Alejandro and I are planning to return to Ohio for a visit in April for the total eclipse of the sun. Of course, we will be seeing all my friends back home, and I want to bring them some gifts from Mexico. That trip is months away, and we haven't even made our airline reservations yet. However, since some of the presents I want to give are Christmas-related, I figured that the selection in the handicraft markets would be better now.
On Saturday Alejandro and I were planning on going downtown again, so I asked him if he would like to go to the Ciudadela Handicrafts Market. He said, "Sure." We headed off with a couple of "morrales", woven shoulder bags, for carrying our purchases, and took the Metrobus to the market.
The Ciudadela Market is probably the largest handicraft market in the city. It was the first of its kind in the country, and it was built prior to the 1968 Summer Olympics to promote Mexico's rich tradition of crafts and folk art to visitors. There are more than 350 vendors on the four acre site. I have written before that a lot of the merchandise for sale here is pure tourist junk. But you can also find amidst the kitsch some nice quality handicrafts.
This stall had lots of Christmas merchandise.
At the entrance was a Nativity scene with large figures made out of henequen, the fiber of an agave plant from Yucatán.
We went up and down every aisle of market, and we ended up buying more than just Christmas related items. We ended up with gifts for just about everyone on our list. I was afraid Alejandro would be bored on this shopping trip, but he actually seemed to enjoy it.
Of course, I am not going to mention or show what we bought, since some of my friends will be reading this.
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