Sue St.Clair and Matthew Didier's Paranormal Blog

Historian Chris Laursen returns with some reflections on his recent trip to Mexico City, a place that was surprising in its fusion of tradition, modernity, wonderful spirit and mystery.

An undercurrent of mystery flows through vibrant Mexico City
by Chris Laursen

There's something about Latin America that ignites my soul. I spent the first week of March in Mexico City on a business trip with a bit of sightseeing added for good measure. It's been very difficult settling back into the grey, blustery Toronto mid-March existence, not to mention the office space.

My former experience backpacking for seven weeks through the Andes, deserts and pampas in Peru, Bolivia and northern Chile in 2001 afterwards fortified my joy for life and convinced me to further pursue a history degree, and I ended up taking many courses looking at the history and politics of the region. In that knowledge, I found I great deal of magic and mystery, a fiery fusion of ancient culture, Catholicism, dramatic adventures and landscapes, dread, horror, colour, beauty and, above all, people who carried forth in strong, elated spirit. Going to Mexico this month reminded me of that incredible history and culture.

Even in my work assisting in the logistics in a conference for television and radio broadcasters, that spirit seemed to permeate through everything. Through the hotel staff who radiated joy and kinship. Through our hosts, two of Latin America's largest broadcasters, who celebrated both traditional and modern Mexico in special events they held for the conference delegates. Televisa held a magnificent dinner with a live performance by traditional Mexican chanteuse Aida Cuevas accompanied by a full mariachi orchestra. TV Azteca put us on open air double decker buses through the colonial heart of Mexico City to the Museum of Popular Arts, a converted historical fire station featuring vibrant folk art from across the country, where La Academia starlets sang modern pop music.

Aida Cuevas, the queen of Mexican traditional music, performed at Televisa Studios on March 6.

The bus ride through the old city was very representative of the many juxtapositions I have experienced in Latin America. We boarded the bus outside of the ultra modern National Auditorium, an angular building that looks a bit like George Lucas designed it for a Star Wars movie. Winding through the heavy traffic, the bus passed contemporary sculptures that dotted a wide boulevard. Locals used the sculptures as places to sit and socialize or get romantic. People, lights, cars, unusual buildings, buses, shouting and car horns infiltrated the atmosphere, charging it with an energy unlike most other places I have been.

Entering the main plaza, the Zócalo, the bus ducked into a side street and picked up a seven-member mariachi band complete with guitars and trumpets. It is hard to relay the surrealism of travelling through the narrow, bustling streets under art nouveau streetlamps, intricate colonial buildings, shops ranging from cheap goods to luxury items, people of all kinds wandering down the streets, stopping to crane their necks with both huge smiles and puzzlement on their faces as the Mexican band blared folk songs atop the tourist bus.

A colonial building lit up during a night tour of the Zócalo.

We stopped at a light to have the bus surrounded by children with candies in their hands. At first glance, these children seemed excited by the music and sight of the double decker bus, but then one of them yelled "money! money!" and it became clear he was covered in the dust of the street. The next day, a local guide told me that they were among the thousands of children, often five years old who lived on the streets of the metropolis, escaping neglectful and abusive homes. It was but a glimpse into the poverty that persists in the city. There was always an undercurrent of the hard life in the street vendors selling inexpensive food and people peddling phone cards, newspapers, flowers and candies at intersections. It was not unusual to find elderly women selling flowers, fruits and vegetables in front of cathedrals alongside beggars - young women with babies, disabled people, grandmothers. With over 20 million people in the Districto Federal, there is much competition for the jobs that are available.

On our last full day in the city, two of my colleagues and I hired a driver, Victor, from the hotel to show us a few places in the city. "I've been driving for ten years," he told me as we walked through the plaza in the historic and wealthy Coyoacan neighbourhood, not far from Frida Kahlo's brilliant blue house. Later, I asked him if people changed jobs often in Mexico City, and he said people stay with their jobs for life if possible because it is so hard to find a new one. This might explain why everyone I met seemed extraordinarily good at their job. With a wife and two young children, Victor worked seven days a week and as many hours per day as possible. It was never certain how many fares he could collect in a day, so it was a great opportunity when he could take visitors around for a full day.

The ruins near the main cathedral at the Zócalo.

The contrasts in Mexico's history are strong in the very heart of the city, especially at the main square, the Zócalo, the "first place" where the conquistadores destroyed the Aztec capital on the lake, Tenochtitlan, and built upon it the massive Metropolitan Cathedral. In the bright sun stood the ruins of the Templo Mayor uncovered by archaeologists, the feathered serpent Quetzalcoatl wending its way along the stone walls.

"The city sinks if we don't get enough rain," Victor told me as we admired the Templo Mayor ruins, "because the city is built on a lake." Surreal images of the city centre descending lower and lower entered my mind.

In such a short visit, it was impossible to do what I would have loved: to find out about Mexican beliefs in ghosts, the afterlife, spirits, monsters and UFOs. The country is replete with such tales and experiences. In the past several years, Mexico has had UFO fever, with videotaped footage of many mass sightings. One of the more curious tapes made by the Mexican military was later convincingly debunked by Captain Alejandro Franz [link: http://www.alcione.org/FAM/], who flew over the area where the video was made and shot flaming oil rigs on the Gulf of Mexico. (Returning from Mexico City, I made videos of these oil rigs visible from 11 kilometers up and was also able to obtain the same effect Franz did.)

I was also in Mexico at the wrong time to experience the popular Day of the Dead festivities in early November. However, Day of the Dead figures were abundant in the Museum of Popular Arts.

Day of the Dead figures in a celebratory pose at the Museum of Popular Arts.

And I didn't feel a need to keep my eye out for El Chupacabra, despite the warnings made a few years back by former Mexican President Vicente Fox in The Onion [link: http://www.theonion.com/content/node/40312].

But I do feel a need to return to Mexico... again and again. It moved me deeply, and I know that the mysteries that do lurk there are exactly the kinds that I'm attracted to. Mysteries nestled in one of the world's most vibrant cultures.

Check out: Aida Cuevas's official website, http://www.aidacuevas.com, and listen to the song "El Pastor" (the second song on the playlist) for a stunning example of traditional Mexican music.

Image credits: Photos by Chris Laursen.