Daniel and I woke up, got ready, and met Pamela upstairs for breakfast. She had a beautiful spread of Chilaquiles laid out for us, with coffee, and OJ, and lemonade.MMMMM The food is so good! Pretty much anything that your heart desired, she had thought of! Such a thoughtful hostess! I seriously cannot think of anyone who goes into this much thought when I visit. Daniel and I felt very pampered! OMG such a warm and welcoming family!!! LOVE LOVE LOVE!
To be honest – our first stop was an ATM. Funny enough Pamela and I let Daniel go in to pull out some money. He had thought he was pulling out $200 dollars worth of pesos, but really only pulled out $200 pesos (basically $20 US dollars). After coming out of the bank confused, we couldn’t help but laugh.
Pamela, Daniel, and I jetted off to the Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de Monterrey (MARCO). MARCO was designed by a STARchitect, Ricardo Legorreta and opened in 1991. Pamela told us that there are beautiful weddings that happen here.
Daniel in the lobby of MARCO!
Courtyard of MARCO! Look at those vibrant and bold colors!
View of the lobby from above. Ricardo Legorreta did a fantastic job with the play of light.
After the museum we stopped across the street at the Metropolitan Cathedral of Our Lady of Monterrey.
Pamela and Daniel gazing up at the architectural details.
On to exploring the rest of Monterrey with public space galore!! So impressed! Monterrey has a beautiful Macroplaza leading as an entry to the Palacio de Gobierno. Turns out the Palacio de Gobierno has a small museum telling the story of Monterrey! It was perfect to get a little background of this vibrant city!
View of the Macroplaza
Perfect spot to stop and take a photo with the Mexican flag in the background!! ❤
Lovin’ every minute of Monterrey.
Palacio de Gobierno. This place is gorgeous!
We did a quick walk by of the Museo de Historia Mexicana on our way to Santa Lucia Riverwalk. Yes, Pamela planned all of this – down to packing a lunch for us while we wait for the next boat to take us down the river. Isn’t she the sweetest?!
Museo de Historia Mexicana
Museo de Historia Mexicana
I wasn’t sure what to expect when Pamela was describing the artificial river. The water was crystal clear. There were choreographed landscaping intertwined with art sculptures that touched on Monterrey’s history of strong industry. There were walking bridges, and running paths. It is probably the “touristy place”, but I would want to go there everyday. The river is less than 2 miles long and is only a meter deep.
Taken on the Santa Lucia River.
After the museums and the river we made our way to lunch. Pamelas sister, Anabel, and Anabel’s business partner / bestie met up with us!! Can you believe it’s only lunch? Neither could we. But, we are running on Pamela time, which is warp speed! Pamela treated us to lunch at the Los Aguachiles in Punto Central. Very good food!
Los Aguachiles in Punto Central
After our late lunch it was time to go see the Tadao Ando building!!! Pamela definitely surprised me with this one.
Backstory: Last year when Daniel and I went to the Philippines we scheduled a 7 hour layover in Tokyo, Japan. All I wanted to see was a Tadao Ando building. I didn’t care what else we did, but I wanted to see a Tadao Ando building. I wasn’t even picky about which Tadao Ando. Unfortunately, I got a nasty case of food poisoning on our last stretch of the journey on Coron, so I was unable to play tourist in Japan. 😦
Apparently, everything does work out in the end!! Pamela took us to the University of Monterrey to see the infamous Centro Roberto Garza Sada de Arte Arquitectura y Diseno by Tadao Ando!!!!!!!!! (DISCLAIMER: if i could put in 1,000,000 more ‘!’ without being annoying – I would!). It is one of the most inspirational places I have ever been. It literally took my breath away!
Pedestrian Entry to the Art, Architecture, and Design School!
I am so jealous! I want to go back to Architecture school in this building – but this time in Spanish!
At the pedestrian entry about to go an experience great architecture!
Speechless!
The underside of the building is like two giant concrete fans unfolding.
We were able to walk up the center of the building and experience some of their presentation spaces. Tadao Ando requests that the public not be able to take photos of the inside of the building. While we were taking a breather and experiences the outdoor theater pointed at sunset, Pamela’s boyfriend, Juergen, got done with practice up the street. He honked and waved at us as he drove by! And then he did it again. And again. 🙂 I will be eternally in Pamela’s debt for showing me this! Thank you Pamela!
For dinner we met up with Pamela’s sisters (Karen and Miriam) and Juergen at the El Porfiriato Magma Towers! Dinner was amazing!
Fantastic end to a long day!
Categories: Mexico Nuevo Leon
Perriann Hodges
I am not an author. To be quite honest, I always hated English class. I write so I may share my experiences and remember the man I met on a bus who treated me to dinner with his family, paying and booking a hotel only to find out its out of business, fake crying in the Athens airport to get a ticket home, or remember the strangers who looked out for me on a bus. Some live, experience, and are fulfilled by what’s in their backyards. I find there is something truly exhilarating about cramming as many possessions into a bag as possible, only to complain you brought too many. This is my life out of a suitcase, hope you enjoy.
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