MEXICO CITY - Move over greasy tacos and tacky trinkets: Mexico City is home to a vast network of chic museums, top-notch restaurants and trendy night clubs. There’s even an Icebar.

What’s more, the city remains one of the globe’s best budget stops.

With just a few pesos — preferably hidden deep inside one’s clothing in case of mugging — visitors can view world-renowned art inside centuries-old buildings, wander through Aztec ruins in the heart of the city, and sip tequila at rooftop bars where DJs spin the latest international beats.

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By: Aziza Sullivan
Issue date: 3/26/09 Section: Recess
Last update: 3/26/09 at 6:20 AM EST

There were plenty of reasons to go to Mexico over Spring Break, like the weather, the beaches and the opportunity to see Duke Chorale perform. As classes let out two weeks ago and students left for Miami, Los Angeles and Hawaii, 54 members of Duke University Chorale traveled to Mexico for a six-show, four-city tour. The group, led by two native tour guides, visited Taxco, Puebla, Mexico City and Acapulco to sing, sightsee and shop.

Throughout the trip, the choir learned a great deal about the individual cities, as well as the multi-faceted culture of Mexico.

“You can ask anybody in Chorale. They would say they had an amazing time,” said senior Jeremy Collado, President of Duke University Chorale.

The chorale makes a point of going on an international trip over Spring Break every couple of years. In the past, the group has visited the U.K., Puerto Rico, China and Italy. After deciding on Mexico for their latest trip, the choir began work on a tour-based repertoire, nearly half of which was in Spanish. The singers and musicians also used the opportunity to brush up on their foreign language skills.

“I definitely made an effort to speak in Spanish,” said soprano Laura Sestokas, a senior. “They automatically knew I was American, but they appreciated the effort. I got discounts from some vendors.”

For those unable to accompany the students along the pyramids of Puebla or the rustic city of Taxco, the Duke Chorale is holding a free performance of Acapulco A Capella tonight in Baldwin Auditorium at 8 p.m. The show, roughly an hour and a half long, highlights most of the chorale’s repertoire, including all of the songs from their Mexican tour. The group promises to put on a diverse show, with pieces ranging from 16th century poems to Dominican merengue and even an African American spiritual.

And for avid March Madness followers with a heart for music, the chorale promises you can fulfill both passions.

“The show will be over well before the game,” Collado said.

The impression of Mexico City as a smoggy, lawless place might keep your average American traveler away, but locals and more intrepid adventurers have long known Distrito Federal (“D.F.”) to be one of the most vibrant places in the world. For those who can embrace a bit of chaos, the city can come to feel like the secret Paris of North America — as artistically thriving, as romantic, as bohemian. But the city’s charms won’t be secret for long. With ex-New York City mayor Rudy Guiliani onboard as “crime consultant,” crime has fallen 50 percent in the last decade, and a hip, emerging art scene in Condesa is drawing a new wave of fashionable elite to its tree-lined streets and designer hotels.

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By Gabe Weisert
updated 1:16 p.m. MT, Thurs., April. 12, 2007

From vine-covered Yucatán ruins to hip Condesa galleries, there’s no dearth of cultural attractions in Mexico. We consulted a star chamber of Mexico travel veterans, many of them with aesthetically minded clients, to generate a list of must-see sights. Here’s what we found.

Mexico City is currently in the grips of a frenzy of international hype – much of it well-deserved. This buzzing city of 160 museums, 30 concert halls and hundreds of art galleries also happens to rival New York and London in theater productions. Formerly staid cultural institutions like the National Museum of Anthropology and the Palace of Fine Arts are enjoying a bona fide renaissance, visiting rock stars can be seen strolling the streets of newly hip neighborhoods like Roma and Michelin-starred chefs are flocking to the city’s vibrant culinary scene.

So where to begin? According to our panel of Mexico travel experts, that place is the Casa Azul, the former home of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, in the pastoral suburb of Coyoacán. Frida was born in this house and lived and created here for many years, as evidenced by the wealth of personal artifacts on display: jewelry, clothing, unfinished easels and even the artist’s wheelchair. Much like Georgia O’Keefe’s home in New Mexico or the Henry Miller house in Big Sur, this is less a visit to a gallery than a private glimpse into an artist’s world.

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