Earlier this year I went to Mexico City for the first time and I was completely charmed, if not somewhat overwhelmed by this magnificent city.
I’ve wanted to visit Mexico City for ages. I like art, museums, history and food, all of which Mexico City has in spades. And, of course, Frida Kahlo! Being able to see Frida Kahlo’s paintings in real life was part of the draw. Things finally aligned and I quickly planned a trip.
Though I’ve been to other areas of Mexico, embarrassingly, I’m not well versed in Mexico’s history. I like to learn about places before I visit, but this trip was somewhat last minute and I didn’t have much time for research. Instead, I chose to read a couple of novels to get a feel for the city.
(1). More Than You’ll Ever Know by Katie Gutierrez
(2). Cross Stitch by Jazmina Barrera
In More Than You’ll Ever Know we travel back and forth in time and place, and between characters. Cassie is a want-to-be true crime writer who thinks she’s found the perfect story to launch her writing career. The story is that of Lore, a woman who infamously married two men at the same time, one in Laredo, Texas and the other in Mexico City, leading to the true crime story Cassie is so eager to tell.
In the present we follow Cassie as she conducts research about Lore’s life and tries to convince Lore to allow her to write about the situation. Looking back, we learn how Lore’s banking career takes off while her childhood sweetheart husband struggles to maintain his business in economically depressed Laredo. Lore has to travel to Mexico City frequently for work, where she meets a charming professor at a wedding and soon begins a love affair, marrying him soon after they survive the devastating 1985 Mexico City earthquake together. But it’s hard to keep two separate lives going and secrets have a way of surfacing.
From this novel I learned about the 1985 earthquake, which I wasn’t at all familiar with. I also learned a bit about the geology and geography of this area. Mexico City is routinely referred to as the “sinking city” in the novel and reference is made to the city being built on a lakebed. On my trip I went on walking tour of the historic district around the zocalo and the guide spoke about the city slowly sinking. In fact, when we visited the Metropolitan Cathedral we saw that steps had been built between the nave and a smaller side chapel because the main part of the church had sunk by a number of feet.
I also read Cross Stitch, a quiet story of the relationship between three friends, Mila, Citlali, and Dalia, that also weaves back and forth in time and place. All three characters practice cross stitch as young girls, working on projects together, and they continue to practice this craft into their adult lives. The story takes the reader through the ebb and flow of the lives of these three women – from adolescence to adulthood, close friendships to growing apart, Mexico City to Europe, school to career to parenthood and beyond.
What I found most endearing about this book were the small vignettes on embroidery. These short non-fiction sections on the practice of cross stitch as both an art form and a feminist activity highlight the many ways women have created and built connections, as well the ways in which women’s work and creations have been deemed unimportant.
I heard the author speak at a book festival a few years ago and bought the book, it had been on my to-be-read shelf just waiting for the perfect time to be opened. While in Mexico City I took notice of traditional clothing and craftwork, including objects on display in museums as well as items sold by sidewalk vendors. Cross stitch has been part of the fabric of Mexico City for centuries. Though I didn’t love this book while reading it, I’ve found myself thinking about it from time to time, especially so after this trip.
Mexico City is a big, big city, both in terms of population and geographic size. Though I did so much in my short visit – art, history and archeology museums, taco stands and fine dining, street musicians and a concert on the Zocalo, an historic district walking tour – I barely scratched the surface. I hope to go back, next time I’ll read more to better prepare for the trip.
Do you read about your vacation destination before you travel?
The Seventeenth Line 