I arrived in Mexico City as scheduled on the 12th of December and was picked up by Jenny, who offered to host me four days in the capital of Mexico. Our first action was heading for some tacos,
to be more precise, los Supertacos Chupacabras, incredibly delicious! Then we headed on to Coyoacán, one of Mexico City's boroughs. Its name originates from Nahuatl (language of the Aztecs)
and means "place of coyotes". We were walking around the park and I felt incredibly happy to come back to Mexico after almost four years and that I could escape the cold of NY. We were entering
the Parroquia San Juan Bautista, a church in which at this moment many believers worshiped la Virgen
de Guadalupe, the Lady of Guadalupe. According to the tradition, the Virgin of Guadalupe appeared four
times. The last time this happened was on December 12, 1531.
After that we passed by the Blue House, la Casa Azul of Frida Kahlo. This house was her birthplace, childhood residence, place of death and is nowadays a museum. Finally we stopped at the Cineteca Nacional, an alternative cinema which mainly shows national movies. From the topmost parking level of the multi-storey
car park, one also has a great view over the city. Again and again we could see and hear fireworks on the occasion of the national holiday in honour of the Virgen de
Guadalupe.
The next day we were heading towards el Bosque de Chapultepec, a large city park and the first and most important of Mexico City's "green lungs". It is divided into three sectors. We
just made it to visit the first one this day. Within this sector there are Los Pinos, the pines, the official residence and office of the President of Mexico. The first president who
lived there was Lázaro Cárdenas apart from 1934. Since December 2018 Mexico's new president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador
opened most of the buildings and area to the public. Lucky me that I just arrived at the right time. It was impressive to see all the conference rooms as well as private dormitories which have
been used by presidents over decades.
After our little tour through Los Pinos we continued in the ever-public part of the park of Chapultepec. We passed by the Fuente de Nezahualcoyótl, a very long fountain. The Bosque de Chapultepec also includes some lakes in which you can e.g. rent small boats and enjoy the day on the water. We didn't go for that but decided to have something to eat instead. Not only the squirrels were enjoying their food, also Jenny and I did so with some Tlayudas. These are handmade dishes which consist of a large, oval, thin and crunchy tortilla covered with a spread of refried beans, asiento, lettuce or cabbage, avocado, Quesillo (queso Oaxaca, a cheese from the region of Oaxaca) and salsa.
After that we went furthermore for some Elotes. Elotes and Esquites are typical mexican street food which is sold mainly in the evening and at night. An elote is grilled corn on the cob, spread with mayonnaise and sprinkled with cotija cheese and red chili powder. An esquite is the off-the-cob version, served in a cup. I do always prefer elotes, simply because of the fact that they mean less waste - and it's always a challenge to eat them without having to change clothes afterwards.
We passed el Monumento al Escuadrón 201, a monument for the 201st Fighter Squadron which was part of the Mexican Expeditionary Air Force that supported
the Allied war effort in the liberation of the Philippines during World War II. Shortly thereafter we entered the Audiorama, a magical little
garden with clean air, relaxing music, benches and loungers and books for loan. Depending on the day of the week you will either hear classical, traditional mexican or other kinds of music. A
little sign within the trees and flowers of the surrounding garden says: Sé felix - Be happy! And this is really how I felt in this fascinating place.
In the late afternoon we visited el Castillo de Chapultepec, the only royal castle within the Americas. Also Chapultepec comes from the Nahuatl language and means "at the grasshopper's hill". It
lies at a height of 2,325 meters above sea level and it was given various uses since its construction during the Viceroyalty of New Spain (territorial entity established by Habsburg Spain during
the Spanish colonization). From 1882 until 1939 it was the previous residence of nearly all Mexican presidents before president Lázaro Cárdenas turned it into a
museum. It offers beautiful views over Mexico City.
Our next destination was the city center of CDMX (Ciudad de México). On our way we passed a monument which was erected for the defenders of the Mexican republic which fought against the United States of America in the Mexican-American war from 1846 to 1848. Soon after, we reached el Ángel de la Independencia, the Angel of Independence, a victory column on a roundabout in downtown Mexico City.
We furthermore passed a few other memorials: A little turtle in the middle of a road crossing which commemorates the 43 students from Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College which went missing in Iguala, Guerrero, Mexico on September 26, 2014. Reaching the Plaza de la República we admired the Monumento a la Revolución which is a reminder of the Mexican Revolution / Civil War that lasted from 1910 to 1920 and transformed Mexican government and culture tremendously. Besides, we were passing a memorial to the 1985 Mexico City earthquake. It struck the city with a moment magnitude of 8.0, caused the deaths of more than 5,000 people and the destruction of many buildings. Moreover we stopped at the a monument to Benito Juarez, a politician and statesman of the late 19th century. He fought against foreign occupation under the emperor Maximilian and helped to create a democratic federal republic.
We approached more and more the Zócalo, the central square of every Mexican city. From a distance we could already see the Torre Latinoamericana, an important landmark of the city. We passed by
the Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts). It is considered the most important cultural centre in Mexico, dedicated to theatre, dance, concerts, opera, visual arts, literature
and architecture. After that we entered the Casa de los Azulejos, the House of Tiles, an 18th-century palace. Its facade is covered by blue and white tiles from
the state of Puebla. Today it is used as a hotel and restaurant.
Finally we reached the Zócalo which was festively decorated. On one side it is framed by the cathedral (The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary). Furthermore there is an archaeological zone with excavations of the Prehispanic Period can be found on one side. The Zócalo itself is the largest plaza in Latin America and can hold 100,000 people. After walking around 35 kilometers this day within the city we finally had a beer in a bar before we went back home.
The next day we started our day strolling through a market where I had some incredibly delicious tacos. Later we went again to the Bosque de Chapultepec, but this time for the second section. I took my drone (DJI Mavic Air) with me, which I bought shortly before this trip to capture some aerial photographs and videos. Unfortunately, I had to realize that the batteries had mostly discharged themselves during my journey so far, so that only a short flight was possible. Nevertheless I could take some fotos and a quick video.
At night we went to las Hamburguesas de Sotelo to have a burger. Hamburguesas are a famous Mexican street food. After having some tequila at Jenny's place together with a friend of hers, "el Loco Negro", we went to the Pulquería Los Insurgentes, a bar and club, where we were dancing and had some Pulque (Agave wine). It is a beverage made from the fermented sap of the maguey (agave) plant. The natural Pulque has the color of milk and a sour yeast-like taste but there also exist a lot of flavoured Pulques of all kinds of fruit. It is a traditional beverage in central Mexico, where it has been produced for thousands of years.
The next and final day in Mexico City before heading on to Puebla we started with visiting another traditional market where I seemed to be the only foreigner once again. Hereafter we explored the areas of Condesa and Roma and some parks (Parque España, Parque Hundido) where we also did some exercise.
At night we went to a Posada. Posadas are Christian pre-Christmas celebrations which take place in many places within Latin America from 16 December. They represent Mary's and Joseph's search for a hostel on their way from Nazareth to Bethlehem before the birth of Jesus. The last Posada is therefore celebrated on Christmas Eve. Today the custom has changed a little bit. Usually friends and relatives meet in a house. Some stand in front of the entrance door and depict Mary and Joseph asking for a place to stay. The innkeeper is in the house with his guests. Alternately the two parties sing the "Posada song". Furthermore everbody has a small candle in his/her hand.
After the doors of the house were opened, some Piñatas were hung up. A piñata is a colourful figure, nowadays made of papier-mâché, formerly made of clay pots wrapped in crepe paper. It is filled with sweets (traditionally with fruits) and used at Posadas and at children's birthday parties where the children beat the row, blindfolded, with a stick on it until all the contents are distributed.
