Mexico City 1

Posted on January 22, 2003 in Photos Vacations

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The scenes I’ve selected all came from a morning walk through the neighborhood that runs from the Alameda Central to the Zocalo. A subtitle for this might be “Memories of Dirt and Splendor”.

The Zocalo is named for a platform which existed in the center of the square for many years. A despot began the project of constructing a monument to Mexican independence. Events prevented the completion of more than the base of the proposed monument. For many years, it remained in this uncompleted state and the official name of the plaza, which is Constitution Square, was forgotten. The base has since been removed.

Zocalo is encircled by hotels, a jewelry center, the Cathedral, the Templo Mayor, and the Palace of Justice (the nation’s capitol). People meet each other here; eat ceviche, tortas, and other Mexican culinary adventures; sell crafts; consult witch doctors; demonstrate against the Government; and sleep on the wide gray expanse. (I saw three men at different times doing so.) This is the oldest part of Mexico City, where the conquistadors and the priests literally buried every trace of the splendid and clean Aztec city which stood here. Revitalization projects are underway so that the neighborhood will once again become a hub of activity both by day (which it is) and by night.

Note: The soldiers in the Palace of Justice are there because it also serves as the national treasury. They were, at best, friendly and, at worse, indifferent.

With nearly a thousand photos to choose from, the question is where do I start and in what order do I proceed? My technique for today’s selection worked like this: I ran through the pictures on my hard disk and chose the first that caught my eye. Then I picked out others similar in theme and posted them.

And the series shall continue until I am tired of posting things.