Hola todos,
First things first: my taco count is disturbingly low. I appreciate your taco-welfare checks, queridos amigos. Unfortunately, I have food poisoning. (Whether from the local water--which I have not been drinking! but minor contaminations can occur...--or from a food stall, I know not.) Which has put a definite damper on the food-tour aspect of this trip. But if I'm left unsatisfied, I'll just have to come back!
Today, our adventures took us to the north of Mexico City, up to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe. With no strict timing, we took a leisurely morning before getting our bearings and heading out the door.
We had a straight-shot bus ride (and after yesterday's debacle, I was grateful for no transfer!) and in about 50 minutes, we were there. The Basilica itself is huge, and it’s on this massive, sprawling complex that holds a series of chapels, churches, and a beautifully landscaped garden.
Our first view of the Basilica, just off the bus.
This is the new Basilica, which was built in the 1970s and holds the miraculous tilma today. It can supposedly hold something like 50,000 pilgrims inside.
The old Basilica (left), which originally housed the tilma, was built in the mid-1500s. Another chapel is on the right.
You can see how the old Basilica is leaning over pretty far—the reason they build the new one and moved the tilme.
The inside of the old Basilica. It was gorgeous!
The inside of the new Basilica. It's *massive*.
After spending some time viewing the tilma and appreciating the beautiful interior of the Basilica (there is a Mass every hour, so that was trickier to navigate), we walked around the exterior of the complex through dozens of merchants selling souvenirs and then went back into the complex to climb Tepeyac Hill where the original Marian apparitions occurred. There were quite a few steps, but the view of the city skyline from the top was beautiful!
Another chapel is at the very top of Tepeyac Hill. So. Many. Steps.
We went down the hill on the other side where there was this beautiful landscaped park with water features and sculptures, as well as *yet another* capilla.
After finishing our walk around the Basilica complex, we made our way to a local food spot for lunch. We rested our legs and enjoyed the respite from the sun and heat before grabbing a bus and heading back downtown.
But lest we become overconfident in a one-way, no-transfer, simple-reverse-order bus ride, the transit police boarded the bus about two miles from our hotel and told everyone to get off. I was told that there was no bus service through the center of town, and we could catch the next bus at our hotel's bus stop. (The officer looked a bit amused at my startled reaction to the news.) Not feeling confident enough to experiment with the local transit system, we decided to grab an Uber back to the hotel.
Where we took a quick nap. But just long enough to feel refreshed and ready to tackle our somewhat haphazard walking tour of the Condesa and Roma neighborhoods. We explored those areas for several hours since there were lots of parks, cute shops on beautiful streets, and interesting history to learn about. We also tried to pop by two mercados, the Michoacan Market in Condesa and the Mercado Roma in, you guessed it, Roma. But both were a bit underwhelming to say the least. Ah, well.
The Parque Espana in Condesa. Small, but beautiful to walk through and a breath of fresh air in the city.
A quick coffee stop never hurt anyone.
Neither has a quick carb-reload.
The Parque Mexico in Condesa. Sometimes called "the lungs of Mexico City" because of how many trees are in the park to clean the air.
There is a beautiful street in Condesa that was a former horseracing track. It is now a series of streets with beautiful green spaces and a walking/running path. We spent some time walking around that area and appreciating the neighborhood feel.
Around dinnertime, pasta was about the only thing that sounded good. I know, I know... I'm about to be in Italy but while I'm in Mexico City I get pasta!? Well, when you're in Mexico City and craving Italian, you'll thank me for rec'ing
Santino in Condesa. They had great patio seating and a cool ambiance and the meal totally hit the spot.
We walked back to the hotel (one of our heavier walking days thus far) to crash--we have a super early morning tomorrow!
Besos,
Tina the ExploraDora
Step count: 79,836
Taco count: 8
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