Touristic Mexico

Now that I am back in Mexico, I have resumed my almost weekly habit of visiting a special exhibit at one of the city's many museums.

My first week back I visited a rather unusual exhibit at the National Museum of Art.  It was called "Mexico - Route and Destination", and it dealt with how Mexico emerged as a major tourist destination in the 20th century.

In the 19th century Mexico was viewed as a remote, unstable and exotic destination.  However, even then adventurous travelers came to Mexico and recorded their impressions in paintings and photographs. The country's archaeological sites, many unexcavated and hidden in forests, were a mysterious and romantic draw for foreigners who ventured to Mexico.

An oil painting of the ruins of Centla in Veracruz

by German painter Johann Moritz Rugendas, 1831

The Palace of the Governor in the Mayan city of Uxmal as photographed

by Frenchman Desire Charney in 1859.

Besides the archaeological zones, Mexico was viewed by outsiders as a picturesque country of colonial architecture and a land where people still wore traditional attire and produced a rich variety of handicrafts.

Church of La Profesa in Mexico City

photograph by Guillermo Kahlo (Frida's father), 1905

Vendor of Talavera pottery

oil painting by Fernando Best Portones, 1920

Pottery seller

watercolor by Leandro Izaguirre, 1920

Lacquerware tray

In the twentieth century, as the nation stabilized after the Mexican Revolution, and  infrastructure, such as the construction of highways linking different parts of the country, improved, Mexico became a more attractive vacation option, especially for visitors from the bordering United States.

Construction of the Mexico City - Acapulco highway around 1930

A new gas station, around 1960

"Nuevos caminos"... New Roads

An illustration comparing motoring in 1953 with 1910

A highway map published by Goodyear in 1952, illustrated by artist Miguel Covarrubias

A booklet published by the Mexican Tourism Department in 1948 of motor trip itineraries.

A bilingual publication entitled "Mexican Folkways" from 1930

The cover illustration was done by Diego Rivera.

A photo taken around 1950 of a handicraft store in Tonalá, Jalisco

Several vintage travel posters

Printed by the Mexican Tourism Department around 1955

Printed by the National Railways of Mexico around 1950 (back in the days when you could take a train from Texas to Mexico City)

Mexico is being promoted as not only nearby, but mysterious, colorful, and exotic.

Published by the Department of Tourism in 1942

More from this exhibit in the next post...

Returning to the House Plants

When we returned from our trip, I found some big changes to a couple of my houseplants.

As you may remember, I have been rooting an avocado pit by suspending it in a glass of water.  Shortly before we left, a tall stalk had sprouted from the pit.  Upon returning, I discovered that the stalk had sprouted leaves.

 Although you can't see it in the photo, the stalk has several tiny leaves along its length.  I am wondering if these will develop into branches.  Next week I am going to put the plant into a pot.  Obviously, within the confines of the apartment it will not reach the size in which it bears fruit.  It perhaps will be an attractive houseplant, although I am not sure if it will get enough direct sunlight.

Before leaving on the trip I cut my poinsettia back.  When I returned it too was sprouting leaves.

The poinsettia will be four years old this autumn.  Each year it has produced red leaves, although the timing is usually off for it to bloom for Christmas.

The Hills Are Alive

Upon our return from Europe, we saw signs here in Mexico City advertising a stage production of "The Sound of Music".  In Spanish the musical is known as "La Novicia Rebelde" (The Rebel Novice).

(image taken from the internet)

The show will have a limited run at the "Centro Cultural Cuauhtémoc" located on the avenue of the same name and easily accessible by Metrobus.  Last Sunday we went to the theatre box office and bought tickets.

I found it odd that the production is in English with subtitles projected on a screen.  Then I found out that it is part of a North American tour that has been visiting numerous U.S. cities since September of last year.  I guess Mexico City is the tour's last stop.

I wonder if the production will adhere to the original Broadway show that premiered in 1959 and which has numerous differences from the 1965 film.  Even though the motion picture version is perhaps the best loved movie musical of all time, many critics accused it as being too saccharine. The Broadway version has a couple of songs that never made it to the film, including one very cynical song, called "No Way to Stop It", in which Captain Von Trapp argues with the Baroness and Max about the imminent Nazi takeover of Austria.  In the stage play, it is the Baroness's political indifference which leads the Captain to break off the engagement with her.

"The Sound of Music" was the very first stage play I ever saw.  Way back when I was in the seventh grade, I saw a performance at Musicarnival, a tent theater in the round in the suburbs of Cleveland.  The show made a big impression on me.  Decades later I saw another road show production at one of the theaters of Playhouse Square in downtown Cleveland.

So, this will be my third time seeing a stage production of the Rogers and Hammerstein hit.  

It's August

The year is flying by, and it's time to turn the page on the calendar to August.  This month's picture on the calendar that I had made with photos from trips to Germany is of the Bishop's Palace (known as the Residenz) in the Bavarian city of Würzburg.

A couple years ago, when I spent a few days in Frankfurt, I was looking for some nearby places that would be good day trips.  Cologne and Heidelberg were obvious choices.  Würzburg, however, is not as well known as a tourist destination.  When I read about the Residenz, a baroque 18th century palace that rivals Versailles, I decided to add that city to my itinerary.

The bishop of Würzburg was also the absolute ruler of that city.  Bishop Johann Phillipp Franz von Schönborn felt that his position required an imposing residence.  Construction was begun in 1720.  The structure was completed in 1744, but the interior was not finished until 1780 (many bishops later). 

Perhaps the most impressive part of this opulent palace is the grand staircase.  The vault above the stairs, a construction masterpiece, is an enormous expanse measuring 59 by 109 feet.  The fresco on the ceiling, the largest in the world, was done by the Venetian painter Giovanni Tiepolo, one of the greatest decorative painters of 18th century Europe. 

You have to shake your head in disbelief that a clergyman should live in such an extravagant place. 

 

Great Since 1291

During this summer's World Cup, the President of Switzerland attended the match between Algeria and the Swiss national team.  He caused a buzz when he arrived wearing a red cap which said, "Switzerland - Great Since 1291".  Obviously, it was a subtle dig at a cap which is popular with a certain segment of the population in the U.S.A.

There was an explosion of interest in the cap, and it must be special-ordered from a Swiss company.  (At a cost of 30 Swiss francs... 37 U.S. dollars... it's rather expensive for a baseball cap.)

(image taken from the internet)

While we were staying with Walter and Helen, she bought me a cap and with a marker added the word "great".

The Journey Home

The night before our departure for Mexico City on a non-stop Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt, I tried to check-in online.  However, I was unable to do so.  The check-in process was stopped dead in its tracks when I was told that my reservation did not match my passport information.  I wanted to kick myself! Stupid me!  When I made the reservation I had not supplied my middle name which appears on the passport.  I have traveled internationally enough to know that the name should exactly match the name on the passport.  I tried calling Lufthansa's toll free numbers in Mexico, in the U.S., and in Germany, but my calls would not go through.  I went down to the reception desk of the hotel.  The fellow there said there would be no problem; just get to the airport a little bit earlier.  In spite of what he said, the worrywart in me kept imagining that I would be denied boarding, that I would be stuck in Germany.

Our flight was supposed to leave at 1:30 PM.  We were up early to have breakfast at the hotel as soon as they began serving at seven.  After breakfast, we went upstairs to get our luggage, checked out, crossed the street to the train station, and bought tickets to go to the airport.  We arrived at the airport at around 9:30.  I hoped that four hours would give me enough time to clear up the situation.

When we entered Terminal 1, I immediately saw a Lufthansa desk that said "Special Assistance".  Not realizing that it was for passengers who needed wheelchair assistance, I went there and explained my problem.  The guy the previous night at hotel reception was right.  It was no big deal.  The lady at the "Special Assistance" desk was very nice.  She printed off our boarding passes and checked our luggage.  I was so relieved.  (I do wonder, however, if the situation would have been more problematic if I had been flying out of the United States.)

We passed through security and passport control fairly quickly.  We still had plenty of time before our departure.  We stopped at a restaurant and had apple strudel and something to drink.  Since my worries turned out to be baseless, I was in a celebratory mood.  I went into a Birkenstock store and bought myself a pair of sandals.

We went to our gate and boarded our Lufthansa jumbo jet.

 For our return we once again had Premium Economy seats.  Although our flight on British Airways was nice, I have to give Lufthansa the edge on comfort.  I think our seats were a little wider and had a bit more legroom.  Once again, we received an amenities bag.  What I really appreciated were the slippers they gave us.  We could take off our shoes and put on the slippers, something that was a big plus on a twelve hour flight.  We were served a meal after takeoff and another one shortly before landing.  The menu sounded more gourmet than it really was, but I think I would have to give the edge to Lufthansa on food also.  Even though it was a longer flight then our trip to London, the time seemed to pass by more quickly.  

I was a bit surprised that our route did not take us on a "Great Circle" trajectory over Greenland as has been the case on other flights from Europe.  We flew straight across the Atlantic, flew over Florida, and then crossed the Gulf of Mexico.  As we approached Mexico City I could see the volcano Popocátpetl.

Every time I fly into Mexico City, I can always see the World Trade Center which is just a short distance from the apartment.  This time was no exception.  The large blue building with the revolving restaurant on top is in the middle of the photo.

After a wonderful trip, we were back home.

On to Germany

On Saturday, July 18th, we said good-bye to Walter and Helen and farewell to Switzerland.  We left in the morning on a train from Aarau to Basel, on the German border.  We had an hour's wait there, and then boarded a train to Frankfurt.

By late afternoon we had arrived in Frankfurt.

We stayed at the same hotel that I stayed at a couple of years ago when I was in Frankfurt.  It's a convenient place just across the street from the train station.  After we were settled into our room, we decided to take a walk to the Old Town for a German dinner.  A couple blocks from the hotel is the Main River, and a walk of about 20 minutes along the riverfront promenade will take you to the Old Town.  However, it took us longer than that because Frankfurt was holding its Gay Pride celebration, and we had to make our way through the crowds.

 

If you look at the background, you can see that the festivities were being held on both banks of the river.

We made our way to the plaza by the city hall in the city's small Old Town.  The Old Town was destroyed in World War II, and a small section was reconstructed the way it was before the war.

Just off the plaza is a restaurant called Schwarzer Stern.  I had eaten there the last time I was in Frankfurt, and I liked the food and the atmosphere.  So we returned for our last dinner of the trip.

I ordered bratwurst with mashed potatoes and sauerkraut, and a delicious apple strudel for dessert.

It rained a bit while we were eating, but fortunately the rain had stopped by the time we were finished.  We took a different route back to the hotel to avoid the crowds at the Pride Festival.  The next day was our flight home to Mexico City.