Author: marionvermazen

We could see the Zocalo and the Cathedral from our table at breakfast this morning

Today we visited the Museo de Franz Mayer. The museum houses the collection of Fran’s Mayer, a German born financier. It isn’t a big museum but there were three exhibits that made it special.

First was a temporary exhibit done in collaboration with the Getty museum, exploring different narratives of the conquest of Mexico. Most documents paint the conquistadors as heroic but there are other contemporaneous documents that were critical of the conquest. Examples of both were displayed.

I loved the Franz Mayer library.

In a small adjacent room they had a special scanner and a woman who was scanning an old book.

There was also an exhibit about the trade between the Philippines and Mexico between 1565 and 1815. It was something I knew nothing about. It was fascinating.

Next we went to the Museo de Estanquillo. The exhibit was about clothing and style through the years in Mexico

It has been interesting to a big team of people set up a stage and chairs in the Zocalo outside our window. Apparently it is for some kind of big awards ceremony which we think will be tomorrow. We figured that there are about 20,000 chairs.

We ate dinner at a restaurant at the top of the Gran Hotel.

This morning we enjoyed a marvelous breakfast buffet in the rooftop restaurant at our hotel.

After breakfast we walked to the Palácio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts). We looked through the art exhibits and took an architecture and history tour. The construction of the building was interrupted by the Mexican revolution (1910-1920). As a result the architecture of the exterior is classical and the interior is beautiful Art Deco.

Next we visited the nearby Artisanal Market. It was fun to browse. We bought a few souvenirs.

For dinner we went to Café De Tacuba. We had the best meal of the trip. They serve authentic Mexican regional food. It was excellent. And a wonderful quintet sang us a love song!

Today we checked out of our hotel in Polanco and moved to a hotel in the historic Center. Our room wasn’t ready when we arrived so we went out for a walk.

Then we had lunch at our hotel. Snacks (sandwiches, beer, wine, etc.) are included in the price of our room.

We were able to get into our room by 2:00. We have a fantastic view of the Zócalo with the cathedral on the north side and the Palácio Nacional on the east side. Behind the Palácio Nacional we can see the Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuarl volcanoes. When Duke lived in Mexico City in 1981-2 he says he never saw the volcanoes because the smog was so bad.

We ate dinner at a rooftop restaurant not far from our hotel.

Saturday was a big walking day for us. According to my watch we walked more than ten miles!

We started out by walking through Chapultepec park to Chapultepec Castle. Along the way we saw an area of the park that is reserved for people over 60. They had a senior center with lots of activities (everything from yoga to pickle ball, to English classes to dominos) and nice wide walking paths. Of course we got to go in!

Castillo de Chapultepec and Historical Museum overlook Chapultepec Park. The castle was built for Spanish royalty and has been used as a military college and a presidential residence.

After we were done with our visit to the castle we walked back to the area of our hotel for lunch. But first, we stopped at the Audiorama. It is built around a small cave at the base of the Castle hill. It was a peaceful garden with books to read and music playing.

Also on the way to lunch we walked through the botanical garden.

After napping at the hotel we walked back to Chapultepec Castle to see the Ballet Folklórico. They had set up chairs around a stage on the terrace. It was a beautiful night and it was a great show.