Mexico City / Chilangolandia Part 1
/Fer and I were lucky enough to be able to take a long weekend recently and visit the big and beautiful Mexico City. People from Mexico City are known as Chilangos, hence Chilangolandia. We covered as much as we could in 4 days. My thoughts on Mexico city are that it is clean, large, and very different from Cancun! There is also a noticeable gap between rich people and poor people. We were approached frequently for money by beggars. It has a plethora of culture and history which I loved, and the climate was perfect. No humidity in Mexico City! On our first day we arrived in the morning so that we could have the whole day to see stuff. We dropped our suitcases at our hotel, Hotel Imperial Reforma, a beautiful place right in the heart of the city.
We went straight to the metro and headed to Colonia Del Valle, a suburb of Mexico City where my #1 man was born and raised until the age of 12 before his family packed up and headed to Cancun. It was delightful seeing Fer's excitement while taking me through his old stomping grounds; to every school he attended, the apartment where he lived, to say hi to the lady at the corner shop who was still there and remembered him, and even to the famous Iglesia del Purísimo Corazón de María (Parish of the Most Pure Heart of Mary Church) where several scenes were filmed for the movie Romeo & Juliet.
Fer in front of his elementary school
After a lot of walking we hopped back on the metro and headed for Coyoacán. We went straight to Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera's blue house. They let you take pictures inside but for an extra cost so we opted out, but when you are in the house you can really feel the energy of their pasts. Most of the rooms are set up just like they were when Frida and Diego were living there, plus there is a ton of their beautiful artwork. If it's not on your bucket list already, it should be. Here's some pictures of the garden areas and outside:
in front of frida's house
After cruising around Coyoacán a little more and eating at the mercado we headed back to the hotel.
Friday night we had dinner and met up with some friends in the Zona Rosa. This area is a neighborhood with a section where you can walk, shop, go to nightclubs, and eat. The Zona Rosa is a popular area for the gay community, and most recently a large Korean community.
On Saturday we woke up early and headed to the centro historico where the infamous Zocalo is located. There we met our friends Norma, David, and baby Summer for the double decker bus tour around town so we could see everything in one shot.
We briefly visited the Zocalo and the Cathedral before getting on the bus. The churches in Mexico City are spectacular, I could admire their insides all day.
On the Turibus tour we were able to see A LOT. Including but not limited to:
Mexico city bus tour with my friend norma and baby summer
el angel
After the bus tour we went to have dinner with Norma, David, and Summer by their house in Ciudad Satélite. For our first two days we covered a lot and I learned:
-People don't drink ojo rojos in Mexico City.
-Riding the metro causes anxiety, but is actually really fun.
-The pastor meat is different than in Cancun.
-Street food is WAY cheaper than in Cancun.
-Babies are baptized in groups at the Cathedral.
-Wearing flip flops is a No-No.
-Exploring for two full days only scratches the surface of what Mexico City has to offer.
I also only shared a handful of photos because I took so many and you would all just be staring at pictures forever if I put them all up. This covers our first two days in Mexico City. My next post will cover the last two days of the trip which included pyramids, more food, and lots of walking. Stay tuned!