Every single country in the world has its most important street. By this, I mean those streets whose establishments located along it are given high commercial value. They may mean headquarters of multinational corporations, parks, cultural and political centers, or probably a little both of all those mentioned.In Mexico, single most important commercial street that can fit into this category is the Paseo de la Reforma, a 12-km boulevard located in Mexico City. It was built during the era of the Second Mexican Empire, with the original name being Paseo del Emperador. Today, the street embodies the reforms initiated by 19th century president Benito Juarez.
The boulevard runs in a straight line, cutting diagonally through the heart of the city. The original reason for the construction of the boulevard is to connect the Chapultepec Castle to the National Palace in the city center, hence the original name. Because of this, the boulevard was patterned after some of Europe's grand boulevards, like the Champs-Elysses in Paris.
What makes the avenue commercially and culturally significant are the number of monuments and historic events that occured along the lanes of the Paseo. For example, there's the Niños Héroes (Heroic Cadets of the Battle of Chapultepec), which have a grand monument near the entrance of the Chapultepec Park. Then there are also monuments honoring historic figures like Simon Bolivar, Jose de San Martin, and Christopher Columbus. But, perhaps, nothing could be more popular than the El Angel de la Independencia, a tall column with the winged victory on its top and many marble statues on its base honoring the heroes of Mexico's war for independence.
Today, the boulevard is lined with the headquarters of multinational corporations in Mexico, chanceries of foreign embassies, art galleries, restaurants, hotels, and such. Right now, its main competition is the Santa Fe district, which has quite boomed in the past decade, leading developers in the Paseo to develop anew and revive real estate here.
