# Mexico City Sights



## cscscs007 (Jan 8, 2011)

I just got back from going to Mexico City for a couple of days. I wanted to go to the Zocalo, Chapultepec, the pyramids, and to Xochimilco, and whatever else I could fit in. I was dismayed at the least to find the Zocalo closed to the public because of a teachers strike going on so essentially everything was off limits. 
My wife was happy as she was able to go to the church with the Lady Guadalupe, and I got the pleasure to enjoy the McDonalds just down the street.
I really enjoyed the Chapultepec Castle and the park was just fabulous. This park is a gem in this city, and I really enjoyed the half day I spent there.
Xochimilco was a pleasant surprise for all of us, and it is a very beautiful place to go, sit in a boat and relax for several hours.
I really was looking forward to going to Teotihuican to visit the pyramids, and I admit the pyramids are a sight to be seen, but the vendors constantly harassed you with "almost for free" and "good deal for you" which IMHO hurts the attractiveness of people to go see them.
Mexico City truly has a lot to offer for those who wish to go see the sights. I never felt safer walking around as it seemed everywhere I would look I could see either a traffic cop or an officer driving by. I did take the bus from Guadalajara to Mexico, which traveled through the night (I slept) and was very comfortable. 
For those of you who wish to go to Mexico City I give this trip a thumbs up overall. I wish I could have spent more time walking around the Zocalo, but it is what it is, maybe next time I go I will pay a little better attention to the news.


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

cscscs007 said:


> I just got back from going to Mexico City for a couple of days. I wanted to go to the Zocalo, Chapultepec, the pyramids, and to Xochimilco, and whatever else I could fit in. I was dismayed at the least to find the Zocalo closed to the public because of a teachers strike going on so essentially everything was off limits.
> My wife was happy as she was able to go to the church with the Lady Guadalupe, and I got the pleasure to enjoy the McDonalds just down the street.
> I really enjoyed the Chapultepec Castle and the park was just fabulous. This park is a gem in this city, and I really enjoyed the half day I spent there.
> Xochimilco was a pleasant surprise for all of us, and it is a very beautiful place to go, sit in a boat and relax for several hours.
> ...


Wow, how nice to see a post actually about a Mexican city.

I have to confess, although I dismissed Mexico City as simply being too large, I have found out that apparently the bus lines will take me to Mexico city in order to get to Xalapa from Juarez, which right across the border from me.

The climate is nice. One of the moderators on the forum lives there without a car and seems very happy there. Plus, it's the capital city with a wealth of museums and historical architecture, and obviously a rich history --- all things that fascinate me.

I can certainly second your approval of the Mexican bus lines. The bus I recently took to Durango had big plush seats you could actually sleep in, wifi, onboard movies, headphone jacks if you wanted to listen to radio, men's and women's restrooms, and pull down shades if you wanted to sleep during the day. It just could not have been better.


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## Justina (Jan 25, 2013)

And did you visit the dolores olmedo museum in xochimilco? If you didn't, make sure it is on your list for your next visit to the df. Just glorious and at the moment with the daynof the dead coming up, it will have lots of offerings. etc.


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

Dismissing Mexico when living or visiting in Mexico is like dismissing Rome or Paris when going to Italy or France....It is the heart of the country, it has a fascinating history so why dismiss those cities?


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

Justina said:


> And did you visit the dolores olmedo museum in xochimilco? If you didn't, make sure it is on your list for your next visit to the df. Just glorious and at the moment with the daynof the dead coming up, it will have lots of offerings. etc.


I've been to the Dolores Olmedo museum a few times. While its location in the far south of the city makes it a bit of a shlep to get there, it's certainly worth the trip, if for nothing else the setting (the extensive green lawns and the peacocks!) and the special events it holds, especially the one for the _Día de muertos_. However, I've always been underwhelmed by its permanent collection, even of its holdings of work of Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo.


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## JoanneR2 (Apr 18, 2012)

Isla Verde said:


> I've been to the Dolores Olmedo museum a few times. While its location in the far south of the city makes it a bit of a shlep to get there, it's certainly worth the trip, if for nothing else the setting (the extensive green lawns and the peacocks!) and the special events it holds, especially the one for the Día de muertos. However, I've always been underwhelmed by its permanent collection, even of its holdings of work by Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo.


From the 19th October to the 19th January the Dolores Olmedo museum has an exhibition of pictures from the Orangerie in Paris (Cezanne, Matisse etc.). Might make the trip more worthwhile...


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

JoanneR2 said:


> From the 19th October to the 19th January the Dolores Olmedo museum has an exhibition of pictures from the Orangerie in Paris (Cezanne, Matisse etc.). Might make the trip more worthwhile...


I agree. It would be like an art history class in person!


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## joaquinx (Jul 3, 2010)

Isla Verde said:


> I've been to the Dolores Olmedo museum a few times. While its location in the far south of the city makes it a bit of a shlep to get there. . . .


Looking at the location on the map, shlep it is. What manner of transport would you recommend for a visit there from El Centro or Roma?


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

citlali said:


> Dismissing Mexico when living or visiting in Mexico is like dismissing Rome or Paris when going to Italy or France....It is the heart of the country, it has a fascinating history so why dismiss those cities?


I never dismissed it as a tourist destination but as a place to live, purely on the sheer size of the city. I think now, though, I'll spend a few days there in December and reevaluate that impression as well.


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## cscscs007 (Jan 8, 2011)

The first thing I did when I got off the bus at the Terminal Autobuses Del Norte was get my hands on a map. The map I have shows the Metrobus/Subway/and connecting lines. A person can take line 2 "Cuatro Caminos - Taxquena" from El Centro all the way to Xochimilco which is very inexpensive. I was not familiar with the routes, and when I did try the subway I missed my stop. The train stops for a very short amount of time and then it is off to the races again. After wasting time with this endeavor I opted to go the taxi route. This was not very cheap as compared to the other options available, but it saved me a tremendous amount of time, and the driver was more than willing to work out an arrangement for his services. Considering paying for a taxi in D.F. and the price it would have cost in Chicago for the same time I was very satisfied with what I paid. I went from Polanco to Xochimilco, the driver waited 2 1/2 hours, then back up to Chapultepec Castle, and the driver offered to hold my luggage and items my wife bought while we spent 6 hours there, and then came back to pick us up and return us to the bus station in time to catch the bus back to Guadalajara. He was kind enough to take routes along the way and point out the Embassy, the futbol stadium, and many monuments throughout the city. All of this was cost me 700 pesos + I gave him a generous tip for his honesty and hospitality which would be unheard of in the USA. 
It will take more than one trip to D.F. to see all that there is to see, and I feel better prepared to handle big city life rather than the simple life I am accustomed to in the Rancho. I am happy to say I really enjoyed the time I spent in Mexico City and I will make plans to go again soon, after the teacher strike is over......


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

joaquinx said:


> Looking at the location on the map, shlep it is. What manner of transport would you recommend for a visit there from El Centro or Roma?


The most economical way to get there from the center of the city is by public transportation: Take Metro line #2 to Tasqueña, which is the end of the line. From there buy another ticket for the _tren ligero_ and get off at the La Noria station (La Noria is the original name of the Dolores Olmedo estate.) From there it's a short walk to the museum. The whole trip should take about an hour and a quarter, unless you go during rush hour. If you have an INAPAM card, the Metro ride will be free. I don't know how much the _tren ligero_ costs these days, but it won't be more than a few pesos each way.


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## joaquinx (Jul 3, 2010)

Isla Verde said:


> The most economical way to get there from the center of the city is by public transportation: Take Metro line #2 to Tasqueña, at the end of the line. From there buy another ticket for _tren ligero_ and get off at the La Noria station (La Noria is the original name of the Dolores Olmedo estate.) From there it's a short walk to the museum. The whole trip should take about an hour and a quarter, unless you go during rush hour. If you have an INAPAM card, the Metro ride will be free. I don't know how much the _tren ligero_ costs these days, but it won't be more than a few pesos each way.


Thanks, you should note that the museo entrance fee with a INAPAM is 1 peso.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

joaquinx said:


> Thanks, you should note that the museo entrance fee with a INAPAM is 1 peso.


That's right - I'd forgotten about that important detail. Just love my INAPAM card!


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## Justina (Jan 25, 2013)

And cps007, don't forget to go to the bazaar sabado, as its name suggests only on a Saturday. It takes place in one of the most glorious parts of the city and apart from the very upmarket prices within the bazaar there is another one outside and also fascinating, plus artists showingtheir work on railings outside. The whole area is a delight and very accesible by public transport.


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## maesonna (Jun 10, 2008)

They kicked the teachers out of the Zócalo just before Independence Day, so it’s already been a month that they’ve been gone from there. At this moment, there’s a book fair in the Zócalo. It will be on until next Friday, the 25th.


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

maesonna said:


> They kicked the teachers out of the Zócalo just before Independence Day, so it’s already been a month that they’ve been gone from there. At this moment, there’s a book fair in the Zócalo. It will be on until next Friday, the 25th.


What is the deal with the teacher controversy we've been hearing about here on the forum?


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

ElPaso2012 said:


> What is the deal with the teacher controversy we've been hearing about here on the forum?


Here's an interesting take on the whole messy situation: 

Teachers, Education Reform, and Mexico.


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

Isla Verde said:


> Here's an interesting take on the whole messy situation:
> 
> Teachers, Education Reform, and Mexico.


Wow, I've been buried in that article for the past half hour. It provides great insight into the things an attorney on the bus was telling me on his way back home to Chihuahua City --- one who was obviously not a fan of the president's new policies regarding energy. He briefly touched on the teachers strike. Benjamin Smith did a good job of explaining an amazingly complex issue as concisely as possible. But that's an issue I would not form an opinion on without having had feet on the ground a while. "Messy" is probably a nice word for a nightmare that shows no sign of ending soon for the people affected. 

You are there though, so I'm sure your take would be interesting.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

ElPaso2012 said:


> Wow, I've been buried in that article for the past half hour. It provides great insight into the things an attorney on the bus was telling me on his way back home to Chihuahua City --- one who was obviously not a fan of the president's new policies regarding energy. He briefly touched on the teachers strike. Benjamin Smith did a good job of explaining an amazingly complex issue as concisely as possible. But that's an issue I would not form an opinion on without having had feet on the ground a while. "Messy" is probably a nice word for a nightmare that shows no sign of ending soon for the people affected.
> 
> You are there though, so I'm sure your take would be interesting.


My take on the situation would not be as enlightening as that article, I fear, or as well expressed. As a former proud member of the AFT in the States (I was a faculty member at an urban community college for ten years), at first I found it hard to criticize the actions of the members of the CNTE, when they first set up shop in the Zócalo some months ago. 

But as time went on, and I felt the effects that their marches and demonstrations and acts of civil disobedience were having on my life and on the life of my adopted city and saw the inability of both the city and federal government to at least restrain some of the more radical (at times violent and vicious) behavior of the "maestros" (as we fondly call them), I felt myself filled with both anger and dismay. I spent a lot of time reading everything I could find about what was going from various news sources, offering varying political perspectives. I also discussed what was going on with Mexican friends, who at times seemed as bewildered as I was about what happening in and to the city. 

I have come to see the CNTE as a "mafia". It may have been founded with good intentions many years ago, but since has devolved into an organization that uses mass movements and the threat of violence to enrich its leaders (one of whom has a yearly salary higher than the mayor of Mexico City!) and provide its members with mostly undeserved perks, rather than improving the education of children in some of Mexico's poorest states.


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

Isla Verde said:


> My take on the situation would not be as enlightening as that article, I fear, or as well expressed. As a former proud member of the AFT in the States (I was a faculty member at an urban community college for ten years), at first I found it hard to criticize the actions of the members of the CNTE, when they first set up shop in the Zócalo some months ago.
> 
> But as time went on, and I felt the effects that their marches and demonstrations and acts of civil disobedience were having on my life and on the life of my adopted city and saw the inability of both the city and federal government to at least restrain some of the more radical (at times violent and vicious) behavior of the "maestros" (as we fondly call them), I felt myself filled with both anger and dismay. I spent a lot of time reading everything I could find about what was going from various news sources, offering varying political perspectives. I also discussed what was going on with Mexican friends, who at times seemed as bewildered as I was about what happening in and to the city.
> 
> I have come to see the CNTE as a "mafia". It may have been founded with good intentions many years ago, but since has devolved into an organization that uses mass movements and the threat of violence to enrich its leaders (one of whom has a yearly salary higher than the mayor of Mexico City!) and provide its members with mostly undeserved perks, rather than improving the education of children in some of Mexico's poorest states.


That was my first impression, too, about CNTE, after reading about the nepotism in their system. They might find a less disruptive way of getting attention, too. The author's reference to Sisyphus in regards to their efforts seemed apt.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

ElPaso2012 said:


> That was my first impression, too, about CNTE, after reading about the nepotism in their system. They might find a less disruptive way of getting attention, too. The author's reference to Sisyphus in regards to their efforts seemed apt.


Disruptions form the core of their campaigns - less disruption means less attention and less need for the government to deal with them.


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

Isla Verde said:


> Disruptions form the core of their campaigns - less disruption means less attention and less need for the government to deal with them.


No doubt. They definitely have a few legitimate issues of their own.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

ElPaso2012 said:


> No doubt. They definitely have a few legitimate issues of their own.


Yes, but they aren't the issues they tend to highlight in their demonstrations and marches. In addition, the targets of their ire seem to have little connection with their grievances: for example, the access routes to Mexico City's International Airport, the French Embassy, a Walmart store, and the Morelia Film Festival.


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

While we are on the subject of Mexico City, Isla, did you not say somewhere else that there is an exhibit of works by both Frida Kahlo and Diego Revera in the same museum?

There is a rather plush restaurant called Frida's in Juarez that has some high quality reproductions of her mutilation paintings that totally shocked my senses and drug me into the paintings to instantly see that this was a self-portrait of a woman who had known torture, and I loved her bold use of color. I couldn't wait to get back to my computer to learn all I can about this artist. She had the paralyzing train wreck at the beginning of her adult life and the blessing or curse of being in love with a philandering Diego the rest of her life. So I don't guess her torture was imaginary.

I even wanted to paint my house the same colors they used for one of their houses as seen in the picture, now a small museum that I seem to remember is also in Mexico City.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

ElPaso2012 said:


> While we are on the subject of Mexico City, Isla, did you not say somewhere else that there is an exhibit of works by both Frida Kahlo and Diego Revera in the same museum?
> 
> MOst
> 
> ...


The bulk of Diego Rivera's work consists of large murals, many of which can be seen in public buildings in Mexico City, elsewhere in the country and even in the United States. His works on canvas are also interesting and some can be found in the Dolores Olmedo Museum La Noria and in other museums in the city. As for the work of Frida Kahlo, a lot of it is still in private collections in Mexico and elsewhere. La Noria has a few works by Frida as does the Museo de Arte Moderno in Chapultepec Park. Unfortunately, almost none of her better paintings form the collection of the Museo Frida Kahlo (also called La Casa Azul, for obvious reasons) in the Coyoacan neighborhood in southern Mexico City. It is worth visiting, however, since it was the Kahlo family home for many years, and Diego and Frida lived there for some years until her untimely death in 1954.


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

Isla Verde said:


> The bulk of Diego Rivera's work consists of large murals, many of which can be seen in public buildings in Mexico City, elsewhere in the country and even in the United States. His works on canvas are also interesting and some can be found in the Dolores Olmedo Museum La Noria and in other museums in the city. As for the work of Frida Kahlo, a lot of it is still in private collections in Mexico and elsewhere. La Noria has a few works by Frida as does the Museo de Arte Moderno in Chapultepec Park. Unfortunately, almost none of her better paintings form the collection of the Museo Frida Kahlo (also called La Casa Azul, for obvious reasons) in the Coyoacan neighborhood in southern Mexico City. It is worth visiting, however, since it was the Kahlo family home for many years, and Diego and Frida lived there for some years until her untimely death in 1954.


Thanks, I'll bookmark this.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

ElPaso2012 said:


> Thanks, I'll bookmark this.


It's nice to put a tiny piece of my studies of Mexican art to good use. And don't forget that Sr. Google is your friend!


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

Indeed, but sometimes it's still more pleasurable to get information from a human being who has taken the time to actually impart knowledge directly.


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## Anonimo (Apr 8, 2012)

> and I got the pleasure to enjoy the McDonalds just down the street.


Sigh...Mexico City is one of the great gastronomic meccas of the world's capital cities. Too bad you chose McDonald's. I hope that later you ate something local and good. (I haven't read past Post 1 yet.)


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

Anonimo said:


> Sigh...Mexico City is one of the great gastronomic meccas of the world's capital cities. Too bad you chose McDonald's. I hope that later you ate something local and good. (I haven't read past Post 1 yet.)


In the main plaza in Durango there is some very old architecture, and the buildings facing the plaza obviously have a long history. Yet the first thing I saw as I approached on foot was the familiar big M on one of these buildings. Right next door was a Sub Sandwich store. I tend to agree with Anonimo, why would I travel all the way to Durango to eat in either one of them? To each his own, though. Both outlets were obviously quite popular with the locals.


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## cscscs007 (Jan 8, 2011)

I had coffee at McDonalds and then went and sat at the benches in the island in the middle of the street. I saved my meals for tortas and tacos which were delicious.


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## maesonna (Jun 10, 2008)

I recently visited the Casa Azul (Frida and Diego’s house in Coyoacán). I recommend it because it gives a different perspective of her than any of the exhibits of her work. This museum-house is curated to show how Frida’s life was deliberately shaped by her as a sort of work of performance art which she developed to avoid making her pain and disability the main thing about her from her friends’ point of view.


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