La Casa Azul

How better to get to know an artist than in their own home?

While taking a self-guided recorded tour through the Blue House in Coyoacán, I got some insight into Frida Khalo’s existence. Born in 1907, she was one of the most intriguing feminist icons of the 20th Century.

Openly bisexual, Khalo endured a tumultuous marriage with an equally celebrated eccentric artist, Diego Rivera, whom she married in 1929, divorced in 1939 and remarried in 1940. She lived with him at La Casa Azul until her death in 1957.

Frida Khalo was one of four girls born to a German immigrant father and Mexican mother. Due to an unfortunate series of mishaps – polio as a child and a serious bus accident when she was 18, Khalo was sometimes wheel chair bound, and I couldn’t help but wonder how she managed up and down the many stairs in the home.

In addition to painting, Khalo loved to sew and some pieces of clothing are on display in the home. She was also an avid reader on topics ranging from science to philosophy to politics and culture. She and Rivera mingled with North American and European famosos, such as Mexican film star Maria Felix and Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky, who are alluded to around the house. Andre Breton invited her to do an exhibition in Paris in 1939, and the Louvre bought The Frame, which according to Wikipedia is “the first work by a 20th century Mexican artist ever purchased by the internationally renowned museum.”

Visitors are not allowed to take photos inside the home, so I shot some around the exterior of the house and in the lush courtyard.

I hope you enjoy this peek into an important piece of Mexican pop culture and history as complementary reading material with your favorite south of the border libation! There is a Frida Khalo tequila, which I have yet to try - but I have been sampling my share of Cazadores tequila down here and highly recommend it.

Getting Kinky With Groove Armada in Mexico City

I've just seen one of the best shows of my life! The B-Live concert headliner Groove Armada totally kicks ASS. I have totally dug that group for nearly a decade. Their performance tonight was truly amazing. Better than imagined. And, I am stoked to have seen them in Mexico City.

The crowd was great - hipsters without attitude who danced and sang and quite literally got their groove on. There were several groups leading up to Groove Armada, and the most exciting of those was the Mexican group Kinky who totally rocked. So much that I am running out to track down the CD as soon as I wake up in the morning.

The show hits 25 cities around the world and is called B-Live and is sponsored by Bacardi, which by the way, endorses responsible drinking. Just so you know...

First Meal in Mexico

Las Calandrias Resort and Bacardi Rum Fuel Day One!

Obviously, one of my favorite things about travel is eating and drinking – and we embarked on that endeavor within an hour of landing in Mexico. Fellow L.A.-based spirits writer Dan Dunn and I joined Joe Gerbino from Bacardi U.S.A. at the airport and piled into a chauffeured van. We set off to the Bacardi Distillery, a couple of hours south of Mexico City - but not without filling our bellies with an authentic lunch along the way, just outside the town of Puebla.

The brick and stone building houses an eclectic mix of painted ceilings, religious trinkets, brightly colored linens and every cut of steak you could wish for making Las Calandrias Hotel, Spa & Restaurant is an exclusive resort off the beaten path AND mecca for meat-lovers’ Mexican delight.

The servers even present raw steaks tableside prior to ordering to help guide the selection process, and peacocks make like ‘living art,’ decorating the gardens just outside the window.

We sampled 3 varieties of Mexican salsa followed by meat-stuffed empanadas and ceviche as a first course - but don’t think for one second we didn’t kick things off without a rum-based libation!

In the U.S., a lot of hoopla is made about the “right” way to make cocktails, in recent years. While consistency and adherence to tradition are important, I also enjoy the freedom of a drink maker comfortable enough to turn out a great libation without getting uptight about it!

This mojito is a good example of that. The barman eyeballed Bacardi rum, yerba buena (a type of Mexican mint), sugar and lime juice, served it in a Rocks sized glass (versus a tall one) and it tasted simply and deliciously homemade. No pomposity, no frills, slightly rough around the edges – rather perfect.


Next up, I opted for Rib-Eye Tacos which were so delectable I worked to finish all 4 on the plate despite feeling well satiated half-way through. Apart from being succulent little morsels, the juicy meat and house made corn tortillas doubled as vehicles to get more fresh & spicy green and red salsa into my pie-hole!

Another round of mojitos and our driver got us back on the road toward the distillery hooting “Viva Mexico!” before our food comas took effect.