Lunch at the Bookstore

Our Friday outing to Mexico City's historic center on Good Friday continues...

After visiting the Cathedral, we wandered a couple blocks and came to this building, the flagship of one of Mexico's leading bookstores, Porrúa.  The bookstore is located in a former mansion dating from the 18th century.

The store now has a rooftop restaurant.  I asked Alejandro if he was ready for lunch, and he said, "yes".  So we went up to the top for a bite to eat.  We each had an "agua fresca" (fruit flavored water) and a panini sandwich.  It was a pleasant place for a light meal. 

What makes the restaurant unique is its view.  Directly below you can see the archaeological excavation of the foundations of the Aztec "Templo Mayor" (Main Temple).

After lunch we went downstairs.  The top floor of the building has an exhibit telling the history of the Porrúa brothers.  They came from Spain in the late 19th century and set up a market stall buying and selling used books.  By 1910, they had not only opened their first bookstore but also began publishing.  Today they have bookstores throughout the entire country, and they are one of the major publishers in Latin America. 

We then went down to the ground floor and browsed through the bookstore.  Alejandro's six year old nephew is already a very good reader, and he is quite proud of his own "biblioteca" (library).  So we went to the children's section, and I bought him a few books to add to his collection.

Our wandering through Mexico City's center will continue in the next post...