Day 25: The Zocalo

We got up early to enjoy a day out of the house. We decided to head to the Zocalo. The Zocalo is the center of Mexico City. It is 200 meters squared (656 square feet) which makes it the second biggest gathering plaza in the world. Red Square in Russia is bigger, stupid commies. The center at first glance might seem bleak. There is nothing but a large flagpole in the middle of this cement square. The name Zocalo means base, as in the base of a monument or sign. Originally there were plans to build a monument on the large cement block. Those plans never finish but the Zocalo name stuck.

Today, however, people were decorating the Zocalo for the Day of the Dead celebration. The cabbie took us as close to the Zocalo as he could and we walked about three blocks of closed off road seeing artist put the finishing touches on their displays. Colorful creatures were all over the road. In the Zocalo itself, it looked like an enormous haunted house was being built.

Its simplicity is offset, by the ornate building that surround it. To the north is the Metropolitan Cathedral. Originally the Spanish built a small church on this site using stones from Aztecs Temples. By 1528 that small church was replaced with the large Cathedral that stands today.

Buried under the streets of this area were the ruins of Temple Mayor, and those ruins stay there until 1976. The pre-Hispanic place of worship was then found accidentally as they were working on the city’s subway. The first temple was built in 1390. As different Mesoamerican kings ruled this area they added to the temple. In many cases that would simply build around the existing temple, cause the ruins to appear to have layers, each show how architecture style and technology changed over the hundred twenty six years of Temple Mayor existence.

Day 6: Diego Riviera & The Bus Tour

After the ruins and the museum that followed, we both need lunch. We walked down the street and came to Café Tubaca. This was an old convent and now it served some great Mexican food. Bex’s tacos had the freshest vegetables I can remember seeing since being here. Reenergized we decided to continue walking away from the Zocalo and visited the Diego Riviera Mural Museum. Surprising the whole museum was one mural. It was a good mural & they explained all the characters but it was just the one.

From there we went home to rest for a moment and then hopped on a tour bus Chapultepec Park. The tour took us through some of the nicer neighborhoods in Mexico City, Condessa, Zona Rosa, and along Avenue Reforma. Reforma has many landmarks on it, including a statue to Christopher Columbus; the last Aztec king, Cuauhtemoc; and the famous Angel of Independence.

The bus returned us to the Zocalo as well which we saw as the sun set. It was much more active then in the morning. To our surprise as the bus returned down Reforma we saw those colorful creatures again. The lined them along this main road. The bus tour was a great way to see the city and we really enjoy it. We got off in Polanco and had a great dinner at Central Brasserie. This was a great escape from the housework

Day: 5 My Birthday

When you turn 21 (humor me guys..) all you want to do is wake up and have an unbelievable day. Well, today I woke up to no hot water. Actually...there was hardly any water at all. We're still working on getting our water tanks full. And it seems as though we had run out of gas too. The past few days have been frustratingly unbearable. It's one thing to take a lukewarm shower...but to be without gas to cook was the breaking point for me. We coldn't take hot showers, do dishes, run the washer. Calgon take me away! Or rather....Fiesta Americana...take ME away.

Instead of dreading the day, we made the best of it and went to lunch at China Grill at the Camino Real. I'll go on record as being "Anti-Chinese food", China Grill manages to do a spectacular job at Asian fusion. With bellies full, we used their free Wi-fi, and secured a room at the Fiesta Americana. At the checkout counter I told them to have pity on our ragged souls and to PLEASE give us a nice room with a view since it's my birthday. The guy at the front desk was kind enough to oblige, and wished me a happy day. 1st stop: piping hot shower. 2nd stop: concierge.

In hopes to do something fun, I thought Luc would enjoy the Ballet Folklorico of Mexico. We ordered 2 tickets through the concierge and 1 hr later they delivered them to our room. In no time (and thanks to our new friend/cabdriver Jesus) we were at the Palacio de Bellas Artes. Since it was general admission we sat in the 3rd row and had great seats. I'm sure Luc thought it was going to be a boring ballet, but he was pleasantly surprised when it was done. You see...here is a description of it from Wikipedia:

• Ballet Folklórico de México is a folkloric ballet ensemble in Mexico City. For five decades it has presented dances in costumes that reflect the traditional culture of Mexico. The ensemble has appeared under the name, Ballet Folklórico de México de Amalia Hernández. The ballet works and musical pieces reflect various regions and folk music genres of Mexico. Many of the ensemble's works reflect thena aaaaaaal traditions of indigenous Mesoamerican culture. Numbers of performers in individual dance numbers range from two to over thirty-five. From the group's founding by Amalia Hernández in 1952, the group grew from eight performers to a fifty piece ensemble by the end of the decade. In 1959 the group officially represented Mexico at the Pan American Games in Chicago, United States. Under Hernández the group was a pioneer of Baile Folklórico in Mexico. Ballet Folklorico is danced in New Mexico, Texas, and other states near to the border of Mexico. It is practiced by many people in America as well as Mexico.

There was a big surprise at the end which made Luc laugh. This was no ballet he's ever seen!

After the Ballet we had cake for room service and went to bed in hopes that the we have miraculously appeased the water gods.

Day 1: Our first day in Mexico.

Waking up for the first time in Mexico City was unreal. The long flight is over, the traveling from Mass, to Maine, to Maryland, to Mass, to Rhode Island, to Mass, to Maine, to New Hampshire….is DONE. For the moment we can now breathe, breathe in that thin Mexico air.

We headed down to have breakfast at the hotel and discuss what needed to be accomplished today. They had a buffet, which made me extremely happy. Mexico has the greatest fruit juice, and I enjoyed several glasses with my eggs. Bex said we needed to call the plumbers and let them know we were here and needed to have the house worked on. We contacted them and they said they could meet us at the house at four, which gave us the day to enjoy.

We went to Chapultepec Castle. This building was originally built as a country home for the Viceroy of New Spain in 1785. The succeeding Viceroy tried to sell the castle, but ended up using it as a general archive for the Kingdom of New Spain. After Mexico gained independence, it served as a military college. In 1847 the students of the college unsuccessfully defended it against U.S. Marines during the Mexican American War. The students are remembered here as the “Ninos Heroes” and this battle is remembered in the U.S. Marine song as the “Halls of Montezuma” Yes, I am kind of a history dork.

Since then, the Castle served as a residence for Emperor Maximillon, during his short reign and then the Presidents in the reestablished Republic of Mexico. In 1939, the President moved and declared Chapultepec Castle a museum and open to the public.

Just our luck, it’s open EXCEPT today. The president was holding a meeting of diplomats there. Secret Service looking individuals and heavily armed police (AKA semi automatic guns) were all around the castle. So we wandered through the park and enjoyed a traditional Mexican snack, potato chips with lime and hot sauce. Bex found a train ride she remembered taking as a child so we decided to partake. We figure they’d bring us as close to Chapultepec Castle as we were allowed to go.

Day 0: October 14th Leavin on a Jetplane...

Today was the big day. We were heading out of Maine circa 2am. Having spent the last 2 weeks in Rockville MD, Osterville MA, Boston MA, and Scarborough ME, packing was a chore! (Just 2 days ago we had our last meals with our families.) We pulled an all nighter and got everything into 5 suitcases and 1 box--just enough to fulfill our FAA requirements. Once we got to the counter we were in for an early morning treat. They charged us $650 for several reasons 1) $20 bag fee for each checked bag[4] 2) $100 overweight suitcases[2] 3) $200 airline connection overweight fee [2]. For you math geeks out there...you're right, it doesn't add up. They took of a whoopping $30 cause I caused such a stink.

So this wasn't the best way to start an international trip. But there are worse things than being $650 in the red. Not to mention that Priceline, US Airways, and Mexicana Airlines are gonna hear it from me!

It was all better the moment we walked into our hotel room at the Fiesta Americana Grand Chapultepec. We usually stay at the hotel Camino Real which is across the street from the house, but for some reason, this week is ridiculously expensive. Surprisingly enough, the Grand was clean, spacious, and modern. The staff received us well and were helpful to an extent. Their concierge was a bit of an airhead, but nontheless, it soon became our fave hotel nearby.

Brian & Natalie's Wedding

We remained in the United States long enough to enjoy the wedding of our friends Brian and Natalie. We arrived at a beautiful old house on the Cape and stayed for fours days. On the third day we attended a beautiful ceremony over looking the Atlantic Ocean. Seemed an ideal way to say good bye to the New England shore. All dressed up, we had a great meal as the sunset. Then danced and partied to 80's hits until some wee hour of the morning. Those who were still standing (or sitting as in JT's case) put on a spectacular karaoke s-show. With our last event in the U.S. completed, we turned our attention to preparing for our journey south of the border.

Maine, then Maryland

October 1st marks the day we should be out of our apartment. It also means that we are now officially "homeless". All of our possessions were now in Maine and it was time to squat at my Mom's house in Maryland. My bro Raph and his wife Kristin are renovating the house in Rockville with the help of my sister Julia. Since we have no real address to speak of...why not spend the week in MD and help out. We drove from Maine to RI to see Luc's grandparents, Janet and Jack. They were in the midst of packing themselves--they were off on a Southwestern tour of the US. Now I can see where Luc gets his wanderlust from! We wished them well and proceeded down 95.

I think everyone at one time or another has the pipe dream of taking a picture in front of all 50 state road signs. For a hot minute we thought that would be cool, until it started raining and the sign for RI was in the median of the highway. Not to mention that it slowed down our driving time. Boo! Eh, it was fun while it lasted.