By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS

A group of foreign diplomats accredited in Mexico and their spouses were given a private tour of the former presidential palace, Los Pinos, on Monday, May 29, in a special visit organized by Mexican Ambassador and former Director General of Protocol for the Foreign Relations Secretariat (SRE) Amanda Mireya Terán Munguía.

The 60-hectare property (an area 14 times larger than that of the White House) has been home to 14 Mexican presidents, starting with Lázaro Cárdenas in 1934.

Over the years, various presidents constructed their own personalized houses in Los Pinos, and when the property was transformed into a public museum on Dec. 1, 2018, the first day of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s (AMLO) presidency, there were a total of 18 houses and a number of smaller cabanas for guests and families.

On taking office, AMLO moved the official presidential offices to the National Palace in Mexico City’s Centro Histórico, but he lives in his own home in the southern colonia of Tlálpan Centro.

The diplomats’ tour of Los Pinos’ grounds and buildings was conducted by the museum’s administrative director, Homero Fernández Pedroza.