U.S. ambassador ties knot

VALLE DE BRAVO, Mexico – First lady Laura Bush was among several hundred guests at a wedding celebration for the U.S. ambassador and Mexico’s richest woman on Saturday.

Ambassador Tony Garza, a Texas native appointed by President Bush in 2002, and Mexican heiress Maria Asuncion Aramburuzabala were to hold a civil marriage ceremony Saturday night at a resort outside Valle De Bravo, 90 miles west of Mexico City.

The two were already wed in a small religious ceremony in February. Late Saturday, U.S. Embassy officials were unable to say if the civil ceremony was completed but said details and photographs would be released today.

Guests including Laura Bush strolled the streets of Valle De Bravo in the afternoon before filing into an exclusive golf club for a ceremony that was closed to the press.

The first lady, who was seen poring over handicrafts at shops in the town center, was among 400 people invited to dine, dance and feast on old-fashioned Texas barbecue during three days of festivities. The White House said Friday the president would not attend.

U.S. Embassy officials said about one-third of the invited guests were from Texas.

“It is odd to see so many bodyguards,” said Estevan Garcia, 39, a teacher, commenting on stepped-up security near Valle de Bravo’s central square.

Garza, a second-generation American whose four grandparents were from Mexico, is a former Texas secretary of state and railroad commissioner. This is his first marriage.

Aramburuzabala, 41, is vice chairwoman of Grupo Modelo, the maker of Corona and Negra Modelo beers. With an estimated fortune of $1.8 billion, she was ranked 366th among the world’s billionaires, Forbes magazine reported in March.

This is her second marriage.