What am I still doing in provincia?

Sean Paul Kelly (the Agonist) and his significant other visit la Capital:

The art scene here is incredible. New York City, the great creative metropolis of America is a joke compared to the depth of art, intellect and literature here in Mexico City. There really is no comparison. Rockefeller, so the story goes, commissioned Diego Rivera to make a mural for his new art-deco building in NYC. He didn’t like what he got–a small picture of Lenin was in it–and destroyed the version Rivera made for him. What a fool–and how he deprived America of something like this. It’s also a progressive city: same sex couples have all the right that heterosexual couples do. Go figure?

I have not detected even a smidgen of animosity towards gringos here. Everyone has been polite and very happy to share their city with me and The Brunette. The air pollution is pretty fierce. I don’t want to sugar coat that. And the poverty is serious, but this is a wealthy city. It’s not a giant poverty wracked metropolis like Bombay, or Quito or Phnom Phen. The altitude, at 7500 feet, leaves on[e] huffing and puffing the first forty-eight hours. The food is simply divine. Time is elastic. The driving in chaotic. You cannot drink the water. All these things are true: but it’s important to remember that Mexico is a rich country and the City of Mexico is a rich city.

Being here and not there, Sean Paul’s photos are the next best thing for your elDeFe fix.