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After Mazatlan we took short bus journeys through the centre of Mexico to see more of the countryside. It would have been possible to get to Mexico City in 24 hours, but after our previous experience of many hours on the buses, that just didn´t appeal at all.
We stopped off in Durango, Zacatecas, San Luis and Querentaro on the way to DF. Again the highlights were the colonial (Spanish) architecture, the grand Cathedrals and the un avoidable culture. In Zacatecas (our favourite of the 4) it was a case of being in the right place at the right time. We paid the equivilant of 4 pounds to see a classical music concert in the afternoon. Mozart was being performed by the Zacatecas School of Music, and the students were joined by several professionals for the occasion. The lead violinists got an ovation at the end. A breath taking performance in front of around 500 people. I guessed the boy´s age at about 11.
Any low moments? Durango wins 2 of them. In our accomodation the toliet was too grim even for us, and we had to go out to Macdonalds for this function! The eating places were also really dodgey. We had to check our guide book so we didn´t miss palitable food. 2 had closed, 1 didn´t exist and the 4th......we did eat there. We were not sick. So what am I complaining about? It was a new experience and not one to repeat.
We arrived in Mexico City (DF) mid morning. What a shock. What a crazy town. There are 25 million people crammed into the narrow streets, with the added street stall and markets. It can take 15 minutes to walk 100 metres. It is a castrophobic city with a severe pollution problem, such that contact lenses wearers are advised to use glasses. The city is rivven with pick pockets (and we became victims of a carefully organised sting on the underground). I really was not a fan of this place by the end of the first afternoon.
However, things did start to look up with a very interesting visit to the Supreme Court. We had access to proceedings in the highest court in the land (oh, how I wish I could understand more Spanish). We also visited the National Palace where the first indiginous President of Mexico lived and died, and visited the original habitation of the Aztecs - most of it is currently under the streets of the current Mexico City.
There is a huge energy in the City, many young people (apart from the criminals) all trying to make a decent living. No one pays taxes, the government can only guess at the current population.....but people in the country still flock here to make their fortune, attracted by the ´bright lights´of the big city.
We were both pleased to leave these lights behind and head off back to the coast. We plan to fly out of DF in early January, so the sights we´ve missed will wait until next time, and next time we´ll know what to expect, and be better prepared. Locals have said to us that you can´t understand Mexico as a country without a visit to DF. Many are proud of their city.
It certainly is a memorable place.
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