I really didn’t realize that I was visiting Chapultepec Castle
on the Fourth of July until I was already there.
The castle is a standard tourist destination, and within
walking distance of my Spanish classes, and when you’re travelling it’s very
easy to lose track of what date it is. I
certainly meant no disrepect to the “Niños Heroes,” the young cadets famous
throughout Mexico for defending the castle to the death against the United
States army, which on September 13, 1847 stormed and took the castle in a
horrific battle that became an iconic moment of the Mexican-American war. Honestly, it was just a coincidence.
One of several momuments to the Niños Heroes
in the Bosque
de Chapultepec (Chapultepec Park)
It was a humid day threatening rain as I walked through the Bosque
de Chapultepec, the huge park in which the castle sits. The park was very similar to New York's Central Park:
thin woods, hillsides of smooth exposed rock, wandering paths past statues and
monuments, young lovers on the grass. There’s
a lot to see in the park itself, but I made for the wide boulevard that
detaches from the ground level and takes you to the castle on a long upward spiral,
revealing glimpses of turrets through the leaves above even as Mexico City
drops away on the other side. Finally, at
the top, you pay your ticket and go through the gate.
The castle is much bigger than this side view suggests
Visiting the castle is a shameless exercise in ogling
royalty, which of course is why it’s so popular. It’s ironic, because the castle only served
as a royal residence during a small portion of its long and varied history, and
that was during the hated French occupation of Mexico, when Emperor Maximilian
I and his wife Empress Carlota lived there.
It’s true that they contributed the most to its current construction and
internal opulence, importing most of its fittings from overseas. The result is that in the middle of Mexico
City you can have the experience of touring a 19th Century European castle.
The way they route visitors through the castle was
interesting. You’re free to walk through
certain halls, and around as you please on the rooftop garden, but they don’t
let you into the internal rooms. Instead
they let you look in from the outside through the tall windows that are thrown
open, where you have to take a step up and lean in over the rope. The result is that the tourists all queue up
to be peeping Toms; I thought it very appropriate.
My favorites were the hall of stained glass...
...and the elevator!
And that was my shameless touristy afternoon. Throughout it the skyline of Mexico City around
us grew ever darker under a dramatic sky of advancing cloud, with flickers of
lightning in the distance, and I knew I should beat it for the Metro, but I
kept finding new rooms and gardens to explore.
When I finally headed back out through the gate the first drops were
falling and the thunder was crumbling close overhead, and I still had a long
way to go down the spiral ramp and out of the park. But for some reason the heavy downpour held
off, and I made it to the Metro station still dry.
Maybe because it was the Fourth of July...?
That looks like a fabulous place. :-)
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