Nativity Scenes

During the holiday season, nativity scenes abound in Mexico City. Some are as simple as a shoebox and figurines, while others, like this one in Pedregal del Lago, are elaborate masterpieces in their own right. Feliz Navidad. 

Esculpturas de Musica

Some of the sculpture work is particularly impressive. Here, these body instruments fit right in to the tone that is San Jacinto, a little bossa nova and a little bolero... 

San Jacinto reloaded

Today I stopped by San Jacinto in the Zona Sur. This plaza is always bursting with colors, traditional art and funky designs. I needed to breathe some cultura before heading back to California.  

Read This

The Festival de la Lectura is a new tradition to support literacy in Mexico City and the rest of the country. The selection is rich in history, contemporary and art.  

Festival de le Lectura

I accidentally stumbled upon the 4th annual Festival de la Lectura on Paseo de la Reforma. I was in the neighborhood to pick up my North Face jacket since I will be skiing over winter break in Big Bear, California.

I was very impressed with the selection of books and the level of specialty that the vendors mastered. This festival is from Dec 11 through the 19. It is on Paseo de la Reforma between the Angel monument and the Diana la Cazadora fountain.

This festival is indicative of how Mexico City is full of sorpresas.

Not A Black & White World

This is one of the many formal entrances to the center square in Coyoacan. The colorful nature of the items sold at this open air mercado is worth the trip alone. The weather in Mexico City is genuinely temperate and on a great day, Coyoacan is the place to be.  

Fountain of Vida

This is the Coyoacan fountain in the center of the main square. Coyoacan is a nahuatl word that represents the influence coyotes had on the description given by indigenous tribes to this part of the city. Today, the fountain is the centerpiece of an ongoing tradition that celebrates life through food, art and community.  

Domingos en Coyoacan

Coyoacan is an oasis in Mexico City. As a result, Coyoacan is a popular destination on Sunday afternoons for many chilangos (as Mexico City residents are known to the outside world). Coyoacan is an old town square with various plazas, a church, a fountain and a kiosko. The plazas are crowded with merchants, tourists and pedestrian traffic.

The plaza periphery is anchored by traditional restaurants and cantinas. Street vendors hawk their snacks, t-shirts and souvenirs to the onslaught of pedestrians inching their way from one corridor to the next.

Sundays are enjoyable because one can enjoy a nice breakfast, some pleasant people watching, and a little browsing through authentic and pathetic street vendor merchandise.

Rising Above It All

On a lucky Sunday, you may even encounter a carnival in Coyoacan. As you can see, some visitors find interesting ways to rise above it all on their visit to this refreshing and jewel of a place in Mexico City.  

Superheroes Need Breaks Too

Even Scooby Doo, Superman and Spiderman can´t get enough of Coyoacan! Coyoacan has become a center for authentic pieces of art but also a place where modern culture intermingles and fuses with the old.  

Arte en Plaza San Jacinto

Street vendors and local artisans clutter the central square as patrons lounge and enjoy the plethora of art. Visitors should start off their day with a bowl of tortilla soup in one of the many restaurants around Plaza San Jacinto and then stroll around the marketplace for some trinkets and authentic souvenirs.

Toro Gordo

Most of the local artwork sold in Plaza San Jacinto is traditional and colorful. Some of the distortions are a welcome and refreshing view of cultural practices and controversial ¨sports,¨ as is bullfighting.

Angel y La Muerte

Angel and Death enjoy a nice Saturday afternoon break in one of Plaza San Jacinto´s many vibrant sidewalks. After a long week of toil, everyone deserves a nice day under the Mexican sun.

Sabado Tarde en Plaza San Jacinto

A great place to spend a nice Saturday morning and afternoon is in Plaza San Jacinto in the Zona Sur of Mexico City. Plaza San Jacinto is located off Avenida Revolucion behind the San Angel Teatro and near the Museo del Carmen. If driving south, this is before the Eje 10, aka Rio de la Magdalena by Plaza Loreto. Metro users should take the Barranca del Muerto stop and then take a Micro bus for $2.50 mexican pesos down Avenida Revolucion. Get off the micro after the Pemex station.

Plaza San Jacinto´s unique setting resembles a small town atmosphere, allowing its patrons and visitors to experience a well-deserved escape from the hustle and bustle of metropolitan life. Visitors are strongly encouraged to drop by on Saturdays when local artisans and painters share their colorful work.

Driving Acapulco

Driving through the Acapulco hills provides a memorable view of the harbor and the open beaches.

Barcos en Agua de Descanso

Acapulco boats taking a break from the Pacific Ocean.

Into the Great Wide Blue Pacifico

Cliff diving is a major tourist attraction in Acapulco. In a place called La Quebrada, Mexican cliff divers plunge into the narrow canyon bottom and miraculously survive.

Pirates of Acapulco

Acapulco is in the state of Guerrero in southern Mexico. Acapulco was once a major trade port for the Spanish during the colonial period. During this time many trade ships arrived from Manila, the Philippines. Of course, during that same time, pirates were a force to be reckoned with and Acapulco was no exception.

Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico (ITAM)

I am Fulbright-Garcia Robles Fellowship recipient with a focus on Binational Business. As a result, during my 10-month stay in Mexico City, I take MBA level business courses at the ITAM, the Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico. The ITAM has two campuses, the undergraduate campus in Rio Hondo near San Angel and the graduate campus in Santa Teresa near Pedregal. Both campuses are in the south of the city.

The ITAM is well respected on a national and international level. The students in the MBA program are generally very sharp and incredibly driven. The atmosphere is collegial but with the expected elements of competitiveness. The faculty is equally impressive, as most are at the forefront of their fields. In general, the ITAM is a prestigious place to learn about binational business, because of its facilities, students and faculty.

The ITAM is a feeder school for many American and European graduate schools looking for attractive and promising graduate-level applicants.

Playas de Acapulco

Acapulco beach is quite the scene. There are plenty of great hangout places and the sun is perfect over the Pacific ocean. 

Angelitos Negros

Taxco angel on the wall.
This angelito reminded me of an old and classic Mexican film titled "Angelitos Negros" (1948)starring Pedro Infante. The film's title actually comes from a popular Mexican song titled "Pintame Angelitos Negros." Both the song and the film tackle the issue of race in Mexican society.

The song specifically discusses the lack of black angels in religious murals, sculpture collections, and figurine ensembles. In the song, the singer pleads to the painter to add a black baby even though the virgin may be white and the other angels fair skinned.

The film tackles the challenges of interracial marriages/arrangements and their effects on later generations. In this film, Pedro Infante and his wife in the film are both white, but they have a black daughter. Discovering the roots of their black daughter helps both Pedro Infante and his wife in the film understand more about their heritage.

http://pedroinfante.yomarnathalia.com/pinfante/AngelitosNegros1948.html

Although Mexico is primarily an indigenous and european blend of peoples, it should be noted that in states like Veracruz and Guerrero there is a substantial black population. In Veracruz and Guerrero, the blacks are descendants of the slave trade, as Acapulco in Guerrero and Veracruz, Veracruz are two main seaports that were used heavily during the Spanish colonial period in Mexico.

Acapulco Times

This weekend I took off to Acapulco, Mexico´s oldest beach resort on the Pacific Ocean in the state of Guerrero. Acapulco is about 3.5 hours south of Mexico City. If you go by bus, you take about 5 hours and get to watch an American movie with Spanish subtitles if you´re lucky. If you´re not, then you get some dubbed Spanish over the original. A bus ride to Acapulco from Mexico City is about 290 pesos each way.

Parishioners

Taxco's church is full of parishioners inside praying to their favorite saint, tourists strolling around its pastel colored halls, and photographers stealing shots of its cherubs, angels and apostles.

Iglesia

This is a picture of Taxco's main church on the Zocalo (central square). The shot was taken from Restaurante Las Ranas, where you can get some mean green enchiladas mineras with chicken inside!

Old Colonial Walls

Taxco is graced with old colonial walls that are losing their coats of paint to the all-encroaching test of time. Walking around this small town surrounded by hills and steep cliffs is very therapeutic. In fact, the town seems very condensed, as if it were built to keep you inside and close to everyone there. It is impossible to not be friendly when you are sharing narrow streets, steep stairs and crumbling walls with other people.

Feria Nacional de la Plata

Taxco is a charming silver mining town where indigenous and mestizo artisans of the state of Guerrero share their crafts with the rest of the world. In Mexico, as in other places around the world, the concept of death is embraced with humor, iconography, and physical personifications.

Tiempo de Taxco

This past weekend I took off to Taxco, an old silver mining town about 3 hours south of Mexico City. I paid $104 pesos (roughly $9.50 US dollars) to get there. I was there for the official start of the Festival Nacional de la Plata. Throughout the festival, a princess and her court are selected, the governor oversees the festivities in the state of Guerrero, and various Mexican pop stars perform live every night.
Taxco is a picturesque colonial city with a stunning central square, quaint cobblestone streets and impressive alley-ways. The people here are extremely friendly, the food is surprisingly cheap and good, and the hotels are equally economically and very nice (about $400 pesos for a double).

Playa de los Artistas

Playa de los Artistas in Montezuma, Costa Rica delivers. You will be fed and treated as the shipwrecked pirate you were in a past life. The sangria is amazing, especially as you enjoy the Pacific Ocean at your feet.

Costa Rican Cuisine

This restaurant is aptly situated on the sand overlooking the Montezuma playa. For dinner, the staff will place heavy antique candles on each table, creating an ambiance of shipwrecked pirates feasting on amazing organic cuisine.

Teach a Person How to Fish...

On the Pacific side of CR, many people make a living by fishing. Others unload ships coming from South America and neighboring Central American countries.

Hammock Time, Can't Touch This

Most shops in the Costa Rican countryside carry the standard tropical shirts, hammocks and mosquito nets.

Girl on Swing Mural

This fountain is in front of an old public school in San Jose´s historic center.
Notice the mural of the girl on a swing in the background.

Zip Lining in CR

When in Costa Rica, it is a must to zip line through its cloud forests. This is a cloud forest in Monteverde.