Da Vinci and Michelangelo keep Mexico City awake

The success of the exhibition of works by Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo, with more than 240,000 visitors since its opening on June 26, led the National Museum of Fine Arts in the Palace of Bellas Artes to extend its visit hours during this weekend for a marathonic 72-hours, attracting thousands of people.

The visit began Friday night, with people not needing to make long lines due to the convenience of buying their tickets online.

Silvia Allende, a smiling 37-year-old, and her two friends, enjoyed the experience of her life and said that their waiting time was only of 15 minutes, even while "buying the tickets on the internet was hard because the page was very low to respond."

At 2:30 a.m. Saturday, the number of visitors was already increasing, and according to estimations of the museum, the number of visitors between 10:00 Friday and 8:00 p.m. Saturday was of 5,040.

Those who were not lucky enough to get their tickets online began a new row to the side of the palace on Saturday morning.

The marathon to view the samples of Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci's works concludes Monday at 8:00 a.m.

A total of 5,900 tickets were sold for the exhibit and the organizers expect around 300,000 visitors.