Saturday Afternoon Downtown

After watching the "Alebrije" Parade in Mexico City, Alejandro and I then wandered around the city center.  We passed through the Alameda Park which was filled with families enjoying the beautiful, sunny afternoon.  Many of the children were splashing around in the park's fountains.

In the park there were a couple of enormous "Catrina" figures set up.  "Catrinas" are the elegantly dressed skeletons which have become so much a part of the Day of the Dead celebration.

Ironically, the "Catrinas" were sponsored by a Mexico City funeral home.

Also in the park there was a display by Architectural Digest called "the Gravity Room".

No, Alejandro has not suddenly gained acrobatic or anti-gravity powers.

This was the photo before I rotated it.

No matter how many times I am here or how many photos I already have, I can never resist taking another picture of the iconic Palace of Fine Arts.

We headed down Madero Street, the pedestrianized main avenue of the historic center of the city.  It is always crowded with people especially on weekends.

On the Zócalo, the city's main plaza, an International Book Fair was being held.  It always annoys me a bit when they have events like this on the square.  They spoil the vistas of the National Palace (in the background), the Cathedral, and the other historic buildings that surround the Zócalo.

The Cathedral suffered some damage in last month's earthquake.  The cross fell from one of the bell towers.

The clock tower of the Cathedral had been graced with allegorical sculptures of the Three Virtues... Hope, Faith and Charity.  They were done by the famous architect / sculptor / engineer, Manuel Tolsá, in the early 1800s.  Now there are only two statues.  Hope went crashing to the ground in the earthquake.

We went inside the Cathedral.  It follows the architectural scheme common to cathedrals in Spain in that the choir is an enclosed area in the nave.  For ten pesos they were admitting visitors into the choir.  I had never been in there before, and we were able to admire close-up the ornate carvings of the choir stalls.

One of the Cathedral's two organs

We then backtracked, walking all the way to the Monument to the Revolution. 

But before we headed to Insurgentes Avenue to take the Metrobus back to the apartment, we stopped for a snack at a nearby café... ham and cheese on a biscuit.

Every time we go downtown we have a great time, and Saturday was no exception.