Welcome to Mexican Sights.
If you stumbled upon this page looking for the best taco spots or a guide to the beaches of Cancún, you might be in for a surprise. But please, stay a while—what we are looking at here is arguably just as fascinating.
What is this blog?
Mexican Sights is the digital notebook of my MSc research. It is a space where I document the rapid transformation of Querétaro, one of the most dynamic metropolitan areas in central Mexico.
The Story
Cities are living organisms. They grow, they breathe, and they consume. My work focuses on understanding how this growth happens. I look at the blurred lines between the city and the countryside—the “peri-urban” zones—where industrial parks meet traditional agricultural lands (ejidos).
My Approach: Two Perspectives
As the tagline suggests, this research relies on two very different points of view:
- Remote Sensing (The view from above): I use satellite imagery to map changes over time. I look at how the landscape has shifted from the 1980s to today, decoding pixels to understand urban sprawl.
- Fieldwork (The view from the ground): Maps tell us where changes happen, but they don’t always tell us why. That is why I go to the field—to walk the territory, observe the reality behind the data, and listen to the stories of the places that are disappearing or transforming.
Why this blog?
Research can be a solitary and opaque process. I created this site to share the journey, not just the final destination. Whether you are a local resident, a fellow researcher, or just someone curious about how our world is changing, I want to make these complex geographical dynamics accessible to everyone.
I will be posting updates on my progress, sharing “behind the scenes” maps, and discussing the challenges of studying a city that never sleeps.
Welcome to the field.
Jean-Baptiste Dri