Museo Soumaya /  by Liesl Pfeffer

Museo Soumaya, Polanco
Mexico City, Mexico
January 2016

The Museo Soumaya is a private museum on the northern side of the upmarket Polanco neighborhood. The building is mind blowing in person, (and very difficult to capture in a photograph because of its height and shape). The interior design is fascinating and the Museo Jumex is right next door, so it's a great way to spend an afternoon. Admission is free to many Mexico City museums on Sundays. 

Located at Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra 303, Granada, Miguel Hidalgo, 11529 Ciudad de México, D.F., Mexico

Mercado de Coyoacan /  by Liesl Pfeffer

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Mercado de Coyoacan
Coyoacan, Mexico City, Mexico
January 2016

This food market is a perfect place for lunch after a visit to the Museo Frida Kahlo - I especially recommend Tostadas Coyoacan from the second-last photo here. Amazing fresh ingredients (in an incredible array of filling options) and excellent aguas frescas too. 

Frida Kahlo's Blue House /  by Liesl Pfeffer

Museo Frida Kahlo
Coyoacan, Mexico City, Mexico
January 2016

I am very fortunate to be able to say I've been to the Blue House twice. The first time I didn't pay for a photography permit, but this time, knowing what I would find, I did. This is the house where Frida Kahlo lived with her husband Diego Rivera - and it is also where she was born and where she died. The house is filled with a deep sense of gravity, as well as much light and beauty.  

La Lagunilla Flea Market, Mexico D.F /  by Liesl Pfeffer

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La Lagunilla Market
Mexico City, Mexico
January 2016

An amazing place to shop on Sundays in Mexico City, this vintage/antique flea market is open air and runs for several blocks alongside a regular market in the northern part of downtown D.F. You can find everything from old cameras and lenses, to folk paintings, carved masks, jewelry, homewares and furniture. The regular market next door I assume is daily or at least both weekend days, and is full of (new) clothes, pirated CDs, fresh juices, tamales, flowers, vegetables etc. In the streets south of the market are blocks of stores selling quinceanera dresses and sparkly shoes. 

Dulcería de Celaya, Mexico DF /  by Liesl Pfeffer

Dulceria de Celaya
Mexico City, Mexico
January 2016

Candies, sugary nougats, chocolate coated nuts and truffles, all in a beautiful old store in the historic centre of Mexico City. it really does feel like stepping back in time when you walk in the door here. The last picture is candied coconut and lime served inside an actual lime peel.

Dusk, Bryce Canyon, Utah /  by Liesl Pfeffer

Dusk, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
November 2015

As the sun set on the last night of our road trip we were treated to a beautiful cloudy sky with gradients of yellow, peach, pink and blue. I reminded myself, as I often do when I am away from home, that I should find a way to hold onto this light feeling in my heart that I seem to only find when I am traveling.

Sunset Point, Bryce Canyon, Utah /  by Liesl Pfeffer

Sunset Point, Bryce Canyon, Utah
November 2015

No words really for how it felt to look upon this view. I was so glad to be there with good friends on the second last day of our road trip. I was thinking of how soon I would have to go back to the big dirty wonderful city of New York, and I was just trying to soak up as much fresh air and pine tree smells as possible. 

Sunrise Point, Bryce Canyon, Utah /  by Liesl Pfeffer

Sunrise Point, Bryce Canyon, Utah
November 2015

As you drive around the south-western United States you start to wonder how many beautiful national parks can be clustered within hours of each other. The amazing Bryce Canyon was only half a day from Antelope Canyon in Arizona, which was also only half a day from the Grand Canyon.  I haven't seen a natural landscape this magical since Cappadocia in central Turkey a decade ago. In Turkey they call these spire shaped formations fairy chimneys. Here in the US they call them hoodoos. I think we were lucky to see these hoodoos with a light covering of snow, it made the view even more serene and breathtaking. 

Rock Stop, Orderville, Utah /  by Liesl Pfeffer

The Rock Stop, Orderville, Utah
November 2015

This fifty year old pink Flintstones-style hut used to be some kind of dinosaur museum. The current owner bought it and turned it into a rock shop where one can buy local petrified wood, colored glass, quartz and all kinds of other rocks. I managed to resist the temptation to buy anything, telling myself my bag was already heavy enough.

Horseshoe Bend, Arizona /  by Liesl Pfeffer

Horseshoe Bend, Arizona
November 2015

No, this doesn't look like the promotional pictures of Horseshoe Bend. To get a photo like that, one has to stand riiiiiiiiight on the edge of the cliff, just above a completely unprotected drop all the way to the bottom of the canyon. So, no, I don't have any pictures of that view. I was terrified just watching Dan get as close as he did in that first photo.