DAY 3 SEP 25, SATURDAY
Zócalo
Palace of Fine Arts (Palacio de Bellas Artes)
House of Tiles (Casa de los Azulejos)
Opposite the picturesque Church of San Francisco is the spectacular House of Tiles (Casa de los Azulejos). It was originally built in 1596 and boasts a façade decorated by the Conde del Valle de Orizaba 150 years later, with exquisite blue and white tiles from Puebla. There are two conflicting explanations of how this building got its current appearance. The more reliable version states that the fifth Countess Del Valle de Orizaba, who resided in Puebla, decided to return to the capital after her husband's death and remodeled the house with Puebla tile in 1737, to show the family's immense wealth. The other version is more colorful and tells of a son whose lifestyle caused his father to state that if he didn't change his ways he would "never build his house of tiles,"[5] meaning that he would never amount to anything. As an act of defiance, the young man had the tiles put on when he inherited the house. These tiles cover the three exposed facades of the house on both levels.
It became even more famous after artist José Clemente Orozco painted murals on the walls of the staircase in 1925. The most notable feature of the exterior are the blue and white tiles from Puebla that cover the building on three sides. Its windows, balconies and doors are framed in carved stone and French porcelain crowns on the Callejón de la Condesa and Madero Street facades.[1][5] Inside, the main courtyard contains a fountain crowned with mosaics. The fountain is surrounded by highly decorated columns and topped with more French porcelain crowns as well as a stained glass roof that was added in the 20th century. Both the fountain and columns show some damage. On the second floor, the courtyard railings are made of copper; some made in China and some made in Mexico. The overall look to the courtyard is generally Baroque but also somewhat Oriental or Mudéjar.
There are two large murals in the interior. The first one is a peacock mural by Romanian painter Pacologue done in 1919. In the main stairway is one of the earliest works by José Clemente Orozco titled Omniscience and done in 1925. The three symbolic figures appearing in it represent masculine values, with their feminine counterparts and Grace presiding over them both. According to chronicler and poet Salvador Novo, the torso in the center was later copied by Orozco in the work called Prometheus at Pomona College. On the second floor, the facade of what was the chapel has a set of gold frames bedecked with angels.[5] There is also a collection of porcelain art.[6]
The House of Tiles is now a restaurant and an evocative venue to dine al fresco in the building's spectacular courtyard, surrounded by what is one very large work of art.
We entered Casa de Azulejo and ordered Enchiladas, requesting a vegetarian version (since we don't eat meat). There was live music and we enjoyed the ambience.
We could not eat it. We asked for the check. Son who has a soft heart, tried to save face by asking her to pack the food. After 10 min, she came with a cardboard box. I believe a spade a spade, and said - no thanks, we don't want it packed. We paid up at the front thru credit card and tipped the waitress. We then went upstairs to see the famous restroom having the famous tiles. Took pictures of the rest of the hotel as well, and walked out.
Church of San Francisco .
TORRE LATINOAMERICANA
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