A Day in Puebla

Not far from Mexico City, the city of Puebla is located, like the capital, in a valley surrounded by volcanoes.  It is currently the fifth-largest city in Mexico, but like the capital it has a beautiful and well-preserved historic center. 

Here is a view of the city taken from the civic center which occupies the site of a former fort on a hillside above the downtown historic area. 

The zocalo (the main square) is dominated by the cathedral, which is actually larger than the metropolitan cathedral in Mexico City. 

There is a legend about the bells for the towers being too heavy to be lifted up into the belfries, and the builders fretting about how they were going to get them into place.  One night, it is said, when the city was asleep, the angels came and lifted the bells into place... (When I heard the story I commented, "I think angels have better things to do!")

The cupola is over 40 meters high, and dominates the center of the city

 













Naturally, the interior of the cathedral was decorated for Christmas. 

 

There are something like 70 historic churches in the center of Puebla, one of them is the Jesuit Church, Iglesia de la Compania, which has these fantastic baroque carvings on the exterior.

 

 

I was particularly struck by the exteriors of two other churches -- this pink one! -- which I've forgotten the name of.

 

Puebla is known for its tile work, called talavera, and the church dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe has a tiled exterior.  If you look closely you can see the larger tiles tell the story of the  Virgin of Guadalupe, which is important not only to the religious but also the social and cultural history of Mexico.

 

One of the most fascinating sites in the city is the Museo Casa del Alfenique.  Alfenique refers to an elaborate merengue confection and the light and airy decoration on the exterior looks like it could be made of egg white and sugar. 

 

The house, which over the years was owned by series of successful merchants,  is constructed in the traditional style around a courtyard, and even has its own lavish family chapel. 

 



 

A good visit -- and a place I look forward to seeing again.  A last view of the Zocalo:

 

 

Tepotzotlan

Once upon a time, Tepotzotlan was a sleepy little village about 50 kilometers from Mexico City.  It still qualifies as a village, and it's still about 50 kilometers from the city, but it is by no means sleepy.  In the late 16th (or was it early 17th) century Jesuits founded a church, a convent,  and a colegio (probably something like a prep school) for local Indian boys.   The whole complex has been turned into a stunningly beautiful and fascinating museum.

My friend Brian is here from New Jersey, and we decided to get out of the city and see something different, so we took the Metro (city subway) and then a bus, which took about 1 1/2 hours and cost all of 21pesos (less than $2USD).  The museum is fascinating -- it tells the story of Mexico through portraits, artifacts, furniture, household items and liturgical items.  The real gem is the convent church -- amazing Baroque decoration on the retablos (reredos behind the altar): birds, plants, flowers, leaves, angels, shells and much more in intricately carved wood gilded.  And painted ceilings in the most over-the-top kind of embellishment. 

Lunch in a restaurant within the confines of the old Convent topped it off -- pollo en mole poblano  and   pork in adobo sauce washed down with good Mexican beer.  Another day, another adventure.


A view of the Church, convent and colegio,  now the Museo de los Virreyes

The main square of Tepotzotlan.



 Here I am standing in front of the pulpit of the convent church.

(Where else would I be?)

 

 

The altar of the Virgin of Guadalupe

 

 

Close-up of one of the altarpieces, to show the detail, although now photo can begin to show the beauty and grandeur of this place.

 

 

Frescoes on the ceiling and the interior of the dome

 

 

"On Behalf of a Grateful Nation"

Memorial Day, which was celebrated yesterday, is not about picnics and barbecues, long weekends at the beach, parades, or sales at the mall.  It is, of course, to remember and honor those who gave their lives for the freedom and security of their country.  Here in  Mexico, that message seems stronger without all the traditional trappings of a US Memorial Day celebration. 

The Memorial Day Observance I attended took place at the American Military Cemetery in Mexico City -- the oldest of its kind outside of the US.  Located in a busy shopping and residential section of the city, it is an oasis of peace and quiet in the midst of the noise and bustle.  In attendance were other US expatriates, including staff members of the US Embassy.  Other countries sent representatives as well, including the Philippines, Japan, Canada, and several European nations.  The ceremony culminated in the traditional wreath-laying at the monument.

 

The keynote speaker was the charge d'affaires of the US embassy, but perhaps the best speech was given by a US officer who shared stories and remembrances of members of the armed services whom he had known who later died in combat. 

 

A highlight of the morning for me was meeting three members of the Mexican Air Force Squadron 201.  Known popularly as the 'Aztec Eagles,' they fought alongside Allied Forces in the Pacific during World War 2.  There is a plaque in memory of their fallen companions on the wall of Christ Church.  Mexico was one of only two Latin American nations that actually supplied combat forces during that conflict. 

 



I was proud to be an American.  And proud, too, and humbled, to be here in Mexico.  Somehow the overarching message of the Memorial Day of observance was the yearning for peace among all nations.  Amen to that!

Place of the Coyotes

Recently I was in 'the place of the Coyotes' for a tour.   Actually it's called Coyoacan, and it's one of the oldest neighborhoods in Mexico City.  Cortes considered making it his capital at the time of the conquest, but eventually opted for the center of the city where the old capital of the Aztec (technically Mexica -- pronounced meh -sheek -uh) was.

Coyoacan was important in pre-Columbian Mexico because it had fresh water -- here is one of the only open rivers in the whole city -- most of the rest of them are covered over and re-routed underground. 

Coyoacan is best known in the tourist world for the preserved home of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera.  We did not visit there, but saw some of the lesser known sites.   For example:


The Casa Alvarado, now the 'Museum of Sound' with audio files of the History of Mexico, 




Chapel of St. Anthony of Padua

Plaza Sta. Catalina -- this church was built for the indigenous people on a large square, as they were unaccustomed to worshipping inside, and preferred an outdoor religious ceremony. 

 

 





The Italian Cultuiral Center, housed in a lovely old hacienda, offers language courses, a library of books in and about  Italian, and a wonderful little Italian grocery store!

The Gardens of the Italian Cultural Center

 

We ended up in the center of Coyoacan, in the Jardín del Centenario.  At the entrance to this plaza where this portal is located. 

 

At the opposite end of the plaza is the colonial church of San Juan Bautista, which has some amazing frescoes on the ceiling.  (There were baptisms taking place while we were there, so I didn't get any photos...)

 

 

Enjoyed a great (if pricey) lunch at one of the many restaurants that face the plaza. 

The coyote fountain above is in the center of the plaza, and like most public spaces in Mexico, it is populated by street performers -- musicians, magicians and actors -- as well as vendors selling artwork, trinkets, and souvenirs. 

 

 

 

 



Museo Nacional de Moneda -- A trip to the Mint

A couple of blocks away from the Plaza Santo Domingo, in Mexico City's Centro Historico, the downtown neighborhood, is located the old mint.  This is the factory where, for over 100 years, all of Mexico's coins were minted.  It is an enormous complex, covering four whole city blocks, but amazingly, it is cannot be seen from the street -- all around the outside of the complex there are tiny shops and markets, selling everything from underwear to toys to paper products.  These line the entire perimeter of the building, obscuring it from view.  On Saturday past, I went on a tour of the mint with a group of (mostly) Americans.

The mint is located in a transformed 16th century hacienda.  Although it is now in the center of the downtown, at the time it was built, this was the very outskirts of the city. 

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Typical of the homes of the period, the rooms were centered around an interior courtyard.  This was ideal for the mint, because the ore could be brought from the street and put in this central courtyard, where it was secure. 

What could be behind this door?



After some opening words of introduction and explanation, our guide led us to this door -- not very impressive or noteworthy.  Until he opened it. 

 

This cavernous room looked to be at least two square blocks in area -- with walls and ceilings and floor blackened from the soot of years of coal burning to melt the ore, plus the ancient and grimy equipment  -- it looked like something out of a Dickens novel. 

 

Above is a picture of the oven where the copper, silver, and gold were melted.  If ever I'm having a bad day at work I'll remind myself of these guys who worked 12 hours a day, six days a week in the foundry, handling molten metal, in a room that averaged 55 degrees Celsius (that's 131 degrees Fahrenheit).  To keep cool in the heat the workers wore felt aprons (that's wool!) soaked in water and were allotted 4 liters of pulque daily. 

 

Above is the product that came out of the foundry -- metal ingots. 
 

 





The ingots are then pressed -- fifty times -- under high pressure to produce the long, flat metal pieces visible in right of the photo. 

 The 'blanks' are cut out of the metal slabs.

 

 

And I got to help!!!

 

 I had always thought that coins were made by pouring molten metal into a mold, and letting the metal cool off and solidify.  Actually, the 'blanks' receive their image by pressure (26 tons of pressure -- or something like that) in a machine that looks like this:

 

Blanks are put in the cup to the left, and after being impressed come out the shute into the box on the floor. 

The machine pressed out the design above -- I was told that it is one of the most famous and considered one of the most beautiful coins ever designed. The coin is named for the 'columns' to the left and right of the globe and crown in the center.  The ribbon coiled around the column inspired the sign for Mexican pesos -- an 'S' with one vertical line through it --$.  (The US dollar sign supposedly has two vertical lines through it.)  I also learned that over the years Mexico has been considered one of the premier locations in the world for the design and making of coins and medals.  It makes sense, since so much precious metal has been mined here over the years. 

 

 

Sábado

Sábado means Saturday. (It also means Sabbath, as in 'day of rest.') And it also is the name of one of the largest outdoor craft markets in Mexico City.  I had been wanting to see the Bazar del Sábado for a while now, but Saturdays have a way of getting taken up with one thing and another.  Finally this past Saturday (in Easter week) I finally had the chance to visit.  The Bazaar takes place in San Angel, which is a beautiful colonial neighborhood of cobblestone streets, baroque churches, and whitewashed stucco mansions in the south of the city. 

 

This is the convent Church of San Jacinto

The lovely carved and gilt altar



The tranquil courtyard

 



The Bazar Sábado is located along several of the neighborhood's plazas and streets, and features artesans displaying their typical popular Mexican crafts -- like tile, silver, jewelry, and embroidery -- but also includes paintings, photography, and sculptures.  The streets are crowded with tourists, shoppers, food vendors and musicians playing guitar, accordion, or hand organ.  A colorful way to spend a Saturday. (I'll be back closer to Christmas!)

 

Museo de Arte Moderno

Usually for my day off I do the usual errands -- shopping, dry cleaners, etc.  Today I decided I needed a real change of pace for my day off, so I decided to try again to visit the Museum of Modern Art.  It is located in the Parque de Chapultepec, a short bus ride from the house.  (Parque de Chapultepec is one of the largest urban parks in the world, it contains about a half-dozen other museums, plus a lake, a zoo, and various monuments.)  There are four major galleries in the museum,which is a 20th century building (1968, I think) with exhibition spaces on both sides of a large and quite impressive rotunda. 

I felt fortunate that there were docents available to give a tour through the museum.  It was like no kind of museum tour I've ever experienced.  To begin with, I was the only one on the tour -- so it was very personalized.  And, of course, it was in Spanish.  But instead of the guide giving explanations about the artist, the works, the background, etc. she asked my "What do you  see in this painting?"  So I had to explain to her what I was witnessing.  The other interesting aspect of the tour is that the exhibit we saw was a thematic presentation of works in the permanent collection of the Museum. 

 

This particular exhibition was entitled "A Century of criticism,"  The above picture at the entrance of the gallery is The Revolution gives back culture, by the great Mexican muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros. 

 

It might no be too difficult to imagine, given Mexico's history, that one of the institutions that met with some of the artists' most vehement criticism was religion, and the church in particular.  This is a tryptich by Diego Rivera, entitled The History of Religion. 



Here's a closer look at the three panels, for maximum impact:
1.  The Aztec Religion (note the bloody sacrifice)

2.  The Greco-Roman religion:
     (with more sacrifice -- note how Zeus/Jupiter is sticking a sword into the back of the other god)

3.  The Christian Religion. 
     (interesting -- the Christ here, while wearing a crown of thorns, is not the suffering
Christ offering his life as a sacrifice.)

I won't offer my interpretation here, but will repeat for you the docent's question: "What do you see here?"  (I think probably not something very complimentary to the Church. 

Here is another fascinating cultural critique of the Church, by another important Mexican artist:

Note that given this perspective the viewer stands in the place where the priest would be, and the people on the floor of the church, with outstreched arms seem to be asking the viewer to do the work of the priest and intercede on their behalf.  Note, too, the roof of the church is mostly missing, and there is a demonic figure holding the building together.  What do you see here?

I also spent some time in the sculpture garden that surrounds the museum.  An oasis of peace and beauty in the midst of the busy city.