Mexico City was the first stop on our journey to South America. Since it was also my first time ever visiting the country, I was pretty excited to say the least. But I won’t lie, I was a bit nervous too. The city is known to be crowded, polluted, and it doesn’t exactly have the best track record for safety.
What if it’s super touristy and I hate it? Are we going to get robbed? I really hope we dont get sick — did I bring enough Imodium? What is a flauta, and should I try one? Will this trip ruin Mexican food for me forever???
Just a few of the thoughts running through my mind during the flight south from Miami. Also cue some worrying that I hadn’t practised my Spanish enough. (That worrying was definitely warranted). In the end it was for nothing. I had a great time in and around Mexico City the few days we were there, and since I clearly survived I can share some of the highlights.
The Museum of Anthropology
The museum houses artefacts and exhibits that provide insight on how the pre-Colombian civilisations and more modern Native Americans in and around Mexico lived, both before and after the Spanish colonisation. There is a ton of information so you could easily spend hours in here. In fact, I think I heard someone say the guided tour is about four hours long — there’s that much to see.
We didn’t spend quite that much time as some of the exhibits were under renovation. But we did get to see the famous disc of Mictlantecuhtli, Piedra del Sol, various treasures from Chichén Itzá, and a reproduction of the Temple of the feathered serpent in Teotihuacán among other things.
FYI, a few of the exhibits are in English, but the vast majority are in Spanish. So I got a chance to brush up on my reading comprehension skills. Or get some use out of the google translate app.
El Zócalo
El Zócalo. Plaza del Zócalo. Plaza de la Constitución. That’s just a couple of the many names for the main square in Mexico City! Long ago it was the centre of the Aztec capital Tenochtitlán. Even now there is a bit of Tenochtitlán in the square as the presidential palace that stands there today was built using the same stones from the palace of the Aztec ruler that was destroyed during the Spanish conquest. (You may know this ruler for the “revenge” he takes on anyone who drinks the water in Mexico, but hopefully not from experience).
Also in the square is the Metropolitan Cathedral, federal buildings, and at it’s centre a flagpole with a massive Mexican flag. The square itself is also massive, and there is always something happening whether it’s a concert, parade, or protest. (In fact, while we were there exploring we saw the beginnings of a protest in front of the palace).
Calle Madero
Leaving the Zócalo you’ll find a busy pedestrian street full of historic buildings, souvenirs shops, churches, tiny boutique hotels and restaurants. This is Calle Madero. Oddly, we noticed a Canadian presence there.
If you keep walking you’ll come across el Palacio de las Bellas Artes, a beautiful cultural theatre, and Parque Alemeda, which is full of fountains and luckily has many park benches to rest tired feet after spending the entire morning walking around.
Bosque de Chapultepec (Chapultepec Forest)
Chapultepec means “grasshopper hill” in Nahuatl, the language of the Aztec empire, though sadly I didn’t see a single one in the entire park. Instead there are museums (the National Museum of Anthropology is one of them), a castle, a zoo, a lake where you can rent paddle boats, and many, many street vendors. And naturally, a mass of people.
Have I mentioned yet how crazy busy it is in Mexico City? Because it is. I thought we would have been able to find some peace and quiet in the park, but I got the feeling everyone else had the same idea the day we decided to go explore. There are some quiet areas, but you’ll need some time and good shoes to find them because you’ll be doing a lot of walking. Chapultepec is even bigger than Central Park in NYC, and that place is huge.
Roma Norte and La Condesa Neighbourhoods
Two popular residential (and hipster and trendy, respectively) neighbourhoods within walking distance of each other. Also the perfect place to chill in a park away from the hustle and bustle of the city, or do some window shopping. Or actual shopping if you’re not restricted to a single backpack like I was. There are some neat little boutiques selling locally made jewellery, bags, and other crafty and eclectic things, as well as a number of secondhand clothing stores. I noticed that these neighbourhoods seem to really embrace the sustainable fashion movement, which is nice to see!
I’m also told if you like coffee, the cafes here are good for more than just croissants and breakky. The boyfriend is a coffee snob and after sampling espressos in a few places he says as much, so I believe him. And not just coffee, Roma and La Condesa are great places for eating and drinking in general. We came out here most nights to the tiny pubs and bars for drinks and nighttime snacks.
Helado Obscuro
Speaking of snacks, if you like ice cream and alcohol and have ever wondered how to combine the two, the boozy ice cream chain Helado Obscuro will be your jam. One of Justin’s favourite flavours was Dark Vader — chocolate ice cream mixed with chocolate liqueur and vodka. The force was strong with this one.
Even for the lactose intolerant ones like me, there are sorbets with fun flavours like maracuya (aka passion fruit) and mezcal, watermelon mojito, and beer. Yes, beer flavoured sorbet is a thing. I tried it*.
Churro making class
Just going to keep on with the food theme. We tried an Airbnb Experience for the first time ever and lucked out with an amazing churro-making class. We learned the basic recipe and used that to make a literal tower of churros. I’m not kidding, we set a record for the highest stack of churros a group has ever made in the class. They got out a tape measure and everything.
We also made some spicy chocolate ganache and a rum beverage to help with the consumption of said churro tower. It sort of helped, though we still had heaps of leftovers.
Lucha Libre
The bucket list item I never knew I had. And I get to cross it off already, woo. Another Airbnb Experience we found (two for two!) that had us meeting up for tacos and beer, tasting various flavours of pulque, and then watching people fight it out in the most hilarious and non-politically correct way possible. Just imagine the WWE but on steroids, with luchadors (the wrestlers) in masks and really offensive costumes, and doing otherwise offensive things that I probably shouldn’t describe here.
That being said, if you get the chance to attend an event in Mexico I HIGHLY recommend it! It’s totally fake of course, but not only are the luchadors incredibly entertaining, the crowd is too. They really get into it and yell all sorts of strange things during the fights. Most of the time the luchadors are the ones encouraging it. I learned more than a few Mexican curse words that night.
And there you have my highlights from Mexico City. Sure, the place may have a bad rap (that pollution though… when you notice a difference in the air quality as you leave the city you know it’s bad). Even so, if we could have extended our stay we would have. There is just so much to do and see. Guess I have no choice but to go back someday.
Have you been to Mexico City? Please share some of your fave things to do so I can add them to my list for next time!
*It tasted a bit like the last beer you have at the pub, when you’ve had a few too many already so it doesn’t taste good anymore. Maybe it’s also a bit warm. Anyway, like those beers, I liked it at first but then found myself trying to power through it. (I couldn’t). But now I can say I’ve tried a beer flavoured sorbet, so there’s that. All the other flavours I tried were good though!
