The Alleyway of the México neighborhood is the heart, what they call the nerve center of the place; the most conflictive, the most prone to criminal acts. At least, that's what some people say. But it is not like that, according to Juana Mercedes Estrada Castillo.

"No, that's a lie. This is bad fame. They don't steal here; but everyone who comes out there, who needs something, we offer it with love. I have lived in this neighborhood for 53 years. You can spend at 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning that there will always be someone to greet you, but that other thing is a lie.”

Juana Mercedes is a folkloric character of the community, who with her charisma and enthusiasm drags the neighbors towards the most diverse tasks. When she leaves her job as a cleaning assistant in the Tomasa Varona Cultural Center and arrives in the neighborhood, she is always inventing something: sweeping the streets, making the place beautiful, which is transformed for the good of its inhabitants.

“I always support the delegate, I participate in the activities, I coordinate with the people to do volunteer work, paint the houses, clean everything; always to make the neighborhood beautiful, because it has to be the most beautiful. And we are very grateful for what is done.”

Since she was born, she lives in the same place that saw her grow up and now is a witness to her efforts and initiative for the benefit of the community. What she says is a law when it comes to the neighborhood because she knows it well; she ran from one place to another when she was a child and, today, she still runs from one place to another to see what is missing and help in the happiness.

“The Mexico neighborhood has always been a happy place, and that can be said by everyone who visits us. This is a Cabildo. We celebrate San Lázaro every December 15 until the 17, we place oranges, coconuts, sweets…; this is called the Callejón de the "México," because you have to pass through here to go to or come from La Feria.”

The Alleyway Cabildo, in the Mexico neighborhood, is a place for various activities; as a focus of traditional Caribbean culture, an important part of the community, which is transformed over time, as part of the change in the neighborhoods of Las Tunas.