Bosque de Chapultepec and Coyoacan

Today I woke up early to head back to Bosque de Chapultepec to check out the zoo (it was closed yesterday when I went). The weather was chilly but by noon, the sun had appeared and was actually quite strong. The zoo in Chapultepec, a very large forest with lakes and tons of vendors selling pretty much everything, is one of the largest and most prestigious in South America and is home to two pandas given to the zoo by the Chinese goverment. I spent a few hours there and snacked on some traditional tacos before heading to Coyoacan.

Coyoacan is an upscale suburb of Mexico City and is one of the original settlements, dating back to the 12th century. It was a nearly one-hour bus ride to get there, even without traffic. One of the most well-known buildings in Coyoacan is the former house of Leon Trotsky. Needless to say, I didn't visit it. I did, however, take the time to explore the main plaza and some of the bohemian stores in the side streets, where I bought 2 kilograms of marbles for my friend Rosaly's pond back home. I also stumbled upon an original Dali sculpture in one of the upscale malls here.