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| Date weekend - first stop Chicago |
Seth and I got away just the two of us to Mexico City last week. We left on an early morning United flight to Chicago where we had a 12 hour layover. We took the El into downtown and met up with Seth's parents, Bob and Kim, for a lovely afternoon in the windy city. We walked along the river to the
Driehaus Museum in the historic Nickerson Mansion that features art, architecture and design of the last 19th and early 20th century. The mansion is impressive with detailed woodwork from floor to ceiling as well as a central stairwell that is covered in marble from the Main Hall up to the 3rd floor ballroom. The mansion has been renovated since being occupied as the American College of Surgeons headquarters from 1919-2003 and opened officially as a museum in 2008. After our tour, we headed to the new
Eataly Chicago, a vibrant italian marketplace with restaurants, cooking classes, and amazing market of italian wines, cheese, meats, pasta, olive oils, and other goods.
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| Pretending to be at the world's fair |
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| Walking along the river in Chicago |
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| Kim, Seth and Bob walking along the river |
After lunch we headed back to O'Hare airport to catch our flight to Mexico City. We were on the tarmack ready to take off when we had to turn back due to navigation system issues. They told us to stay on the plane but immediately our bags were taken off so we knew this wasn't a good sign. Three hours later we had de-planed and were all on a new plane out of a different gate but finally we were on our way to Mexico. We arrived at 3AM and took a cab to our B&B, the
Red Tree House (a lovely B&B in the Condesa neighborhood started by a gentleman from North Dakota). We set our alarm so we wouldn't miss the killer breakfast that we enjoyed eating outdoors in the garden. We called an Uber and then headed to El Centro and the zocalo to see the amazing murals by the artist Diego Rivera in the Secretary of Public Education building. We had seen his fresco-style murals depicting daily life of indigenous people prior to the arrival of the Spainards up though the Mexican Revolution in the Palacio National and Palacio de Bellas Artes when we were in Mexico City in 2016 but we hadn't see the murals at the Education building. After passing through security and getting a visitor pass, we entered one of two large central courtyards. The hallways are open to the courtyard and all 3 floors and every stairwell were adorned with scenes that he painted and depict life in Mexico at the time. It was incredible! We then went on a walking tour of El Centro and saw the Colesio where the Mexican wrestling used to be held. We grabbed some street food in the nearby street market and I made a friend with a 10 year old boy who's teacher didn't come to school so he had the day off. Eventually we made it back to the subway and back to our B&B. Riding the subway in other countries is always entertaining. There is a separate section for women and children. I decided to stick with Seth and get packed in like sardines but kept a hand over my purse. Luckily I was a head taller than most of the men in the subway and Seth was 2 heads taller so we had some breathing space. We left our wedding rings and watches at home. I also left my phone and wallet at home too and it was amazing to be "unplugged" for the weekend. We only carried enough cash for the day, a guidebook, hand sanitizer, my camera, and our IDs but didn't have any issues with pick pocketers or really feel at all unsafe during the trip. Mexico City is very clean, the people are extremely friendly and courteous, the Uber drivers are a both terrifying and excellent, and the food is top notch. Prices are fair and bartering is not necessary and the markets are lots of fun to explore. The next two days were spend engorging ourselves at two of the top restaurants in North America -
Quintonil and
Pujol, both Michelin star rated restaurants in the Polanco neighborhood. Seth had made reservations 6 months ago and many of our fellow travelers at our B&B were extremely jealous that we "got in"! We enjoyed the tasting menus with wine pairings and can't even begin to describe how delicious eating cactus, grasshoppers, and mole madre can be! We wandered around the amazing Sabado Mercado in San Angel on Saturday morning to see all the top artists show off their stuff - from painters to jewelry makers, mezcal vendors to chocolatiers, from paper flower makers to basket wavers. We then wandered around the parks in Polanco and Condesa neighborhoods before heading home on Sunday. I highly recommend a trip to Mexico City if you haven't been before! I can't wait to go back again someday! Enjoy the pics:
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| Admiring the Diego Rivera murals |
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| Admiring the Diego Rivera murals |
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| Secretary of Education courtyard and paintings on the walls |
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| Central courtyard in the Secretary of Education building |
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| Diego Rivera |
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| Doctor tools at the Museum of Medicine |
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| Airway and heart at the Museum of Medicine |
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| A skull |
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| Eating street food in the market in El Centro |
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| A real Mexican coca cola |
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| Busy streets with vendors, carts and taxis. |
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| Seth's favorite street food - chips with hot sauce and lime |
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| Soccer ball anyone? |
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| Toy store |
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| Just another day in the street market |
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| Shaman performing a ritual in the plaza |
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| The zocalo, main plaza, was decorated for the holidays |
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| In the Zocalo |
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| Ciudad de Mexico sign in the zocalo |
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| The best tacos al pastor |
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| Soooooooooo goood! |
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| Our B&B lobby |
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Fresh flowers at our B&B daily
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| We got to eat our breakfast outside in the garden at the B&B |
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| The back stairs up to our 3rd floor room |
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| Hanging out in Frida Kahlo's garden at the Blue House |
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| Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo lived in the blue house from 1929 to 1954 and hosted many notable guests and artists from around the world |
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| Wandering aroudn Coyoacan neighbhorhood and market |
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| Spices in the market |
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| Fruit stand in the market |
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| Walking through the Coyoacan market |
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| Grasshoppers anyone? They are actually quite delicious! |
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| Flowers in the market |
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| Market lunch |
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| Mezcal booth |
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| The Square Hidalgo was decorated for the holidays |
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| I have a thing for hearts |
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| Wolf fountain |
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| Hanging out in Santa Catalina square (my Spanish name) |
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| Banners that say Santa Catalina |
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| Santa Catalina restaurant |
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| Walking around Coyoacan on old pebble roads |
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| Pointsetta vendor |
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| Bags of chips outside the subway stop for only 25 cents |
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| Beautifully decorated and clean subway entrance that looks like the rain forest |
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| Cigarettes sold individually at pop-up stands all over the city |
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| Street performer throwing fire rings at a stop light |
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| A clear day!! You can see the mountains surrounding Mexico City |
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| Paper flowers in the Sabado Market |
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| A local artist makes cacti out of old pillows and cloth |
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| Checking out the art in the plaza |
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| Our leather making friend was not here this year but his daughter was so we bought another piece |
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| Queso! Fried cheese! Yum! |
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| Parque Mexico and the giant jugs |
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| Lots of amazing architecture from the 1920 and 1930s |
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| Parque Mexico fountains and rainbow |
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| Walking along the old race track on Avienda Amsterdam |
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| So excited for Churros con Chocolat |
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Last treat before heading back home |
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