Just walking outside our apartment building, we find things so unique to Mexico City. Like this concrete mixer that is decorated with the traditional Mexican game Loteria.
Today's adventure was less planned, and a bit more exploring. We turned on streets we had never visited before, coming across some cool parks, sights and areas of Mexico City. We saw some awesome modern buildings, some historic buildings in complete disrepair, a famous clock donated to the city from China, and a park that was full of couples dancing.
We approached the Ciudadela Mercado just as vendors were beginning to open up their shops. We knew we were very early (before noon), and also knew that if we were here 4 or 5 hours later, it would be packed with people.
We continued our walk towards the Centro historic district, along one of the incredibly busy pedestrian-only streets. We came across an open door to a museum. We had walked passed this building several times and never gave it a second thought. However, today, we walked in the open doors and found an amazing museum. It was a historic home, that used to have a large open air courtyard, but is now covered with a protective roof. There are multiple floors featuring historic Mexican art. But it is the historic building that is the true star.
We continued walking along the pedestrian street, stopping to peak inside some historic buildings and churches.
When we approached the Zocalo, we noticed that there were several protests happening. The streets were closed to cars, and there were a few dozen people protesting, but we couldn't figure out the reason. We also noticed that the city workers were busy removing the massive Christmas holiday displays.
Amongst all the shops, restaurants and cafes, you often come across a church. They are everywhere. And most of them are completely open and available for visits.
Time for lunch! We walked over to the famous Mercado San Juan, which has lots of food stalls, and people selling produce, fish, meat and more. We found a small counter, grabbed two seats, and enjoyed an amazing bowl of pozole.
Attached to the Mercado is yet another church. While outside, it is loud with honking cars, traffic noise, and kids laughing and playing in the plaza, inside the church it is completely quiet and peaceful.
We had read that there is a very cool library not far, so we hopped in an Uber to find it. There was a TON of activity around the library, with a flea market happening on all sides. Unfortunately, the library was closed, so we decided to walk down to Alameda de Santa Maria to see La Ribera y Kiosco. This is a moorish style pagoda sitting in the middle of a lovely park. There were loads of people mulling around the park, enjoying ice cream, walking their dogs, playing with soccer balls, and sitting on park benches watching the day go by. We love visiting the city parks as they are tree-filled respites from the loud traffic and busy streets.
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