Bienvenido a Mexico City, one of the financial powerhouses and cultural capital of Latin America.
A place with ancient roots, in recent years this mega-city of 21 million has undergone a renaissance, exploding into, a city of color!
Mexico City’s color can be found on every street. It’s in the sunbaked plazas and monuments, the dappled shade and quiet of its courtyards, and in the brushstrokes of its murals and street art.
It’s in the faded pastels and tile work of colonial buildings, it’s in the cantinas,… the music,…the cuisine,…everywhere there is color. If life has a color, that color would be called, Mexico City!
The Zócalo
Despite its legendary sprawl, Mexico City isn’t hard to navigate. Just like the paint upon an artist’s palette, the city is divided into distinctive boroughs, all with their own shades and moods.
Mexico City’s colors run deepest in the main square, the Zócalo, once the epicenter of the Mexican Civilization. When the Spanish arrived in 1521, the Aztec temples were swiftly leveled, and a colonial city rose in its place.
The Metropolitan Cathedral
Today, this area is presided over by a temple of a different kind, The Metropolitan Cathedral.
San Ildefonso College
Throughout the Centro Histórico district, over 1500 heritage buildings vie for your attention. Visit San Ildefonso College and be introduced to the earliest masterpieces of Mexican muralism.
La Ciudadela
Dive into a kaleidoscope of color and craft at La Ciudadela, an artisanal market featuring over 300 stalls.
Casa de Azulejos
Then admire the blue and white splendor of Casa de Azulejos, The House of Tiles.
The Museo Biblioteca Palacio Postal and the Palacio de Bellas Artes
The streets of this district overflow with incredible museums and galleries, such as the Museo Biblioteca Palacio Postal, and the Palacio de Bellas Artes.
Museo Franz Mayer
For a window into the life and color of yesteryear, visit the fabulous Museo Franz Mayer, a glittering display of cultural treasures and everyday items that the tireless collector amassed throughout his lifetime.
Alameda Central
When it’s time for a change of color, head to leafy avenues of Alameda Central.
Chapultepec Park
Discover even more shades of green at Chapultepec Park, one of the largest urban parks in the world.
The Auditorio Nacional, the museum of anthropology, and the popular Chapultepec Zoo.
As well as serving as the city’s lungs, the park is home to cultural institutions such as the Auditorio Nacional, and the museum of anthropology, as well as the popular Chapultepec Zoo.
Ninos Heroes
Pay your respects to the Ninos Heroes. This monument honors the six boy soldiers who gave their lives defending Castillo de Chapultepec when it fell to the Americans in 1847.
Today, the castle serves as the National Museum of History, shining a light through the darkest, and brightest chapters, of Mexico’s history.
The Museo Soumaya
Just to the north is upscale Polanco, and it’s neighbor Nuevo Polanco, a former warehouse area rapidly being transformed by new architectural visions.
Rising like shape-shifting plasma, the Museo Soumaya is filled with over 60,000 artworks from the private collection of billionaire, Carlos Slim.
Displaying masterpieces from across the ages, this free museum features European masters such as Van Gogh, Dali, and Rodin.
Museo Jumex
The spirit of philanthropy continues just across the road, at Museo Jumex, a building that echoes the district’s industrial past, and which houses the largest private contemporary art collection in Latin America.
Village of Coyoacán
To the south of the city is the once ancient village of Coyoacán, “the place of coyotes”.
In the early 20th century this area flowered into a place of Bohemia; its artists, writers, and intellectuals inspiring and enriching not only Mexico but the entire world.
The Blue House
Visit The Blue House, the birthplace of Frieda Kahlo. In neighboring San Angel, explore the museum, house, and studio of Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, where these two giants of Mexican art worked, lived, and loved.
Ciudad Universitaria
Just to the south are the incredible murals and buildings of Ciudad Universitaria, which when constructed in the 1950s, was the city’s largest single building project since the time of the Aztecs.
The university’s Olympic stadium
It is here, at the university’s Olympic stadium, that you can see one of Rivera’s last epic murals, a work he never lived to complete.
Roma and Condesa
The spirit of Bohemia and creativity continues amid the sophisticated hues and beauty of districts such, Roma and Condesa.
Xochimilco
At Xochimilco, simply float away on a riot of color on the last of the city’s Aztec canals, exploring markets and gardens along the way.
Conclusion
In Mexico City, there is color everywhere, and once experienced, they will never fade.
All you have to do is close your eyes, and you will see the many colors of Mexico City again, today, tomorrow, always…