At Iturbide's Palace

After our disappointment of not being able to see the "Feria del Mundo", we walked to Iturbide's Palace, an 18th century mansion in the heart of the Historic Center.  I have written about the palace numerous times, because it is the headquarters of the "Fomento Cultural Banamex", a non-profit organization founded by the Bank of Mexico to preserve and promote the cultural heritage of Mexico.  Every year they have several exhibits at the palace that are free to the public.  A new exhibit had opened which we had not seen yet, so we decided to go there.  Actually, there were three exhibits... one on the ground floor in the palace courtyard and two upstairs.  I would not rank any of them among the most spectacular exhibits that I have seen there, but they were all interesting.

Downstairs there was a display of more than 200 works by the Dutch-born artist Jan Hendrix.  In 1978 he moved to Mexico where he lives and works to this day.  The inspiration for his work is nature, in particular, the world of botany.  His works include large tapestries, silk-screen prints, pottery and metalwork.

Alejandro stands in front of a large tapestry depicting a mangrove.

More tapestries

His silkscreens are printed on silver.

Medicinal plants depicted on enameled metal

Large pieces of pottery

Alejandro poses in front of a metal sculpture.

Miracle of miracles!  Here is a contemporary artist whose works I actually find appealing!

In the next post we will go upstairs to see the other two exhibits.

Disappointment

(image taken from the internet)

 

Last weekend, Alejandro and I were looking forward to attending an event downtown called "Feria del Mundo" (Fair of the World).  The event was to be held last Friday, Saturday and Sunday at a building called the "Palacio de Autonomía" located about a block from the Zócalo.  Thirty countries from all over the world were participating, and they would be selling art, handicrafts and typical food.

Alejandro and I took the Metrobus and the subway and arrived at the Zócalo Saturday afternoon.  We are in the midst of the campaigns for the Presidential election in June.  Because of political demonstrations on the plaza, metal barricades had been set up in front of the National Palace.  Those barricades also blocked the street next to the National Palace, the street that we would have taken to get to the event.  We were told by the police that we would have walk around several city blocks and that we could access the street from the rear of the National Palace.  We did so, and we found barricades and a checkpoint there.  There was a long line of people waiting to pass through and go to the "Feria".  After waiting a while, we were told that there was going to be a demonstration on the Zócalo, and that the event was closing down.  We did not even attempt to return on Sunday, because an even bigger demonstration was planned for that day.

We were, of course, very disappointed.  But I can imagine the disappointment of the people who had traveled from across the globe to represent their countries in the "feria", only to have the event shut down for two of the three days.  If the event is held again next year, I wonder how many countries will bother to participate. 

Snow on the Mountain

The heat continues in Mexico City.  It is time for the beginning of the rainy season and cooler temperatures.  There have been some afternoons when the skies turned cloudy, and it looked as if we might have some showers.  Alas, we did not get any rain, but there has obviously been some precipitation up in the mountains.  A friend of Alejandro who is a mountain climber sent him some photos last weekend.  In spite of the heat down here in the valley, the pictures show a bit of snow on the volcanoes Popocatépetl and Izaccíhuatl.

  

I heard that because of La Niña, this summer and fall should be a very active season for tropical storms and hurricanes.  They are predicting that Mexico will have 45 storms on the Pacific and the Gulf coasts, ten more than normal.  Mexico City, high in the mountains never experiences hurricanes, but, as the storms move inland, they usually bring rain.  I hope that the coastal areas do not suffer damage and loss of life, but we need rain to relieve the drought and fill the reservoirs.  

Labels

For a number of years, the Mexican Department of Health has been placing labels on food products that are not healthy.  For example, this can of ground chipotle peppers in sauce has two labels... excess sugars and excess sodium.

I recently purchased a t-shirt from a store downtown to add to my collection to wear during the Day of the Dead season.

I had to laugh when I saw the tag... "This product has five labels.  Excess art.  Excess fashion.  Excess culture.  Excess tradition.  Excess passion."

Deco Renovation

Mexico City is filled with architecture ranging from Aztec temples to 21st century skyscrapers.  Some of its architectural gems are in a state of disrepair, so it is always nice to see one being restored.  Next door to the Alameda Park this art-deco building is in the process of renovation.

 

Beating the Heat

The unprecedented heat wave which has lasted since February continues unabated.  Today the temperature is supposed to reach 89 degrees Fahrenheit (31 C), and the long-term forecast is predicting highs of 90 or 91 for the next eight days.

While downtown, I saw a group of children who had found a way to keep cool... they were splashing around in one of the fountains in the Alameda Park.

The Women's Museum

 Mexico City boasts more than 150 museums.  I've read that only London, England, has more museums.  I have visited many but not all of them.  (And if truth be told, some of them really do not interest me at all.) Last Wednesday I went to the Women's Museum, a small museum that deals with the role of women in Mexico and their place in history.

So, here is a short history of some famous women in Mexican history...

Malintzin, better known as La Malinche, was a native woman who served as the interpreter and advisor to the Spanish conqueror Hernán Cortés.  She became his mistress and bore him his first son.  Several years later, Cortés married her off to one of his officers.  She is viewed by some as having betrayed her people, and to call someone a "Malinche" is to call that person a traitor.

A wooden statue of the Immaculate Virgin from 18th century Spain.  The Virgin Mary was viewed as the epitome of feminine perfection, an example for women of colonial Mexico to follow.

Breaking the mold of feminine expectations was Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, a brilliant scholar and the greatest poet of colonial Latin America.  She has been called a proto-feminist who challenged the hypocrisy of men and the assumption that women were intellectually inferior.  

  

A number of women played significant roles in the Mexico's War for Independence from Spain.

Josefa Ortiz, better known as "La Corregidora", played an active role in the independence movement, and it was she who warned Miguel Hidalgo when the Spanish authorities learned of the conspiracy and troops were on their way to arrest him.

Leona Vicaro wrote articles in favor of Mexico's independence and is considered Mexico's first woman journalist.

Women also played a role in the Mexican Revolution of 1910.

Dolores Jiménez y Muro was a rural schoolteacher who became a political activist opposed to the dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz.  She was twice arrested for participating in protest demonstrations against the government.  After her release she became a supporter of the revolutionary Emiliano Zapata.  She wrote that "it is time that Mexican women realize that their rights and obligations go beyond the home."

The Revolution brought calls for women's suffrage, but it was a slow battle for equality.  In the 1920s, three states, Yucatán, Chiapas and San Luis Potosí granted women the vote.  But it was not until 1953 that women's suffrage was granted nationally.