Guadalajara’s Avenida Vallarta
The Avenida Vallarta is arguably Guadalajara’s signature boulevard, cutting through the west side to expose a time-stamped cross-section of the city.
From its starting point at Avenida Juarez and Del Federalismo (there’s a subway station there) to the Minerva Fountain is about four miles, and there’s no better day – or way – to see it than Sundays, when it’s closed to vehicular traffic and given over to bicyclists, joggers, and walkers.
In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s Avenida Vallarta was a residential boulevard lined with the elegant townhomes of Guadalajara’s well-to-do, and many of these structures still remain.
My plan is to travel the avenida east to west, beginning with the smaller, older homes that become progressively newer and larger as I go.
I start with the public architecture near the intersection of Avenida Enrique Diaz de Leon.