Viernes

Lydia wanted to see Gila monsters, so we went to the zoo on Friday. San Juan de Aragón is not the closest or best known of the city's zoos, but it's apparently the largest, and it was the one with info online about the species in its reptile house.

We rode the metro to the northeast and walked for twenty minutes to get there, but it didn't feel like an overly long trip. Entrance was free, though we paid to check a bag and to get into the reptile house. There were lots of the usual species, and the newer part of the zoo had great open exhibits with nice landscaping. We also saw some unusual creatures. There was an Andean condor standing right at the front of its enclosure, looking extremely docile, deceptively, I suspect.

We saw both blue and white peafoul, very pink flamingos, and three hippos, though the last were in the older section of the zoo, where the viewing was not as good, and mostly submerged.

After, we rode the metro back to the Guerrero neighborhood for lunch, then walked to the Ciudadela, a large, partly open-air artisan market, apparently the best place for souvenirs, and just a few blocks from our building. We found things to satisfy nearly everyone, and all three kids practiced their Spanish. Eric was sleeping in the stroller.

We returned to the apartment to rest before dinner, then went to a place across the street. It wasn't entirely a success, but Nicole and I liked it at least. We walked back to El Caifan to get paletas for dessert. Something like an ice cream popsicle, they were universally appreciated. I had elote (corn) flavor, others were more conventional. We walked to the park to eat them, then tried to go to a bookstore again, but it was closed, and the department store didn't have a kitchen section.

We finally found success at the pharmacy, where we picked up some cough drops. Several among us have sore throats, and I'm losing my voice.