The first place that I visited once I was in Mexico was the UNAM. The National Autonomous University of Mexico. I took the metro from Balderas to the last station on the green line, the Universidad (or the University station). Once there I met my friend Aleida who had happily agreed to take me around the university. The main campus of the university is a World Heritage site and is truly a beautiful place. I was at the university to inquire about the Spanish language program for foreigners. The university campus holds a lot of important buildings, notable amongst them are the Central Library, Museo Universitario Arte Contemporaneo (MUAC - the museum of contemporary art), and the Universum (the famous science museum in UNAM).
Words of wisdom for the readers: please note the timings and how long it might take to make a complete tour of a museum beforehand and plan your trip accordingly. During summers you will find a very long queue, even on weekdays, since it is vacation time for school and college students and they are the ones who mostly flock to the museums apart from the regular tourists.
The Central Library (on the left of the picture above) is truly marvelous. The outside of the building is covered with various murals which were painted by Mexican painter and architect Juan O'Gorman. The murals are made out of thousands of colored tiles and each wall of the building depicts different time periods of the Mexican history. The Northern Wall depicts the pre-Hispanic past, the South Wall depicts the colonial past, the East Wall depicts the contemporary world, and finally the West Wall represents the University and modern Mexico. In the center of the building you can see the famous symbol of the eagle eating a snake standing on a cactus, the same symbol that you find on the Mexican flag. All-in-all it's a beautiful structure to behold.
Words of wisdom for the readers: please note the timings and how long it might take to make a complete tour of a museum beforehand and plan your trip accordingly. During summers you will find a very long queue, even on weekdays, since it is vacation time for school and college students and they are the ones who mostly flock to the museums apart from the regular tourists.
The Central Library (on the left of the picture above) is truly marvelous. The outside of the building is covered with various murals which were painted by Mexican painter and architect Juan O'Gorman. The murals are made out of thousands of colored tiles and each wall of the building depicts different time periods of the Mexican history. The Northern Wall depicts the pre-Hispanic past, the South Wall depicts the colonial past, the East Wall depicts the contemporary world, and finally the West Wall represents the University and modern Mexico. In the center of the building you can see the famous symbol of the eagle eating a snake standing on a cactus, the same symbol that you find on the Mexican flag. All-in-all it's a beautiful structure to behold.
At anytime during your tour at the university if you would like to take a quick bite, there are plenty of canteens and cafes to choose from. But if you are a hardcore vegetarian, you might have some trouble in finding the right bite. In any such case you can simply ask for corn chips and cheese which can be found easily and is 100% vegetarian.
While waiting for the route bus at the MUAC bus station I found this symbol painted on the seat. Yes! It is the symbol of "Om". It was eerily calming to see the symbol painted there when I was standing in the middle of an unknown place, with people around me who did not speak my language, but it somehow made me feel so connected to everyone and everything around me.
More on my experiences in Mexico coming up soon!!
Good work Pro....Keep it up!!
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