Last day in Mexico - famous houses

There are so many ways we could have spent our last day, but we didn't fancy too much travelling as we have been on a lot of buses lately and we have a long long journey ahead of us back to Japan on Thursday.

We opted to do some city stuff and started by taking the metro to the neighbourhood of Coyoacan to visit some famous houses. The first thing we saw down in the metro station was a group of about 20 vulnerable-looking Japanese tourists with a guide. They are safer in a group I suppose. We jumped on Linea 2 bound for Universidad, changed at Higaldo and took Linea 3 straight to Coyoacan. I liked how each station had a picture - very easy to spot your stop! Many of the stations were names of generals and revolutionaries. I liked the picture of Zapata the best (because of the hat).
Have a read at another blogger's entry about the choice of metro stations - very interesting (and funny - you can also see the picture of Emilianio Zapata) http://dayeffay.blogspot.com/2007/11/metro-station-history-of-mexico.html

As we came out of the metro station, we spotted a Starbucks..... yeah, in we went.....I know, I know. I can't get over how friendly everyone is - people always ask where we are from and we have a bit of banter. It's refreshing as in Japan, people in shops and cafes never deviate from the script.

We took a taxi from there to Frida's house. You couldn't miss it as it is the brightest blue you can imagine. We enjoyed visiting where she lived with Diego Rivera for 25 years and where they both worked. Many of their paintings were there and a lovely collection of family photographs.

From there, we walked to Trotsky's house. It was also easy to spot - the windows had been walled up for his protection (so much for that). I'll let the pictures speak as I was allowed to take photos inside for a small fee. http://picasaweb.google.com/jomynard/MexicoCityPart2

















Me at "La Casa Azul" (home of artists Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera)

Puebla

We only had one day in Puebla, but we fitted loads in. The best thing to do is to wander randomly looking at the beautiful colonial buildings and tile work. Here are a few other things we did:

- visited the ruins of the church of San Francisco
- visited the massive cathedral (it reminded us of the ones in Granada in Spain and Cusco in Peru)
- listened to live music at cafes on the Zocalo (main square)
- tasted mole poblano (very rich, a bit sickly actually)
- visited the ex-convent of Santa Rosa. We had a fascinating guided tour of the museum and visited the kitchen where mole poblano was first made!
- visited the victorian arcade
- visited the artist's quarter and bought some ceramics
- walked along the street lined with shops catering for festivals and parties
- visited the amazing and beautiful old library in the cultural centre
- bought some famous "dulces" (sweets)

Here is a picture of one of the main shopping streets (5 de Mayo). More pictures here: http://picasaweb.google.com/jomynard/Puebla

Day out with Manuel and David

We had such a fun day out today. David and Manuel are great company and we had such a good time. Laughing, singing, chatting.... and even fitting in a couple of amazing (and really unknown) historical sites. The first one was Quiahuiztlan which is a pre-Hispanic Totanac cemetry. Who are the Totanacs? They were were the guys who allied with the Spanish in the 1500s. The site we visited had a couple of temples and 70 tombs all overlooking the sea. Very nice.

The second place we visited was the beach at Villa Rica - the site of Cortes' landing. We had a few drinks and some spicy fishy stuff while looking at the sea.

The third place we visited was Zempoala which is a Totonac site featuring some great pyramids.




















Us posing infront of the impressive peak behind Quiahuiztlan

More photos of the day here: http://picasaweb.google.com/jomynard/DayOutWithDavidAndManuel

Museo de Antropologia

We spent a lovely morning on Sunday enjoying Xalapa's anthropology museum. This was one of my favourite pieces - a giant Olmec head. The first Olmec site was around 1200 BC!

After the museum, we enjoyed a local market and sampled some street food (of course). We were in awe at the produce on sale. We'd eat well if we lived here (i.e. had a kitchen).

More photos here: http://picasaweb.google.com/jomynard/MuseoAntropologia?feat=directlink

Templo Mayor

Remains of an Aztec temple right in the centre of Mexico City. We also visited the excellent museum.