Germansrgeniuses:
It seems like you require an urgent update on immigration issues in Mexico.
While being born in Moscow (Russian dad, British mom), when the USSR was already on the verge of collapse, I am not a Russian citizen anymore.
You would perhaps be surprised of how huge Mexico City is, and the numbers of people from all over the world living here are MASSIVE.
The Russian immigration to Mexico City was calculated around 65,000 people only in 2003. Of the several Philarmonic orchestras of Mexico City, I can tell you at least half of the musicians on each one of such orchestras are Russians (or coming from other former soviet republics).
Furthermore, do you know where the Yucatan peninsula is located? See the map of Mexico and you will see the country has a "hook" kind of shape. Well, the Yucatan peninsula would be the "sharp" end of the hook. All this to tell you, far more Cubans flee Mr. Castro´s private property to Mexico rather than to Florida. Curiously you never see that in the news. Mexico City is far more distant from La Habana than Yucatan is.
Regarding your question on who Hefestión and Cratero are.
One of my favorite history characters is Alexandros III Makedonon (Alexander the Great in english, Alejandro Magno in Spanish, etc.)
I have lots of historical books on Alexander, as well as a few excellent novels. My spanish has improved dramatically in recent months, then I came across a very good library here and bought me a novel (2 volumes) on Alexander; the author is a German guy: Gisbert Haefs.
Hefestión was the alleged lover of Alexander. Virtually of his same age, and also part of the macedonian nobility; also educated by Aristotle along with Alexander and the other boys of the macedonian nobility.
Crátero was also of the same age of Alexander, and became an officer in Alexander´s army throughout their amazing expedition to Asia.
Mr. Haefs depicts Hefestión as an arrogant wimp; the macedonian infantry (of peasants and sheperds) were nothing to him; just a bunch of filthy illiterates.
The other side of the coin was Cratero (Craterus in English); although being part of the inner circle of Alexander, he was very close to the troops. The macedonian infantry loved him for sharing the bonfire with them, eating with them.
Then Mr Haefs tells it was a common said for the macedonian troops: "Preferible una marcha forzada con Cratero a un banquete con Hefestión", which can be roughly transltated as:
"Preferable to have a forced march with Craterus than a banquet with Hephastion".
Linear Mode
