Day 3 in the DF

Monday, a holiday in Mexico City.  That means no museums are open.  But that’s okay there’s plenty to do.

We have a time slot scheduled at the Luis Barragan house.  He is an influential architect of the 20th century, the Frank Lloyd Wright of Mexico, a Pritzker prize winner.  His house is in a working class neighborhood of Mexico City and looks like all the other houses on the street but inside it’s a different story.  He loves the play of color and light and is famous for his staircase that looks like it is not supported.  On his patio, no furniture.  On the tour with us were architectural students from around the world.

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Day 2 in the DF

I have a new passion – it’s name is Concha which is a pan dulce bread and the Conchita which is a muffin.  A sweet bun on the bottom and a crunchy  scallop shell shaped topping of cocoa and cinnamon-totally awesome.  I discovered these breakfast treats in my pastry basket on Sunday morning.  I’ve never had one before – they are heavenly.  Those of you who know me know that I rarely will eat a muffin but hey, I’m on vacation!

Day 2 in the DF started at 8:30A meeting Alvaro in the lobby of the hotel.  It’s not really a lobby but more like a sitting area out of Architectural Digest.  Alvaro mapped out the day and off we went.  First by taxi to the Paseo de la Reforma, a large boulevard reminescent of the Champs Elysee which cuts across Mexico City.  It’s home to many embassies including the American Embassy, shops, hotels and on Sunday it is closed to cars.  Only bikes, pedestrians and running clubs, lots of running clubs.

Ciudad Mexico – Day One….

Mexico City, Ciudad Mexico, the DF – all names for the 5th largest city in the world with 22 million people and counting and sitting at over 7,000 feet above sea level.  People wondered why go there?  Well, why not.  We decided to combine Mexico City with Zihautenejo or “Zihau” as the locals calls it.  A big, big city combined with the beach.

We arrived in Mexico City and checked into a 35 room uber-trendy boutique hotel called Las Alcobas located in the Polanco neighborhood.  The Polanco is full of boutiques, restaurants, art galleries, and home to the sophisticated residents of Mexico City.  We immediately unpacked and headed out to begin our adventure and of course eat!  We were directed to a casual neighborhood restaurant specializing in a type of taco called the “Al Pastor” (also the name of the restaurant) — marinated pork cooked on a vertical rotating spit, like gyros. That’s the Lebanese influence in Mexico City.  Six different salsas were served with the tacos and we also ordered some guacamole and a couple of beers to wash it all down!

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