The view of Mexico City’s main square, “El Zócalo,” from our hotel’s restaurant.

Enjoying our first meal in Mexico City.

The buildings that surrounded El Zócalo were all decorated for Christmas.  The displays were 4 or 5 stories tall.

There was a huge ice skating rink set up in El Zócalo.  More Christmas decorations are in the background.

The cathedral silhouetted against the sunrise over El Zócalo. 

The Aztec Sun Stone at the Museum of Anthropology.

Carved jaguar statue at the Museum of Anthropology.

The streets around our hotel were lined with street vendors.  Some streets didn’t have much room for cars.

 “El Palacio de Bellas Artes.”  The Palace of Fine Arts.

The street vendors sold everything from clothes to jewelry CD’s.  There were several outdoor markets like this one in the neighborhood surrounding our hotel.

Part of the fun of the trip was trying new things, including food and drink.

Dr. Yaninek met this boy while we were touring the city on a double deck bus.

The street food looked delicious, but none of us were brave enough to try it.

The cathedral and a smaller church stand next to El Zócalo.  They are built on the foundation of an Aztec pyramid.  In fact, many of the stones used to build them were taken straight from the demolished Aztec city.

This is our guide, Rafael.