26/08/2026
Mexico City is one of those places where architecture, food, craft and street life fold into one another. The city rewards close attention: to colour, texture, scale, and the way light lands on a wall or moves through the space.
In Day 1 of my CDMX Starter Guide, I begin in Roma Norte and move through a series of places that reveal different sides of the city. There’s Barragán’s 40 year experiment of extraordinary command of light, colour and atmosphere at Casa-Estudio; the sensory retail experience of local perfumery, Xinú; the vibrant graphic and cultural reads at Casa Bosques; the civic generosity of Chapultepec; and, later, tacos that fully justify the queue.
It’s a compact itinerary, but it captures how I connect with cities — through wandering, taking in the unfamiliar, eating like a local, and imagining the stories behind the architecture, the people, and their quiet everday rituals.
For architects, designers, urbanists and the design-curious, it’s an exciting place to be.
Written by Wendy Tsai , Project Director at The Oval Partnership
Explore the 3-day CDMX Starter Guide: https://www.ovalpartnership.com/en/article/The-CDMX-Starter-Pack
