Mexico City

I spent a week in Mexico City in May 2024. I was fascinated to learn that Mexico City was originally built on a group of islands in Texcoco Lake that the Spanish drained to have more land and to control flooding. The Aztecs came from the north (apparently their language is similar to Cherokee). The tribes living on the lake were not welcoming so the Aztecs moved to the islands. The Aztecs were not good to the other tribes which the Spanish exploited when they came to the area. The Spanish were able to convert surrounding tribes and get them to fight against the Aztecs. As the adage says, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

Mexico City is a huge city. Traffic is terrible. Air pollution bad. It was unusually hot when we were there and many places did not have air conditioning. Mexico City is also at high elevation — about 7300 feet. I had not realized this before either.

Merced Market

I went to Merced Market twice — once with a guide as I did an “overview of Mexico City” tour and once with the group on a food tasting tour. It is a fun and vibrant place, selling everything. We tasted tacos and tamales, mole and fruit drinks. And bugs.

These are murals in a building near Merced Market. As with so many murals in Mexico City, they show the struggle of common people against a corrupt elite.

Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe

I went with the guide to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The story is of a great miracle where an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe appears on the cape of an indigenous person. As she looked like the native people and there were other symbols that locals understood, it helped the Spanish convert the local people and enlist their help to defeat the Aztecs.

In the compound are several churches built over the years. The smallest one is the highest up and has a beautiful view.

In addition, local people would come with pictures of people in their families who needed help because they were sick, for example, and post them in the Basilica. The guide told me that Frida Kahlo was very influenced by these.

We stayed in Polanco which is near a great park with has the Modern Art Museum and the Anthropology Museum. I liked these fingers outside the Anthropology Museum.

Murals

We did a Mural Tour where we visited the Palace of Fine Arts and the xxx.

The Palace of Fine Arts is Neoclassical on the outside with an Art Deco interior. It has murals by Rufino Tamayo, Diego Rivera, and David Alfaro Siqueiros. I loved having a guide to tell us more about the art and the architecture.