Mexican culture is also bound up in its food, even to the extent that the government has asked UNESCO to declare Mexican cuisine a Masterpiece of the Intangible Heritage of Humanity. In reality, spicy food is not for everyone, but hotels and resorts accommodate their guests while still serving Mexican food cooked for the local palate. Mexico is a year-round destination, but for obvious reasons, peak season for the low-altitude coastal areas is winter. On the other hand, plateaus and high mountains cover more than two-thirds of the country. In those areas, the climate varies widely, but with cooler nights and very cold winters. For the Caribbean coast, hurricanes can occur in late summer and early fall, a fact of life for the Caribbean islands and some U.S. coastal areas.

Eat Mexican specialties. If you are venturesome about food, try insect tacos. They are stuffed with grasshoppers, maguey worms or ant roe and are served with beans and guacamole. Or, look for a variation on that: maguey worms in salsa or fried grasshoppers, also served in tacos. (Learn to read these menu items in Spanish before you leave home!)

Participate in a half marathon that takes you from Puerto Vallarta to Nuevo Vallarta.

Get a close-up look at the Mayan ruins you have seen in photos. Make one choice the Mayan ceremonial center of Palenque, and that will take you to Chiapas, a state that is less Europeanized than most of Mexico. After surveying the ruins, hike in the surrounding Palenque National Park.

Go to a bullfight. Not many places in the world you can see this national event.

Practice kite surfing at Playa del Carmen; go mountain biking or paragliding at Puebla; kayak in the lagoons of Cancun, or, make that parasailing, hang gliding or bungee jumping at Puerto Vallarta. In fact, each activity is available in more than one place.

Climb one of these volcanoes southeast of Mexico City: Iztaccihuatl, Orizaba or Popocatepetl. They range in height from 17,373 to 18,700 feet. (Popocatepetl has been known to act up, and at such times is off limits for climbing.)

In Acapulco, take your pick: bungee jumping, jet skiing, waterskiing, touring the bay by speedboat. Or, try the resort’s Skycoaster, a ride that swings you back and forth like a pendulum.

Take a hot-air balloon ride over any of several beach areas or colonial cities.

Board the Chihuahua-Pacifico train for the fabled Copper Canyon trip. You will travel at 7,920 feet above sea level, then descend through canyons, tunnels and ravines for your view of the spectacular Copper Canyon. The train crosses 37 bridges and passes through 86 tunnels.

Get married in Oaxaca; have the service performed by a shaman. Will the union last?

Attend Day of the Dead celebrations on the island of San Juan Janitizio in Lake Patzcuaro in the state of Michoacan. This is said to be the most beautiful of the celebrations, which occur on Nov. 2 across the country to welcome the dead back to the world of the living for one day. Mexico City’s observances are high on the list of memorable events, too.

Learn to grind corn for tortillas, or make tamales and mole sauces and even fried grasshoppers in cooking classes in Oaxaca.

Plan a sportfishing trip at Mazatlan.

Go to Mexico from California by schooner on a voyage of several days, to allow time for diving, dolphin spotting, fishing, kayaking, surfing — or just enjoying the breezes.

Hunt black buck antelope, elk (or wapiti), red deer and white-tailed deer in the northern border states of Coahuila or Tamaulipas. A license is required and the size of game herds is controlled.

Stay in one of the historic haciendas that have been converted into hotels.

Enjoy mariachi music. In Mexico City, listen for it at the Plaza de Garibaldi, which is called a mariachi plaza.

Go whale watching in Baja California.

Visit one or more of Mexico’s much-vaunted colonial cities. Guanajuato is a particular cultural treasure because its mines once produced one-third of the world’s silver; clearly, some of the riches were spent locally. Also, see Campeche for its fortifications for protection from pirates, Puebla for its wedding-cake churches and Zacatecas for its outstanding cathedral.

Shop for silver in the colonial cities or anywhere you see it offered.

Spend time at a spa and sample treatments based on traditional, pre-Hispanic methods.

Take a spiritual journey to Teotihuacan, ancient home of the Toltecs, and to points beyond.

Spend serious time at the National Museum of Anthropology, the most important of Mexico City’s many museums.

Play golf at any of a number of resorts throughout the country.

For more information, consult the Mexico Tourist Board at www.visitmexico.com

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