[ Introduction to Mexico City ]

Three quick notes—I type this up in different places so there aren’t always accents where there are supposed to be and I’m sorry about that. Also, I have been editing pictures but they haven’t loaded with those edits, which is hugely disappointing and I am also sorry about that. It is somewhat foggy which takes away from the color. Just imagine everything slightly more vivid and with a contrast of + 0.20. ;) Finally, I have no clue why the spacing is wonky or how to fix it. Lo siento. 

For breakfast we went to Café Blanca, the same café that John took me too yesterday! They served the same great bread and I had an omelet nopalli (which I think means cactus?). It was okay but not the kind I would order again. :) Then we set off for La Plaza de la Constitucion (or as all main squares are called, el zocalo) once more, where John gave us an in depth history of the square and the importance of the buildings surrounding it. Everything is sinking by about a meter per year in Mexico city (in part because it was built on the ruins Tenochtitlan which have an uneven density, but also in part from all the groundwater being extracted), so some of the buildings are cracked or slightly leaning.

We went into the Cathedral de Santo Maria, which is the most significant religious building according to Danny. John gave us a rundown of the different styles of architecture and explained the story of Black Jesus (as I call him). We then went to Templo Mayor, which is right next door! We will be going to that museum soon so I’ll go more in depth on that later. :) 

After that we went to a museum of which I don’t know the name, but it had a lot of contemporary art! I can’t say I was a huge fan but there was one room which showed the back of a house/possibly palace and had tile work done by Mexicans based on the Spanish style which had a glazing technique copied from the Arabs (so that was cool!). 

We then walked down a curved street—it is supposedly so because an Aztec fence runs underneath it, causing the middle to bubble while the sides sink!

Danny then wanted to show us how to get around on the metro, so we went below ground and checked it out! There were three huge recreations of the zocalo from different time periods. The first showed a recreation of what it may have looked like at the height of the Aztec rule. 

 John and I also had a long conversation about the performance of gender and situations of cross dressing in Aztec culture. It was incredibly fascinating! Imagine a man dressed as a virgin holstering a sword to lead his army into battle. Further imagine the second in command (or Joe Biden if you will) gloriously done up in the costume of an earth goddess. In other cases, women were depicted as having power if they had demonic features. All in all, really neat stuff, and we will get to learn more about the southern city-states doing it once we get to the coast! :D

Once we came out the other side we checked out a fountain with statues recreating the origin story of Tenochtitlan. (A super brief retelling: the Aztecs wandered until the saw an eagle on a cactus, which their god previously told them would be a representation of himself and that they should build a city there. So they did.) 

It is ironic that from the back, it seems the Aztecs are appealing to the Mexican Government.

 For lunch I had a torta con pastor (closest thing is a pork sandwich?) and it was absolutely delicious! They shred the pork off of a skewer like lamb, and they put a pineapple over it for flavor. :)

After lunch we stopped by the Museo de Bellas Artes, which was the baby of Ponfilio Diaz. IT is magnificent and beautiful and incorporates European styles with Aztec art.

We then walked more to the large park next to it and they explained what our assignments would be. In short we will be doing mini ethnographies! They had us start right away. Carey and I were on the same page: we were both astonished by and interested in all the PDA we were seeing. Leaving out details, it’s a lot more than in the States. So, with a third guy, Josh, joining us, we interviewed two couples about what forms of affection are in Mexico City for friends vs. more-than-friends, how it differs among generations, and if it is different for non-hetero couples. Carey was killing it with the Spanish! (I didn’t understand the answers very well, unfortunately D: ). This was easily the most exciting part of the day! Both couples were willing to talk to us (even if it was entirely male dominated) and we learned a ton of new stuff in the short 30 minutes. After that we regrouped and realized all of us had touched upon PDA; a great discussion ensued. :)

 Not far away was the tallest building in Latin America until recently, and we were able to take elevators to the very top! The views were incredible!!!! I also snagged a pencil to add to my collection. :D

Some people headed back to the hotel for a break before dinner, but Carey and I explored a bit more! We stopped in at a few more churches and attempted to find the bookstore street, but ended up at the zocalo again (entirely my fault). But we headed back to the hotel after, had dinner with the group (Café Blanca again, chilaquiles con pollo—imagine chicken nachos with spicy salsa all over—and orchata—rice milk with cinnamon) and, as usual, everything was delicious (although, to be fair, I could not feel my mouth for most of it. 

Afterwards I played cards for a bit and hung out, then it was bedtime! I am so excited for the assignments, because we get to choose our own research topic. Also, everyone has been so easy to talk to and get along with; I am really enjoying it!

Paz y amor,

Abby