On May 3, 1535, Hernán Cortés entered the waters of a peaceful bay bordered by mangroves, set foot on land.
Where he took possession of the site on behalf of the Spanish Crown, giving it the name of Santa Cruz. The conqueror came to confirm the reports of his captains who had explored the region a few years before, attracted by the legend of an island populated only by women and rich in pearls and gold, called California.
He found the pearls, so many and so beautiful that women and gold had to wait. The news of the pearls unleashed a series of historical events that still reverberate in this quiet bay that today we call La Paz. The man who had conquered Mexico failed in his attempt to colonize this place, and it was not until 1720 that a permanent settlement was successfully founded. The extreme heat, the shortage of water and the difficulties of supplying from the countercoast, factors that Cortés could not overcome, remain the same, and the people of La Paz who wandered along the boardwalk, walking through the place where he disembarked, know well that what defeated conquistador gives a very special character to this city and its inhabitants. Yes, it is hot in summer, water is very scarce and almost everything we consume is brought from other parts, but we live well, the people are good and friendly, we say good morning in the street and the calm waters of our Bahia delights us by reflecting the lighted sunsets that, like pearls, have made us famous.
Geographical isolation has given us a strong identity. We live in the desert surrounded by the sea, and when we go out in a boat we find ourselves in the sea surrounded by desert. It has always been this way, and this has made us different from other Mexicans.
In addition, we are a very complex and tasty genetic cocktail: Spanish, English, Germans, French, Chinese, Japanese, Italians, Turks, Lebanese and many more arrived in La Paz attracted by the pearl trade, and stayed. Opening the telephone directory clearly illustrates the above, and the faces of the people of La Paz are an eloquent map of our origins.
The natural beauty that surrounds us is world renowned, we are the door to the Sea of Cortez; its islands, beaches and fauna are in front of us. From the boardwalk it is common to see dolphins a few meters away; further out, whales, stingrays and fish delight divers and kayakers. Nature-seeking tourism finds it here in spectacular abundance. Walking the laurel-shaded streets of India give the visitor a taste of this friendly and quiet city. Music is heard; in the square in front of the cathedral, people play lottery games under the trees, delicious aromas are perceived that invite you to savor seafood of freshness and legendary quality. We are not in a hurry, the place where we live suggests that we take the necessary time to delight ourselves with everything that surrounds us and distinguishes us. When someone visits us we invite them to do the same.
When we leave we remember our city in the beautiful words of an old song: "La Paz, port of illusion, like a pearl enclosed by the sea, that's how my heart guards you."
