Exploring Centro Histórico

Today was our first day exploring Centro Histórico, the area where we're staying. We spent most of the day walking around, starting in the Zócalo which is just around the corner from our hotel. There's currently a baseball pitch set up in the middle, drawing a lot of attention from a lot of baseball fans from across Mexico. Because of this the road around the Zócalo is closed to traffic, so it's really easy to walk around at the moment. The immense Catedral Metropolitana sits at the northern edge, overlooking and imposing its presence across the Zócalo. Raw and majestic, the Catedral is almost surreal - its materials seem to be industrial concrete and stone but the exterior is ornately detailed in a manner to rival any of Spain's great cathedrals.
 To get our bearings of the city we went to the viewing deck of the Torre Latinoamericana. When built in 1956 this was the tallest building in Latin America. The views across the city were amazing - it stretches as far as you can see, slowly spilling up the mountains in every direction.
 
 Next we wandered past the beautiful Palacio de Bellas Artes and through the Alameda Central park. As well as beautiful gardens the park includes a number of sculptures and fountains.
  We spent some time wandering through the smaller streets back toward Centro Histórico. In preparation for Easter we visited a department store and purchased some treats.

Tonight we met some friends from NZ who coincidentally overlap with our stay here. We went for dinner at a rooftop restaurant overlooking the Zócalo. The food was amazing - guacamole made from scratch right at our table, Mexican fusion mains and a delicious avocado, chocolate, orange and mint dessert. During dinner we watched the moon rise huge and full over distant mountains, hanging golden in the quiet sky beside the resolute Catedral before ascending into a hazy mesh of clouds.
  Later our vantage gave us an amazing view of the Easter parade processing around the Zócalo with drummers, musicians and illuminated floats telling the story of the crucifixion. Finally, a battery of fireworks was set off from the street directly below, detonating just above and outside the restaurant. We had noticed a stage being set up earlier in the day, and on our way back to the hotel a public mass was being delivered from it.