Mexico City is like that rare book or film that exceeds all of your expectations. We have visited Paris, Barcelona, Copenhagen, London but none was as vibrant and colorful as the sights and people we found in Mexico city.
We began our first day exploring parts of Condessa and Roma Norte before catching the metro to Jamaica market. This was the day we travelled with the aid of Panda, our highly informative and very funny local guide to enjoy street food in her “Eat like a local” day tour. I am not a fan of the metro having taken both the underground in London and metro in Los Angeles but found the cleanliness and safety of this Mexican metro a pleasant discovery. We arrived at Jamaica market, a must stop for sampling delicious green chorizo tacos and huitlacoche, a corn that has a fungus that imparts a unique flavor. For liquid refreshment we sampled tepache, a fermented drink made form pineapple, sweetened with agave with a hint of tamarind and cinnamon. Flowers of all types are also a feature of this market and arrive fresh each day to be pruned and prepped for customers.
On our second tour we drove with Gabriel of Karma Trails south to Xochimilco or floating gardens an area of canals and colorful boats or trajineras and also a flower growing area that supplies markets including Jamaica market. The canals link the small man-made islands that evolved over time to supplement the farming terraces in the surrounding hills.
Next, we visited Coyoacan which is south of Condessa and north of Xochimilco and where the first organized settlement was established. The hacienda and casa configurations became the template for many of the Spanish towns that took root as the Spanish moved north and south of the city. Cobbled streets connect the residences to the commercial center and the town square fittingly has 2 bronze coyotes, namesakes of the towns translated name “Place of coyotes”.
Frida Kahlo lived and worked in Coyoacan and much of her work is on display at the Frida Kahlo Museum inside the blue house that was her residence.
Much of the history of Mexico City is on permanent display in its architecture and gardens but to understand pre-colonial times visit the National Museum of Anthropology located in Bosque de Chapultepec a park on par with New York’s Central Park. The museum chronicles the history of the indigenous people from the Mayan era to Spanish Colonialism with wonderful displays depicting their differing social lives, religious beliefs, and commerce.
Xochipilli - Aztec God Of Art, Games and Flowers on Display at the National Museum of Anthropology
The street art of Mexico City is every where and from our Sofitel Hotel room we had a daily viewing of “Generation Equality” by Adry del Rocio a Mexcian artist of world repute.
On this trip we took a break from searching out door handles but could not help but notice the creative and detailed iron work on display in the historic district so hopefully we can devote more time to these crafts in our next trip.