One of the great things about Chapultepec is that it's relatively easy to access. Either you can take the Metro to the Chapultepec station or, like us, you can just walk down Paseo de la Reforma.
Reforma, by the way, is also where many of the major foreign embassies are. The American Embassy is on that street as well. You can tell it's the American embassy because of the giant flag outside and because the guards - presumably Americans - are glowering at you. For reference, most of the Mexican guards smile and wave.
One of the valuable life lessons I learned from Chapultepec is that Mexican squirrels are aggressive. Really, really aggressive. So the first picture you see on your left is the squirrel that came running up to us when we walked into Chapultepec. My thought process went something like this: "Oh, cute, a squirrel! And look, it's not even running away - it's posing for us! I think I'll take a picture of the brave squirrel." That's picture number 1.
You'll notice the squirrel is visible only as a puff of tail in picture number 2. That's because at that point the squirrel, which had previously been standing still about two feet from me, suddenly
started charging me. Not casually wandering in my direction, but full on, linebacker, "get out of the way or I'll get you out of the way" bowling towards me. And let me tell you something - being charged by a squirrel is far scarier than it sounds. This is because we expect six-inch-long furry creatures to run away from us - so when they run full tilt toward you, you find yourself thinking, "Exactly how much foam has to be visible on a squirrel's mouth before I can be fairly certain it's rabid?" So, yes, the squirrel is not visible in the second picture because I, a full-grown adult female, was running away from it.
Anyway, our first post-squirrel stop upon entering Chapultepec was the Modern Art Museum. This proved frustrating for several reasons: one, despite the fact that the entire museum was actually inside the park, you had to leave the park gates, wander farther down Reforma, and then enter the museum - which is confusing since that is in no way apparent. The other reason it was frustrating was, bluntly, that I think a lot of modern art is silly. What I did not think silly, though, is the picture below, which is housed in the museum:
That is "The Two Fridas," one of Frida Kahlo's most famous works, and familiar to those of us who saw Frida some years ago.
Post-modern art (hah! see what I did there?) museum, we found our way to the Castillo de Chapultepec. Back in the 19th century the Castillo did in fact house royalty; it's located at the top of the park and commands a really stunning view. If you look carefully, in the picture you can see what appears to be a far-off lake, with kayaks, rowboats, and paddle boats in it. After we visited the Castillo, we went over to the lake and Husband rowed us around for a while. As pleasant as it was to stage a real life version of The Owl and The Pussycat, I was somewhat disappointed. I had wanted to go paddle boating in the swan boat - swan boat! Come on! - but alas, I lost the coin toss. Now, to give you an idea of the size of Chapultepec, we were roughly in the middle of the first section, and the park extends all the way to the office buildings you can see in the distance.
The castle itself - at left - was really lovely. It's also an important Mexican landmark. As I mentioned earlier, it functioned as an actual royal castle for a period. However, before that time (that would be in the 1850s and 1860s, primarily), it was a military school. In 1846/7, the U.S. invaded Mexico as part of the Mexican-American War. The commanders of the school ordered all the students to leave; they were either sent home or to join various army divisions. However, six boys ranging in age from 12 to 19 requested and were granted permission to stay behind and defend the school. The U.S. marines took the hill, and the boys - called the Niños Heroes - died fighting. Their deaths have become wrapped into the celebration of Independence Day (of which more in a future entry) as the origin of the traditional Grito de Dolores which the president gives from the balcony of the Presidential Palace on the night before Independence Day.
The inside of the Castillo is mostly open to tourists (a piece of advice: if you should go to Chapultepec, students - even foreign students - get in to many places free with an ID). It is filled with a history museum - you can see many items of clothing from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, as well as several Mexican flags actually carried in the War of Independence, and many stunning murals by Diego Rivera and many many others. The mural you see here is the culmination of a series portraying the Mexican Revolution. The Mexican Revolution is generally seen as the rising up of the common man over the elites, particularly landholders and academics.
The first panel of the mural, then, represents the general citizenry being oppressed by the elites; one of the landowners in the foreground is actually holding a scroll that says something to that effect.
The second panel shows the rise of the revolutionary forces, and their peasant support. You can see a peasant being punished; this is a depiction of what led them to support the revolution.
The final panel is the successful revolution, with the people cheering and I believe either Pancho Villa or Benito Juarez in the foreground.
We also went to check out the Chapultepec zoo, where more squirrel hijinks ensued, but more importantly, here is a picture of a monkey, and also a sloth. Because they are fantastic. The Chapultepec zoo also has a giant panda, but he was unwilling to pose, so you're not getting a picture of him.
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