Eje Central, Downtown Mexico City, 2006

I love these photographs by Dante Busquets commissioned by TEN Arquetictos in Mexico D.F.

One day I decided that I wanted to live in Mexico. Two weeks later I was living in Mexico. Originally, I lived in San Miguel de Allende and studied painting, jewelry making (with the legendary Billy King) and traditional weaving, then I began to divide my time between San Miguel and Mexico D.F.

I miss the hot pink painted tire shops with the tough dudes sitting in front of them, the fruit vendors on the corner with the mango and coconut salad with lime juice, salt and chili powder. I remember bringing my friend Victor back to Mexico for the day several years ago (he had moved to NYC when he was a teenager) all he did was eat the whole time we were walking around. At one point he looked at me while drinking fresh juice out of a coconut and said “I was really fat as a kid and now I know why.”

Maybe I didn’t live on the fanciest blocks in Mexico, but they were beautiful places. I woke up one morning in San Miguel to a marching band practicing a cover of “What’s Up?” by 4 Non Blondes, and walked by an old lady hand making the most amazing gorditas every afternoon on my way to school. When I go back to Mexico I would very much like to get fancy and stay at one of these places seen on Design Hotels but of course, visit my old haunts and point to them and let my son Henry know all about the adventures I had there (well almost all my adventures).

Distrito Capital

The Distrito Capital is built around a minimalist aesthetic that encourages social interaction in the hotel’s many public spaces, including a solarium and a flm projection room. The 30 rooms are filled with vintage furniture by a variety of chic 20th century designers, and the views over the Mexican capital are to die for. I love the industrial lettering on the facade, also love the old sign within the hotel room. This hotel doesn’t make any apologies about being in a seriously urban city, instead it embraces it.

Azucar

Hotelier Carlos Couturier gave a very sweet name to his tropical bungalow-style resort in Veracruz. Hammocks for napping in every suite, gorgeous terraces overlooking the Gulf of Mexico and a white-on-white color scheme make me think of the perfect seaside vacation.

Basico

The coastal town of Playa del Carmen has seen a great deal of expansion over the last few decades, becoming a newly popular (but still chic) vacation spot. The Basico hotel is both modern and rustic – equipped with plasma-screen televisions that show a live video feed of the nearby beach, but also exposed plumbing and Polaroid cameras above each bed.

Charity: Children who have been abandoned or orphaned come to SOS Children’s Villages where they are integrated into a loving family environment. They are nurtured and supported by an SOS Mother and up to 15 other children in their SOS home who become their SOS brothers and sisters. Strong bonds develop within these “SOS families”, and even after the children are grown and leave the village, these family relationships endure.

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