OLD ZAPATA had the same history, but the United States government provided the funds, letting the residents rebuild to each one’s fancy. Thus, the growth of the two communities has been along quite different lines.
A little north of the Valley main street is EDINBURG, with a school district of nine hundred and forty-five square miles! This is the county seat of Hidalgo County and the home of Pan-American College. Each September the Whitewing Dove Fiesta is held.
Many millions of trees shade the Valley. Belle of them all is the Royal Poinciana, a gorgeous, flowering tree with deep red blossoms. More than fifteen varieties of palm trees thrive here, ranging from the three or four foot ornamental palmetto to the stately date and the majestic one hundred foot tall Royal Palms. To plant a palm is to insure a share in eternity, since palms are said to live forever.
Dozens of varieties of fruit and vegetables abound in the silt enriched sandy loam of the Valley. When the citrus orchards are in bloom, the entire region is scented with a delicate perfume-like aroma. Tropical hues are picked up in the native growth and transferred to everyday dress, making all a harmonious whole.
The Valley, actually the delta of the Rio Grande, is young. Falcon Dam, calculated to wipe out the threat of drought and to insure an ample water supply downstream, is attracting new industry. The Valley welcomes the stranger with delight. Most families were strangers, too, twenty or thirty years ago.
Matadors and Promenaders
It’s like having your cake and eating it, too! Residents and tourists on Padre Island and in the Valley can enjoy the indulgences of modern life in growing cities. Yet, if they want to take a step into the past to arrest the tempo of contemporary living, they can cross the border into Mexico’s picturesque towns and villages. These border towns are the gateways to the great Mexican cities of Monterrey, Saltillo, Guadalajara, Mexico City and other interior points. Visits to the border cities are uncomplicated by red tape. Short stops are necessary at customs offices at both sides of the river.
Across the Rio Grande from Brownsville is one of the largest border towns, MATAMOROS, a wealthy metropolis of one hundred thousand people. Here, there is a beautiful modern residential section. THE FRENCH OPERA HOUSE was built a century ago at the whim of Empress Carlotta, during the French occupation of Mexico. The unusual floor was constructed to be tilted so all could see the stage, or levelled when the building served as a ballroom. As one moves off the International Bridge at Matamoros, the elaborate mansions of the Mexican cotton and oil barons dominate the landscape with their architectural blends of ultra modern and traditional Spanish design. Hundreds of curio shops invite the tourists to buy anything from a live goat to a five hundred dollar pair of boots. As in many Mexican cities, the life of the community throbs around the market place, which is afire with color. There is always activity, with strolling musicians and romantic couples. Higher than any of the other buildings, the ancient cathedrals tower mystically over the town’s gaiety. In Matamoros are diversions distinctly different from any of those in the United States; exciting cockfights, famous matadors performing in the Plaza de Toros; there are concerts, attractive night clubs with excellent entertainment, restaurants serving wildgame dinners. A menu, in some of the border night clubs, for a tab of about two dollars per person, includes venison, cabrito (young goat), quail, wild duck, white-wing dove, guacamole salad, beans, fried rice and hot peppers. Then there are traditional promenades of young people in the plaza too. An afternoon at a bullfight is an unforgettable mixture of tradition and fearful thrills as matadors of Mexico and Spain compare thrusts.
PROGRESSO AND NUEVO PROGRESSO are immediately south of the Valley cities of Mercedes and Weslaco. Here cafes and curio shops beckon the tourists. A few miles to the south the city of RIO BRAVO, with its dirt streets and primitive peoples, offers a glimpse into a way of life that is rapidly vanishing.