Hacienda San Jose Cholul

Old Chapel and Casa del Patron Entrance

Got the rental car a block from the Mansion Merida and left for the one hour drive to the Hacienda San Jose near the Maya town of Tixkokob. Didn't take the toll road but the road between Merida and Tixkokob is Libre and high quality with minimal traffic. 

Old Entrance to  the Hacienda

The beautifully restored Hacienda is filled with historic atmosphere. The first reliable information about San Jose Cholul dates back to 1794, when Joaquin Tenreiro was an early owner. San Jose Cholul was named after it's holy patron, San Jose, and its Maya location Cholul, a common naming system for Haciendas in those days. it was farming and llvestock until Henequen production arrived in the Yucatan.

Path to the Casa del Patron

It became a Henequen production factory in the nineteenth century and after the Maya Caste wars was abandoned; by 1944, the Hacienda was reduced to only fifteen hectares and by 1963 it was in ruins.

Casa del Patron Spacious Interior

Light Filled Bath

Starwood properties has since made this historic restored 18th century Hacienda into a beautiful 5 star resort that is a fantastic place to stay. 

Back Terrace

What was really fantastic in staying there is that they upgraded us to the Casa del Patron, one of the original buildings that were preserved from the old days. It was where the Patron lived in the 1700s. The Patron Room also has a wonderful private swimming pool and  classic terrace with hammocks where we spent a lot of time relaxing.

Private Pool

Staying at San Jose del Cholul was a unique part of our trip. This Hacienda is something special. It's a step back in time yet one is provided with a modern level of comfort and luxury that is a great experience. It allows a wonderful opportunity find culture and tradition in style. We especially loved the Maya ladies at the front desk, Nejellie and Daniela along with Manuel Castillo and Nejellie's husband Rodrigo. Wonderful people.

Hacienda Road

Needless to say we're already planning another trip to Yucatan and The Hacienda San Jose Cholul will be a definite stop. Highly recommended!

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Mansion Merida and Parque Santa Lucia

Mansion Merida

After all  fun and excitement in Mexico City we took a plane to Merida to start the exploration of Yucatan and Quintana Roo in Mayaland. After seeing the options in Merida for our stay we chose Mansion Merida on the Park in the Historico Centro. It was a perfect choice and perfect location.

Charming Room Overlooking the Park

Dating back to 1644, Mansion Merida was the first two story home on the Yucatan Peninsula and was owned by the famed Governor Flores de Aldana. During the early twentieth century, The stunning mansion became a project for Don Felipe G. Canton Pachon, adding new elements to the building as it stands today.

Parque Hidalgo from the Balcony

Upstairs Courtyard Sitting Area

The Mansion has spectacular high ceilings and antique plaster and painted trimmings every where. Luckily we had one of the two rooms with a view of the charming Parque Hidalgo right below our small balcony. It was a very nice place to stay. The Mansion is only a block away from the main plaza of old Merida. It is always happening there with crowds, music and food.

Stairway Entrance

The Mansion Merida on the Park is very luxurious and is a fantastic option when staying in Merida. The rooms are massive, clean and very comfortable. The staff is very friendly and the staff goes out of their way to make sure your stay is very nice. The included breakfast on Hidalgo Park is an added bonus. Staying at the Mansion is highly recommended.

Parque Santa Lucia

We had a truly outstanding meal at Rosa Sur 32º in the wonderful Parque Santa Lucia, only a couple of blocks from Mansion Merida in the historic center of Merida. The Manager  -   Server, Daniel made our experience absolutely fun and interesting. It's not often that you meet Mexican-Americans that grew up in Hawaii. The food is wonderful and we had the lamb, rice and steak. All were great.

Good Mexican Wine from Baja 

The food here is out of this world. The chef is the same as at the Rosas y Chocolate Hotel on Paseo Montejo (also worth trying) and the menu is really original. You'll pay about what you'd pay at home in the US, Canada or Europe but the food is  really worth the price. Eating outside where the action is not to be missed. We shall return. Mahalo, Daniel!

Highly recommended!

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Templo Mayor — Mexico City

Tenochtitlan in 1519

Tenochtitlan was the Capital City of the Aztec-Mexica culture from 1325 to 1521 CE. The main temple of the Mexica was called Hueyi Teocalli in the Nahuatl language. It was dedicated to two gods, Huizilopochtli, the god of war and Tlaloc, the god of rain. Each god had a shrine at the top of the pyramid with separate staircases. Construction of the first temple was begun sometime after 1325 CE and it was rebuilt six more times.   

Templo Mayor Model Showing the 7 rebuilt Temples

When the Spanish arrived they called the Hueyi Teocalli the  El Templo Mayor, the Main Temple and it was destroyed in 1521 to make way for a Plaza in the Spanish era town. Today, the archaeological site of the Templo Mayor and Museum lies just northeast of the Zocalo in modern Mexico City.

Clay Sacrificial Victim with His Sacred Liver

Jade Mask

After the destruction of Tenochtitlan, the Templo Mayor, like most of the city was demolished and covered by the new Spanish colonial city. The temples exact location was largely forgotten but scholars roughly knew where to look for it. In 1933 they found part of a stair and a beam and by 1948 serpent heads and offerings. 

Clay Mexica Eagle Warrior

To excavate this area 13 buildings had to be demolished.  Excavation began and more than 7000 objects were found. 

These objects are now housed in the fantastic Templo Mayor Museum. This museum is the result of all the work done beginning in the 1980s to rescue, preserve and research the Templo Mayor site, the Sacred Precinct and all objects associated with it. 

The Templo Mayor Museum is a fantastic 6 story building filled ancient  finds that are made available to the public. We spent hours there. It is a wonderful museum!

Tlaloc

Among many beautiful objects found at the Templo Mayor was the Tlaloc-Pot modeled with a high relief Figurehead of Tlaloc's face, the god of rain. The Mexica formed his face by intertwining two serpents at the nose and joining their heads face to face at the mouth. 

This Tlaloc was found in an offering at the Templo Mayor and the offering also contained mother-of-pearl shells and green stone beads, symbols of water. 
The pot dates from 1440-1469 CE.

Eagle Vessel

This sculpture is of a golden eagle with a circular cavity on the top which was a container for offerings on the cuauhxicalli (Eagle Vessel). It was found in 1985 at the Casa del Marques, a pre-hispanic structure bordering the Temple Mayor.  

The ruins of The Templo Mayor and the related Museum are fascinating places to visit.

Highly, Highly recommended!

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Restaurante Pujol — Polanco

Pujol Bar Area

The whole experience was fantastic at Pujol after a long day of exploring Teotihuacan. It was pretty exciting to be going to one of the best restaurants in the world after seeing an ancient city.

Street Snacks

Octopus with Habanero Ink, Ayocote

In fact, Pujol was named as the best restaurant in Mexico by the Wall Street Journal and ranked 4th in the world by Restaurant Magazine. The chef is Enrique Olvera who trained at the Culinary Institute of America and oversees the onboard business class menu on Aeromexico airline. Chef Olvera also has a menu of special dishes and paired wines at the Amex Centurion Club at Benito Juarez International airport. 




We had a delightful meal, the restaurant was fun with a nice bar area that is beautifully decorated inside. Upon arrival they showed us to a superb table and our female server put us at ease and was attentive throughout dinner. We found the food to be sensational — from the Street Snacks, sweet corn with fire ant mayo — all the way to the simple seeming perfection 1517 day Mole Madre. 

Sea Bass with Cacahuatzintle Juice

1517 Day Mole Madre

Every dish was delicious and we found that the more adventurous and unusual the choice, the more we were rewarded.

Roasted Pineapple, Molasses, Cilantro

Avocado, Coconut, Lime, Macadamia 

Pujol is easy to find at 133 Tennyson in the charming Polanco neighborhood. The service was excellent and our waiter spoke impeccable English. We had a perfect bottle of wine from Guadalupe Valley in Baja California. The tasting menu was full of delightful surprises and we will return there the next time we're in Mexico City. 

Highly recommended!

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Teotihuacan

Temple of the Moon

Got up early at the St Regis for our trip to Teotihuacan. Our driver/guide Carlos was down at the front door and ready to head to the ruins. Off we went… 

Pre-excavated Mound

The City of Teotihuacan (the place where the gods were born) is situated around 50 km north-east of Mexico City. Built between 100 — 650 CE, it is well known for the huge size of its monuments — particularly, the vast pyramids of the Sun and Moon along with the Temple of Quetzalcoatl. All the buildings in this huge city were laid out using geometry and cardinal signs.

Avian Effigy Vessel 

Teotihuacan is one of the earliest and most powerful cultural centers in all of Mesoamerica.The ancient City extended its trade, culture and artistic influence throughout the area and beyond.

At the peak of its development Teotihuacan stretched out over 13 square miles. The ceremonial center that we see today only represents 10% of the total surface of the city. Excavations have revealed palaces and residential housing that have murals, frescos and objects.

Plumed Serpent and Flowering Trees Mural

The Teotihuacano culture is quite mysterious, no one knows who they were or even what they called themselves. Although it is a subject of debate, the mysterious culture was able to dominate Mesoamerica for five hundred years. 

Mosaic Figure

Teotihuacan seems to have been the center of a powerful empire. Its influence is well documented and its presence can be seen at numerous sites in Vera Cruz and the Maya region. The later Mexica-Aztecs saw these imposing ruins and claimed a common ancestry with the long gone Teotihuacanos adopting aspects of their culture. 

Mural Fragment of Bird with Shield and Spear

A visit to Teotihuacan is compulsory if a trip to Mexico is planned and you want to see one of the worlds most important and dramatic ancient cities and a visit to see this archaeological site will prove to be a fascinating and worthwhile experience. 

Highly recommended!

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National Museum of Anthropology

Entrance Courtyard to National Museum of Anthropology

The great thing about the St Regis is its location near Chapultepec Park and walking distance to the National Museum of Anthropology. It took us about a half an hour but we got to the Museum before the crowds.

Coatlicue

The Museum of Anthropology is the main museum of Mexico. It is the largest and most visited museum in Mexico. It contains significant archaeological artifacts from ancient Mexico's heritage.

The Museums collection includes the Stone of the Sun, very ancient stone Olmec heads from Tabasco and Vera Cruz.

On exhibit is Coatlicue, the Goddess of Life and Death. She was the patron of childbirth and also was the mother of Huitzilopochtli, Mexica god of war. The statue was found in the main plaza (Zocalo) of Mexico City in August 1790. The Sun Stone was also found later in the same year, 1790.

The Sun Stone

Xochipilli

Another Fantastic exhibit is the statue of Xochipilli. It was found at the base of the volcano Popocatepital in the 1800's. It is the figure of Xochipilli, Mexica (Aztec) god of art, games and dance. It appears to show him in an ecstatic, drug induced state. Hallucinogenic plants are carved all over the statue.

Olmeca - Xicalanca Cacaxtla Bird Man Fresco

Teotihuacan Wall Detail

The National Museum of Anthropology is a fascinating place to visit.

Highly recommended!

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St Regis Mexico City

We arrived at the St Regis Mexico City a little over an hour after we landed at MEX Airport. Luckily the traffic wasn't too bad as it was a little bit past rush hour.

Luxury Suite 819 

The SR perfect service began the moment we stepped onto the property.  We were escorted to the front desk on the 3rd floor for check-in and were happily surprised with an upgrade to a Luxury Suite. It had a wonderful urban view of the Paseo de La Reforma and Diana Cazadora below.

Among the many features of the room, was the tv that rose from a cabinet so the view wasn't blocked by it. Steam shower too!

An interesting thing about the high tech elevator system was that as you pressed the floor you were going to, the keypad directed you to your own personal elevator that took you to your own floor with no stops along the way. Pretty fantastic.

View of Diana the Huntress on Paseo de La Reforma

Our Suite included a breakfast which was Ala Carte or from a delicious buffet in the Diana
Restaurant on the 3rd floor. Just before the entrance to the Restaurante Diana was the fantastic King Cole Bar.

King Cole bar

Every St Regis has a King Cole Bar, but  that doesn't mean the drinks are uniform or predictable. Each is elegant, but each also develops its own drinks. Each also has its own signature Bloody Mary based on local culture and ingredients. The spacious bar has a lounge-like feel with comfortable sofas and chairs. There's also a fantastic terrace and view. We also saw 2 talented Latin Jazz groups while we were there.

Jazz with Unique Rhythm and Latin Singer

Jazz Orchestra

St Regis CDMX is among if not the best hotel we've ever stayed at. 

Highly recommended!

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Flight to Mexico City

We had a great flight from San Francisco to Mexico City on our way to Yucatan to see the Maya ruins and stay at a wonderful old mansion in Merida plus two old haciendas.

Seats 3A and B

Our flight to CDMX on Aeromexico was very nice both ways. We traveled in Clase Premier in a new Boeing 737 800 which had nice leather seats and Virgin America style lighting. The flight was only 41/2 hours to MEX and was very comfortable with nice hot food and excellent Mexican Wines from the Guadalupe Valley in Baja. 

The Crowd at Customs

We did have to get through customs before we could drive through the city to get to the St Regis. Customs was packed. It seemed that quite a few big international planes arrived at around the same time we did. It looked bad but it wasn't too brutal and it took us about a half an hour to pick up our bags and meet our driver. Next stop is St Regis Mexico City. 

Interesting point to note, Mexico City used to be known by the letters DF (Distrito Federal) but now it's known as CDMX (Ciudad de Mexico) which stands for the restructuring of the City Government.

It was great to get to CDMX on Aeromexico. 

Highly recommended airline to Mexico!

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