Sunday Afternoon

Last Sunday, we went to Chapultepec Park because Alejandro had not seen the Global Village set up there for the World Cup.  I thought that it was crowded when I had visited the previous Thursday, but, as you can see from this photo of the entrance, the weekend throng of people was insane.

We walked through a portion of the "Village", but decided that it was pointless, and we left as soon as we could find an exit and detach ourselves from the crowd.

We headed back toward the Insurgentes Metrobus stop to return to the apartment.  Our route took us through the Zona Rosa, a touristy neighborhood bordering Paseo de la Reforma.  The pedestrian street of Génova was lined with vendors selling cheap World Cup souvenirs that were probably made in China.

There were hats, horns, noisemakers, flags, foam hands, soccer balls, and plastic piggy banks shaped like the World Cup trophy.  

Alejandro tried on a silly hat shaped like a soccer ball. (No, he did not buy one.)

Dr. Simi, the beloved mascot of the drug store chain "Farmacias Similares" stood at the back of a tourist streetcar wearing a "fútbol" jersey, waving to the passersby and posing for photos.

The Missing Arrow

One of the landmarks along Mexico City's Paseo de la Reforma is a fountain featuring a statue of Diana, the Roman goddess of the hunt.  

The fountain was erected in 1942 during the Presidency of Manuel Avila Camacho.  The nude statue of the goddess provoked one of the most laughable controversies in the city's history.  Conservative elements, including the League of Decency, were scandalized by the nudity.  One of the members of the League was the wife of Avila Camacho, and the sculptor gave in to the pressure.  He cast a pair of bronze panties to put on the statue.  However, he astutely foresaw a less prudish future and soldered the metal clothing to the statue in only three points so that it could be easily removed.

Finally in 1967, the mayor of Mexico City ordered the panties to be removed.  However, the statue was damaged in the process, and a new statue was cast from the original mold.

I bring this up because a couple of weeks ago I saw something I had never noticed before.  Just across the street from the fountain, between the entrances to a bar and the Cine Diana (a movie theater named after the fountain) is an arrow is stuck into the wall with this plaque beneath it.

     The plaque says...

The Arrow of Diana the Huntress

It was believed lost

and was only hidden

reserving its good luck

for whomever asks for a wish here.

If you look at the photo of the fountain above, you will see that, indeed, Diana has a bow but no arrow.  I am skeptical as to whether or not this arrow really belonged to the statue, and if so, how was it lost and where was it found?  

Women Champs

Even though Mexico is passionate about "fútbol", the men's national team has never won a World Cup or even second place.  (Twice they have reached the quarter finals, and placed sixth.)  However, in 1971 the women's championship was held in Mexico City, and Mexico's team came in second to Denmark.  The final match, held in Mexico City's Azteca Stadium, was attended by 110,000 spectators, a record for women's soccer.  It's a record which still stands today.

This sign, under a freeway overpass, honors the 1971 women's team.

  

The surviving members of that team are a lot older today... as are we all!

More from the Infinite City

Here are more pictures from "The Infinite City", an outdoor photographic exhibition of images of Mexico City on display along the fence of Chapultepec Park.

Cars of the "cablebus", Mexico City's newest and most unique form of public transportation

A tangled network of Mexico City highways

  The Olympic Stadium where the 1968 Summer Olympics were held

You can see the cauldron where the Olympic flame was lit.

The exterior is decorated with a 3-dimensional stone mural designed by Diego Rivera.

Route 3 of the "cablebus" at sunset

The Day of the Dead parade

A woman working in a market

Another market scene

Playing soccer on the campus of the National University

A "lucha libre" match

The "alebrije" parade

The Plaza of the Three Cultures

Aztec ruins, a colonial-era church, and 20th century apartment blocks

Dancing on the Zócalo

Jacaranda trees in bloom in Chapultepec Park

The Azteca Stadium, where this year's World Cup games are being played.

From the lack of development around the stadium, I would guess that this photo was taken around the time of its inauguration in 1966.

The snow-capped volcano Iztaccíhuatl is visible in the background.

The Latin American Tower

I think this photo exemplifies the exhibit's title, "The Infinite City"...

an aerial shot above an inactive volcanic crater with the city extending endlessly beyond it.

The Infinite City

Along the perimeter of Chapultepec Park there is always a photographic exhibition posted on the fence.  The current exhibit is called "Fragments of the Infinite City".  The series of pictures, both new and vintage, in color and in black and white, depicts a variety of scenes from the city, not just its landmarks but also its people and traditions.

Here are some of the photos...

Celebration of the Day of the Dead in the cemetery in the far-southern district of Mixquic

Pilgrims on their way to the Basilica of Guadalupe

Elaborately dressed dolls of the Baby Jesus for the Feast of the Candelaria on February 2nd

Overhead shot of a flat-bottomed boat loaded with marigolds plying its way through the canals of Xochimilco

Bakers in a "churrería", a shop that sells "churros", a tasty tubular treat of fried dough

A field of marigolds grown for the Day of the Dead in Xochimilco

The colorful flat-bottomed boats known as "trajineras" which take visitors through the canals of Xochimilco.

A "quinceañera" (a girl celebrating her 15th birthday) poses with an organ grinder.

An organ grinder on a Mexico City street

A vintage photo of visitors to the National Museum of Anthropology when it opened in 1964

The Fountain of the Coyotes in Coyoacán

The baroque interior of the Church of La Enseñanza in the Historic Center

Pilgrims at the Basilica of Guadalupe

A clever artist transformed the pedestrian symbol on a traffic sign into an Aztec warrior.

A Mexico City subway station in an uncharacteristically empty moment

A family on the subway

Traffic along Insurgentes Avenue

The lake in Chaputepec Park

The abstract statue known as "El Caballito" (The Little Horse) at an intersection along Paseo de la Reforma

More photos in the next post...

 

Station Renovation

The closest subway station to my apartment is San Pedro de los Pinos on Line 7.  Sometimes I take that line if I want to go to the Anthropology Museum.  I get off three three stops later at the Auditorio station.  It is at the far northwestern edge of Section 1 of Chapultepec Park and a short walk from the museum.  A while ago, the station was closed for renovations, and it reopened just a short time ago.  I went through that station last week when I wanted to go to the Global Village that has been set up for the World Cup.  I got to see the renovations.

The walls of the station are covered with dark gray marble.  The ceiling has wood (or perhaps faux wood) beams.

Most of the concrete dividers between the track are painted with abstract designs.  However, some of them have semi-abstract paintings of motifs from the pre-Hispanic civilizations.

Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent

An Olmec head

A Mayan "chac mool" statue

As you head toward the exit there are large panels painted with stylized images of Coatlicue, the Aztec mother goddess.

As you leave the station, instead of the typical turnstiles, there are automatic gates.  Notice the fellow to the right.  He is obviously a visitor from South Africa.  He has a South African flag draped across his shoulders, and he was probably going to the Global Village to root on his home team.

The most distinctive feature of the renovated station are the stained glass windows which depict Mexican motifs... a hummingbird, an axolotl, a prickly pear cactus, and an ear of corn.