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Join this channel to get access to perks: Want to learn more about Periscope Film and get access to exclusive swag? Join us on Patreon. Visit Visit our website Created by Wisconsin-based filmmaker Norman Schley, this “Schley Ride to Mexico“ dates to the early 1950s. This film and others in the “Picturelogue“ series was originally presented with narration by Schley in front of a live audience. This version of the film is presented solely with music. The film begins with a captain saluting his stewardesses of an American Airline plane (:49). Aerial shots of Mexico follow as the plane moves over the country (1:00). The Palacio de Bellas Artes (2:42) was built in the early 1900’s (beginning in 1904) in Art Nouveau/ Neoclassical style in Mexico City (2:42). A man in in a suit walks with a small flower girl (3:08). The Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral (3:31) is seen which had been built between 1573 and 1813. Inspiration for the building’s style was largely gothic. A group of men stand at an intersection in the city wearing cowboy hats (4:47). Modern business buildings follow (4:56). The Christopher Columbus Statue sits on Paseo de la Reforma (5:12). (This statue was recently taken down in Mexico in order to make way for a statue dedicated to indigenous women.) The Monument to the Revolution (5:14) stands at the Plaza de la Republica. A vacationing family snaps photographs together (6:06). A Mexican band in formal attire plays in the center (9:29). Two young boys wash themselves in the street gutters pointing to poverty and poor hygiene in the city (8:51). A traffic cop guides traffic (9:21). Vendors in an open air market (10:05) sell goods to pedestrians. At an outdoor flower market, the camera zooms in on bright blossoms (11:15). A sign invites guests to Spring Festivals in 1951 (11:25). The film moves to a more rural section of the country (12:00). Locals work to make clay bricks from the earth (13:15). The completed stacks (13:50). The Xochimilco Restaurant Amapolas (14:23) and floating gardens. Small boats take off down the channel (14:34). A young woman sitting in a long boat on the waters weaves colorful flower arrangements at her feet (15:07). A five man band plays traditional tunes (15:38) as a man and girl dance in the foreground. Vendors sit by rows of hand crafted pottery (18:31). The artistry of the bowls are highlighted (18:35). A potential buyer tests out hats (19:14). Fresh vegetables are viewed (19:49). A boy cuts off a large chunk of a massive aloe plant (20:44) beneficial for sunburn among other things. Cactus Silk is loomed by hand (21:19). A completed rope lasso is shown (21:40). Field workers (21:48). Cactus plants stick up towards the sky (21:53). A small boy walks two donkeys up a quiet road (22:07). Norman zooms in on the boy’s face here displaying his ever creative and colorful style (22:19). Workers and equine plow through a crop field (22:24). The Pyramid of the Sun (22:31) with small altars stuck onto it’s ledges (22:48) in Teotihuacan. A pair of women dressed in formal attire walk through the historical grounds (23:27). Images of Quetzalcoatl and other god’s are carved and shaped into stone throughout the area (24:09). A macaw parrot squats onto a tree branch (25:02). A trainer pulls the parrot down (25:08). An advertisement for La Albertina follows for homespun tweeds (26:24). A man holds a cluster of marionette puppets (26:30). Brilliant colorful gardens follow (25:54) at a modern vacation resort. A pair of women meet men selling traditional Mexican hand woven blankets and compete over pricing (28:02). An older man and young daughter approach the women with their own hand woven blankets (28:09). The women decide to purchase from the man and daughter (28:43). Beautiful painted tile follow (29:40) created at the Fabricia de Loza y Azulejos (29:47). Neatly made cups and ceramics are displayed (29:53). Residential homes (35:00). Young tourists enjoy refreshments at a luxury resort pool (35:17). The Quinta Carmen Resort hotel is seen (36:36). Locals move goods using donkeys with packs strapped to their backs (37:32). One man works on a hand painted tile (30:18). Completed pieces follow (31:01). Other pottery such as dinosaur figures (31:40). Two women work on painting pottery pieces (31:47). Cars drive into the Mexican desert as families step out for sights (32:33). Locals wash clothing by hand in buckets by the highway (33:42). Donkeys sit tied outside the Salon Modelo (39:07). The Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral (39:38). This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit
