Mexico City

But wait, I am not uninterested in poor neighborhoods - but I don't think you meant it that way, just that there are no biggo things to see.
Good photo. Lot of human action. Depth of field.

Besides the cute "center", Iztacalco has two of the largest neighborhoods in the city.

Colonia Agrícola Oriental (working class):





Colonia Reforma Iztaccihuátl (middle class). An average house:

That's exactly what I meant.

If I didn't include the poor neighborhoods, it wouldn't be a fair view of the city, I think.

Iztacalco is also home of Foro Sol, the baseball stadium.



The Mexican League "Mexico Red Devils" play there.

I was a fan of the opposing team, the "Mexico City Tigers", and in my youth both teams played at Parque del Seguro Social.
But, stupidly, they decided to move to Foro Sol, because of lack of parking space near the old park.
I used to make 15-20 min. from my home to Parque del Seguro Social, and spend perhaps 5 min. searching for a parking place.
Foro Sol is at the east side of the city. and hundreds of thousands, if not millions live on the east and work on the center. On rush hour I make more than 1 and a half hours from my home to Foro Sol. Who cares if I can park in a jiffy?
Like me, many fans spaced their visits to the park. The Tigers moved to Cancún while still champs of the Mexican League. The hated Red Devils remained. I know how a Brooklyn Dodger fan felt.

Foro Sol is also heavily used for concerts:

I agree, good grief.
Don't just skip over them as if we are all touring in loud tee shirts. I am interested-
I am interested how people survive, and not from an above point of view.

In the same sporting complex, we find the racing track: Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez:



... and right next to it, the Sport Palace, Palacio de los Deportes.



It was originally built to host basketball games. Now it's used almost exclusively for concerts:

We haven't seen dirt poor yet. We'll get to that at the end, as we see the eastern outskirts of the city.

I just don't like you skipping over because there are no attractions. Attractions are not why I am paying attention - I'm interested in beginning to learn the city and thank you for it - and that happened to be a quite good photo.

I chose the photo because it told about everyday life in that neighborhood. Those aren't easy to find.

This is some kind of a travelogue, but also some kind of tour de force, believe me.

"Good" and "bad" neighborhoods will come and pass along as we move. That's why I chose the clockwise method that encircles the city center with different ratios. I could just have moved west and south and paint half of the picture.

Back to our map.

We'll visit now Delegación Benito Juárez, just south of Delegación Cuauhtémoc and Centro Histórico (light green on the map).



Benito Juárez is the richest county in Mexico. According to the UN, its "Human Development Index" is similar to Germany's.
It doesn't have a very ritzy neighborhood, but it's consistently middle class.

The main corridor that crosses the area is Avenida de los Insurgentes:

On the east of the Delegación, Colonia Narvarte, the archetipal middle class neighborhood in the city:



Also Colonia Portales:



Next to Insurgentes, one of the largest neighborhoods in the city: Colonia Del Valle:



South of Del Valle, colonia San José Insurgentes:



On the other side of Insurgentes, colonia Nápoles:



West of colonia Nápoles, colonia San Pedro de los Pinos:



South and southwest of San Pedro de los Pinos, the town of Mixcoac:

At Narvarte, the ball park has been replaced by a mall, but the old SCOP (Public Works Department) has remained. Now it host the Secretariat of Communications and Transport.

The mosaic murals are by Juan O'Gorman:



A few months ago, my paper denounced that the murals are coming apart:

A landmark of colonia Del Valle is the Church of The Immaculate Heart, known popularly as "Our Lady of Heavy Traffic":



Those who saw the film "Romeo + Juliet" may recognize it:

Also at Del Valle, a couple of notable skyscrapers.

Torre Mural:



And Torre Mexicana:

In a corner between Del Valle and Nápoles lies the "Sunken Park" (Parque Hundido, whose official name is Parque Luis G. Urbina). A very nice place, with different routes with replicas that guide the visitor through different prehispanic cultures.

I like those skyscrapers. (This is unusual, I hardly ever like two at once)

The main feature of colonia Nápoles (and perhaps of Delegación Benito Juárez) is the building of the World Trade Center Mexico:



On the roof, a giratory restaurant:

... and below the WTC, a fruit of a strange relationship between enterpreneur Manuel Suárez and Communist painter David Alfaro Siqueiros (the two men in the statue), the Polyforum Cultural Siqueiros, a cultural, political and social facility:



Here, one of the exterior walls:

Inside, the largest mural in the world, The March of Mankind:

Details:











As a whole, it is a metaphor about the struggle of men and women towards a better society.
It is divided in 8 panels and 4 themes: The march of mankind towards a democratic bourgeoise revolution; The march of mankind towards a future revolution; Peace, culture and harmony; and Science and Technology