Adventures in CDMX (Mexico City)
Hola Mexico City!!!!
Why Mexico City? Why not! My daughter is there and has been raving about the city since she arrived a few months ago. Curiosity got the better of me, I wanted to see her, so off I went.
When you go to Mexico city, be ready for the altitude! It's at 2240 metres or 7349 feet, in a valley, surrounded by high mountains and volcanoes. I fortunately, didn't suffer from headaches but I initially did experience some shortness of breath climbing up stairs.You need to hydrate constantly, it's very dry and quite polluted. Climate is typical of a high altitude summer resort which is warm under the sun, fresh in the shade and quite cool at night. Best to go during the dry season since I hear it rains continuously during the wet season.
The sprawling city is divided into various neighbourhoods so I must confess to only familiarising myself with a few of the buzzier, youthful and residential parts of the city. The reason for this rather focused visit lies in the fact that these are the areas my daughter and her friends frequent and were well acquainted with.
Also, on a more defensive stance, these areas I strolled around in are well known to be safe and it's best to avoid certain other areas of large cities with big income disparities. Remember New York in the 80's, when we gravitated to specific neighbourhoods to be on the safe side....it's similar and just as fun! Don't walk around at night, either. We took an Uber everywhere after dark, even down the street. Where crime levels are high, best to avoid any form of transport except Uber (supposedly taxis can be complicit in robberies) and just be sensible, aware and enjoy!
First impressions of Condesa and Roma, as I practiced my salsa down the streets (you can hear music around you) its absolutely full of trees. It's almost jungle like! Aside from the electric wires hanging everywhere from the posts, the buildings are lovely, cosmopolitan, and colourful and the streets are buzzing with restaurants and bars.
Being true to form, I almost immediately sampled a mezcal margarita. Mezcal is an alcoholic beverage made from maguey and is earthy, sweet and rather smoky. Quite nice! Roma and Condesa are full of these bars that you can just pop in and have a margarita or 3!
The Mexican taco. This was a soft shelled crab taco from a very nice brasserie called Maximo. I must be quite ignorant because those crunchy taco shells that I'm familiar with and was expecting, are not like the soft corn or wheat tacos you roll to eat. It can be a bit messy, once you put the various sauces they serve with it, but it is delicious nonetheless. Just pack a lot of black clothes that won't show food stains.
A special mention also goes to Contramar's tuna cerviche taco. Absolutely divine. If you can't get a booking, go before twelve and try to grab a table right when they open.
I also went to see a few art galleries .Kurimanzutto and OMR to check out the local talent. Lovely galleries with interesting exhibitions.
The first really touristy thing I did was to visit the pyramids in Teotihuacan. It's a day trip (I booked through Tripadvisor and just picked a private tour guide). Built more than a thousand years ago, Teotihuacan is an archeological complex northeast of Mexico City. It's pre Columbian with the pyramids of the Sun and the Moon. The Aztecs descended on the abandoned site, named it, but with the lack of a written language, much is unknown about the early settlers. You must go early, if visiting, before the crowds of tourists arrive and it becomes quite warm.
I also went to see the Museo Nacional de Antropologia, which is the largest and most visited museum in Mexico. It contains significant archaeological and anthropological artefacts from Mexico's pre-Columbian heritage, including the Aztec sun stone. Oh and both places did mention the human sacrifice that was practiced with a promise of recognition in the afterlife. I've watched too many movies about these things, got quite spooked so I wont go into it,
And back to a cheerier and my favourite subject, food. The crispy pork belly taco is also scrumptious, with crispy crackling and moist meat served with onions, tomatoes and avocado. I tried one in a little cafe called Dracco in Condesa and it was memorable. I'm sure many places serve them.
Onto the house and studio designed by Louis Barrágan, casa Gilardi. The famous architect designed the house as a bachelor pad for clients and who hosted many a party in this place.The house is finished with pieces chosen by Barrágan himself and is worth visiting. With these houses, you need to call and book a private tour. They're quite small, get booked up and only a few people can go at a time.
Another interesting house is Casa Organica designed by architect Javier Senosiain. He is a key exponent of organic architecture and the house is designed with a shark and has a complex labyrinth of rooms and interconnecting tunnels. Its origins are in nature with shapes from a maternal womb to animal shelters. The gardens are beautiful and you have windows that make you feel you are zen and one with nature while you're in the rooms.
Back to food! There is a lot of fresh seafood and there is a fresh seafood place called La Compa Chava which is informal, serves only lunch (until 8) and is absolutely packed with a long queue of locals. They'll give you a strawvberry tequila ice cream while you line up. If you're craving a seafood platter, Mexican style, that's where you head.
An interesting part of Mexican cuisine is its use of insects of all sorts. I went to the gourmet food market and was quite mesmerised by the scorpions topped with hundreds and thousands.No, I didn't try it. I just couldn't. And I wasn't allowed to photograph it.
I did, however, try the ants and butter, seen above with the sourdough bread at the fusion Italian Rosetta. It was quite smoky, sharp, and surprisingly good! I remembered the days when I accidentally ate some ants on a cookie in my youth. It was a nostalgic moment :)
Finally, there is the famous Pujol restaurant. Chef Enrique Olvera won the Best Restaurant in North America 2019 and this year's number 9 restaurant in the world. It's an exploration of rustic Mexican
flavours. It was very good but tasting menus always defeat me, somehow. Too many courses, rich food plus I eat dishes with ingredients I'm not too fond of. He is undoubtedly a great chef, however, and if you want to go, book about 6 weeks in advance of your trip.
All in all, it's a fun place, with loads of interesting restaurants, hopping bars and warm people. Hasta la vista, CDMX!
Notes:
Caiman bar in Calle Nuevo Leon is a popular hangout.
Lardo, a brunch place with guava pastries my daughter adores.
Rosetta for Italian and a nice bar.
Umai if you have a Japanese craving.
Bistro Maximo, one of my favourites for Mexican fusion.
Taqueria Orinoco, fast food but amazing chicharron tacos.
La Compa Chava, seafood restaurant.
Contramar, excellent tuna tacos and soft shell crab tacos.
Pujol. Famous restaurant in the world's top ten,
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