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Who are we?

This travel blog is created by me, Lars Aldman, a Swedish journalist and traveller, always in the company of my wonderful wife V. who is also a journalist and a fantastic photographer.

I worked for many years for the Swedish National Radio and Television, as a reporter/producer/studio host and a bunch of other roles.but now I’m retired and do whatever I like.

We love to visit foreign countries and cultures and meet people all over the globe. So far we have been to Asia, Africa, South America and the Caribbean and of course Europe. And we’d like to share with You, dear reader, what we have experienced and seen. We hope You want to join us and possibly find ideas for Your own adventures.

PS. To see more of my photos from journeys far and near, head over to aldmangallery.com

To contact us via mail: info@resormedv.se

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Travels with V

Mexico

Travels with V

Mexico

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Past and present side by side

Mexico City part one

When after 18 hours of flying we finally crawl out of the aircraft in Mexico City we’re not met with that tropical heat one might have anticipated. The Mexican capital lies on a high plateau 2 200 meters above sea level, and at least now in late february the days are sweet but the nights are a bit chilly.

CDMX (Ciudad de Mexico) in it’s short form, is with 22 million inhabitants an incredibly large city. And because almost every one of them lives in their own house it’s a mass of colonized land that crawls up all the hills and slopes around the city. And when all the suburban people needs to go to their jobs in the city there’s a gigantic daily chaos. Constant traffic jams, overcrowded trains and buses etc. The city has tried to solve this with new express buses and the efficient subway carries 4,5 million persons back and forth every single day.

We’re staying at a hotel in Centro Histórico, where most of the interesting attractions are situated. Zócalo, the central square with the metropolitan cathedral, the ruins of Templo Mayor, and the National Palace around its sides. And just a short walk from there takes you to the Alameda Park and several museums nearby. Many buildings look like palaces, even the main Post office looks like a classic cigar smelling upper-class hotel.

DEN STORA KATEDRALEN VID ZOCALO-TORGET — THE BIG CATHEDRAL BY THE ZOCALO SQUARE

DEN SKÖNA KONSTENS PALATS — PALACIO DES BELLAS ARTES

Mexico was first built en the early 14th century by an indian tribe on what was then a small island in a lake. They build a great temple there and around the island houses and farm land was placed on landfill constructions with canals. This city was called Tenochtitlan and it’s temple pyramids were impressive. The canals regulated the lake water and saved the city from being flooded.

In 1521 the spanish conquistador Hernan Cortéz reached Tenochtitlan. It was besieged and subsequently conquered. The whole city, the temples and the canals were destroyed, the stones from the temple became the building bricks for churches and palaces in the new city that the spaniards called Mexico because it was easier for them to pronounce,

New buildings covered the temple grounds and they were forgotten for hundreds of years. But in the late 19th century some archeologists started to dig for them. Some remnants were found, but it wasn’t until workers from a construction company dug and hit a massive stone with aztec reliefs that it became obvious where the Templo Mayor once stood. Houses on the spot were demolished and large scale excavations begun. Lots of artefacts were found and are now displayed in a fascinating museum on the temple grounds.

DE UTGRÄVDA RESTERNA AV TEMPLO MAYOR — THE EXCAVATED REMNANTS OF TEMPLO MAYOR

VÄGGAR DEKORERADE MED ORMHUVUDEN — SNAKE HEADS ADORNED THE WALLS

DENNA OCH FÖLJANDE BILDER VISAR FYND FRÅN TEMPLO MAYOR — THIS AND THE FOLLOWING IMAGES SHOW FINDINGS IN TEMPLO MAYOR

MICTLANTTECUHTLI, HERRE ÖVER DÖDSRIKET. LEVERN HÄNGER UT UNDER BRÖSTKORGEN. — MICTLANTTECUHTLI, LORD OF THE LAND OF THE DEAD. HIS LIVER IS HANGING OUT.

JODÅ, REDAN AZTEKERNA GILLADE DÖDSKALLAR — OH YES, THE AZTECS TOO LOVED SKULLS

MAN BEARBETADE NOGA DÖDSKALLAR OCH GAV DEM NY HUD AV MOSAIK OCH NYA ÖGON — SOME TRIBES VERY CAREFULLY ADORNED SKULLS WITH MOSAIC AND NEW EYES

EN VANLIGT FÖREKOMMANDE AZTEKISK FIGUR SOM TROLIGEN AVBILDAR EN OFFRAD MÄNNISKA — A COMMON AZTEC MOTIF, PROBABLY DEPICTING A SACRIFICED MAN.

RESTER AV ETT HELIGT TRÄD SOM KUNDE GRÄVAS FRAM — A HOLY TREE FOUND DURING THE EXCAVATION

The Spanish invaders soon realized that their new city had serious problems. Without the canals floodings frequently drowned and brought diseases into the houses. So they built a system of sewers to drain the lake. And that was a success, the lake almost disappeared. But this led to other catastrophes that still affects Mexico City today. When the ground water level was lowered the buildings started to sink. And farming on the surrounding land was impossible because water had now become a rarity.

The axolotl is a species of water salamander that was only found in the lake. Today it’s almost a national icon but at the same time on the brink of extinction. It is of interest for science because of it’s ability to regenerate parts of its body if it’s wounded. But in the wild it’s only found in some heavily polluted waters in the southern parts of Mexico City.

Top 5 in Mexico City:

See: You just have to experience Mexiko City with all your senses. Its Spanish baroque architecture, sometimes even with moresque influences. It’s marvelous museums, great parks, it’s multitude of people and food and other culture.
Stay: We found a very good and central hotel just behind the cathedral. The had a good breakfast and a decent kitchen for lunches as well. Close to all the sights, but the Centro Histórico is a bit run down.
Best museums: Palacio des Bellas Artes with murals made by the greatest painters. Museo Memoria y Tolerancia puts light on crimes against humanity around the world. Templo Mayor with the excavation findings. And of course the Frida Kahlo-museum.
Best food: A little tricky to find in Centro Historico. We found one we liked, Mercaderes on Calle 5 de Mayo. And we had a more exclusive dinner at SUD777 south of the centre, near the university.
Don’ miss: The excavation site Teotihuacan a few miles from the city, an aztec temple with impressive pyramids and recently discovered secrets.

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Who are we?

Travels with V

Mexico

Travels with V

Mexico

Past and present side by side

Mexico City part one

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