One of my favorite places in Mexico City is La Lagunilla, a fifty-year-old market close to Plaza Garibaldi and Tepito. Lagunilla means “little lagoon”, a clear reference to the pool from which vendors of the Tlatelolco market transported their goods before the arrival of the Spaniards.

The lagoon was dried, as well as the rest of the water that surrounded the ancient Tenochtitlan. New houses for wealthy Spaniards transformed the area, until 1833, when a cholera epidemic killed the dwellers or made them flee away. Poor people took over the empty houses, while commercial activities flourished. At the turn of the twentieth century, the local government built a new market that supplied close colonias such as Santa María La Ribera and Guerrero, attracting more vendors and more buyers, giving the neighborhood the buzzing flair that it still has.

Tourist guides recommend to go to La Lagunilla on Sundays, when the antiques market settles along Comonfort street. There, you can find all sorts of old objects, ranging from vintage clothes and furniture to used coca-cola bottles, vinyls, and old dolls. An experience that I can only describe as a dive in the craze of the lost-and-found of a huge, messy city. This part of the market has shrunk over the years, to cede some space to the a new generation of vendors whose merchandise range from goth or hippie clothes, bootleg music and videos (you can find artsy movies here), and t-shirts, to art craft, books, all kind of tchotchkes, and food.

Even though in Mexico  it’s illegal to drink on the streets, it is normal to see vendors pulling a cart containing the necessary ingredients to sell beer in the shape of micheladas here. So, don’t miss the opportunity to drink while you wander around…

But more interestingly, La Lagunilla is also a group of buildings that held markets that open on weekdays. There, you can find the traditional vestidos de novia, primera comunión, and quince años–which are the equivalent to the “sweet sixteen ” in the U.S.–a paradise for celebration itself.

An unforgettable reference of this market is the 80′s movie Lagunilla Mi Barrio, a story about  a man (Manolo Fábregas) who losses his job and tries to start all over as a antique dealer in La Lagunilla, where he  finds true friendship, and love. If you really are into Mexican pop culture, the movie is full of Mexican stars, and it has a second part dated on 1982, Lagunilla Mi Barrio 2.

La Lagunilla antiques market, Sundays from 10 to 4, Comonfort St. Lagunilla subway station. You can also get there from Reforma Av., right on front of the Cuitláhuac statue. The rest of the market is open everyday, except Tuesdays, on the same schedule.