coasts in order to find a new
commercial route towards Asia. The expedition led by Francisco Chico
discovered Acapulco on December 13, 1521, Santa Lucía's day, after whom he
named the new found bay. Later, in 1523, Juan Rodríguez Villafuerte led
Zacatula's expedition, arriving first at Zihuatanejo, where he built the
first shipyard of the New Spain. Then, after producing several caravels and
brigantines, he sailed to Acapulco, where he formally took possession of the
port in the name of the Kings of Spain, driving in the sand the cross and
the staff with the banner of Castille and Aragón.

In 1532, by royal order, Acapulco became a direct dependency of the Spanish
Crown, receiving the name of Ciudad de los Reyes (City of the Kings). Later,
in 1550, Carlos V, King of Spain and Emperor of Germany and the Indias
Occidentales (Western Indies), promoted it to historical city by royal
decree.

It soon became a major port for Spanish ships carrying spices gathered from
the Asia-Pacific region.

For more than 256 years, a trading movement, known as the Manila-Acapulco
Galleon, set sail from Acapulco to the Philippine Islands. Its trade started
an annual merchant fair in Acapulco where traders bargained for the galleon
s cargo of spices, silks, porcelain, ivory, and lacquerware.

Acapulco's yearly treasure soon attracted pirates from both England and the
Netherlands, who had sailed from the Caribbean sea. In 1579, Francis Drake
attacked the coast of Acapulco, but failed to capture the Spanish Galleons;
but in 1587, off the coast of Cabo San Lucas, Thomas Cavendish seized the
Santa Anna, taking most of the treasure.

After a Dutch fleet invaded Acapulco in 1615, the Spaniards rebuilt their
fort, which they christened Fort San Diego in 1617. The fort was destroyed
by an earthquake in 1776 and was rebuilt by 1783. The Mexican War of
Independence, between 1810 to 1821, put a permanent stop to the
Manila-Acapulco galleon trade.

The Golden era of Acapulco

In 1933 Carlos Barnard started the first section of Hotel El Mirador, with
12 rooms on the cliffs of La Quebrada.

The principal architect and visionary for the development of Acapulco was
Miguel Alemán Valdés, as president of Mexico from 1946 to 1952. The main
avenue that runs along the Acapulco Bay is named after him.

In 1949 Carlos Barnard started the "La Perla" restaurant, adjoining his
Hotel El Mirador at La Quebrada.

Teddy Stauffer (Mr. Acapulco) was also important. He created the first
discothèque, "The Tequila a Go-Go", and the most glamorous hotel at that
time (Villa Vera).

Present day Acapulco

In the early 1960s Acapulco had a population of about 50,000.

Acapulco has hosted yachting as part of the 1968 Summer Olympics. The city
was devastated by Hurricane Pauline in 1997.

Transportation

From the U.S., many airlines now fly to Acapulco Airport year-round. While
in the city, there are many buses and taxi services one can take to get from
place to place, but most of the locals choose to walk to their destinations.
However, an important mode of transportation is the government subsidized
Colectivo' cab system. These cabs cost 10 pesos per person to ride, but they
are not private. The driver will pick up more passengers as long as seats
are available, and will transport them to their destination based on first
come first served rules. The colectivos each travel a designated area of the
city, the three main ones being Costera, Colosio, Coloso, or a mixture of
the three. Coloso cabs mainly travel to old Acapulco. Colosio cabs travel
through most of the tourist area of Acapulco. Costera cabs drive up and down
the coast of Acapulco, which is where most of the hotels for visitors are,
but also includes some of old Acapulco. Where a driver will take you is
partly up to his choice. Some are willing to travel to the other designated
areas, especially during slow periods of the day.

The bus system is highly complex, and can be rather confusing to an outsider
As far as transportation goes, it is the cheapest form other than walking
in Acapulco. The most expensive buses have air conditioning, while the
cheaper buses do not. For tourists, the Acapulco city government has
established a system of yellow buses with Acapulco! painted on the side of
them. These buses are not for tourists only, but are certainly the nicest
and most uniform of the bus systems. These buses travel the tourist section
of Acapulco, driving up and down the coast. There are buses with specific
routes and destinations, generally written on their windshields or shouted
out by a barker riding in the front seat. Perhaps the most unusual thing
about the privately operated buses is the fact that they are all highly
decorated and personalized, with decaling and home made interior designs
that range from comic book scenes, to adult themes, and even to "Hello Kitty
themes.

Attractions

Since 1934 the La Quebrada Cliff Divers have performed their impressive jumps into the shallow water and dangerous tides that form in the bottom part of La Quebrada. The Acapulco cliff divers were featured regularly on the weekend sports program ABC's Wide World of Sports in the United States during the 1970s.