Guadalajara school kids. Award winning photograph by Paul Goldfinger. ©
By Paul Goldfinger, MD, FACC
Perhaps you are wondering why I was in Guadalajara instead of Acapulco or Puerto Vallarta. Guadalajara is the capital of the state of Jalisco, in the Pacific western region. It is a fine city with great restaurants, shopping and friendly people; and it is also the home of the Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara: UAG School of Medicine, where many Americans attend medical school.
I was a visiting professor (cardiology) there and I got to lecture in a large auditorium with a glass booth high up in the back where they did simultaneous translation. That was good for me, because my Spanish was limited to a few phrases like, “Mas Dos Equis por favor” (which means, “Another ‘Two X’s‘ beer please”). I had reason to suspect those translations because, when I launched a one-liner, only the Americans laughed — they were the ones without earphones. Maybe it’s about how you tell a joke.
In the photo, I approached a group of school kids, and they immediately morphed into the Marx Brothers. This is one of my favorite photographs and it was published.
Guadalajara is where mariachi music was invented. It is fun and lively, but when you are in that area, it seems like wherever you go, the mariachi follow. “Jalisco, Jalisco” is, of course, played a lot in that city.