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Today was serendipitous in the extreme. While we had planned to take the Turibus around Mexico City’s main sites, the main thoroughfare was closed to auto-traffic so the only available route was the southern route.
The turibus was as advertised its own adventure. it's a great deal, taking you all around town, and you can get off and on as many times as you want in a day. It's a double-decker bus and riding topside is called "the canopy tour". Mexico City has many trees and I did in fact get whacked in the face by a big tree branch.
Our first stop was Tlalpan, a neighborhood in Mexico City that feels like a small town. The market filled the square, and everyone was out spending the day with their families. We saw breakdancers breaking it down in the central plaza. Tlalpan is what Coyoacan used to be like, so the guidebook says. It was charming.
Next, we had lunch at Arroyo. It isn’t a touristy place - in fact, it was mainly filled with Mexican families - but it is huge. It has that feeling of an old-time Mexican hacienda, a real destination restaurant. The food was
pretty good, if a bit lukewarm (Mexicans, I have come to understand, do not insist on their food being piping hot.) I was introduced to the delights of Sopes and Jamaica. Jamaica is remarkably similar to Karkaday in Egypt, both being made from hibiscus.
Afterwards, Sharid’s mom picked us up and we were off to Xochimilco. Previously, I had heard mixed reports and we were planning on not making the special trip to see it. However, we were in the neighborhood and I was delighted we’d have the chance. Xochimilco is the remains of what was once the canal-filled city of the Aztecs. Flat bottomed boats called trajineras ply the canals, big enough to seat up to 20 people. On Sundays, many Mexican families come here for a day out and there are floating boats with BBQ, with things to sell, and even whole trajineras filled with mariachis. People even hook their trajineras together.
Xochimilco was packed with happy Mexican families in trajineras, noisy, festive, colorful. It was like bumper boats because so many boats were packed into the canals. And yet, it also managed to be relaxing, floating along the waters, observing people. I will always keep
the memory of floating down the canals, bumping into other trajineras and watching the scene - kids playing, dogs running around, mariachis, the drinking, picnicking and singing. The canals are merely the thoroughfare by which you experience this slice of Mexican life. Anyone who comes here and feels that the other trajineras are bothersome is not seeing the forest for the trees.
Next we were onto Coyoacan. There is a big market here, full of Japanese and Chinese goods. It reminded me of the markets in London, lots of cute t-shirts, punk rock gear, hippie stuff. Of course, Mexican handicrafts were mixed in. But this big mix of goods gave the real feeling of authenticity. Afterwards we got a beer - well everyone else did but me - at Puerta del Sol, a real cantina. It is filled with posters of half-naked women, and the TV was showing a bullfight. We talked about that for a bit. I wanted to be culturally sensitive and not have an opinion as an outsider. Sharid finds them too brutal and is opposed to them. After seeing one myself, I completely agree.
Finally, we headed back to the Roma neighborhood where we
Trajinera
They are moved around by poles - it's very shallow were staying, for a coffee, and then dinner at a place called 50 Friends over in Condesa. 50 Friends is a trendy (and delicious) pizza place, where we ordered a flat-bread Chorizo pizza and some wine. There weren’t too many places open on a Sunday night, and this place was just my speed. The Irish bar next door was hopping, but as a jet-lagged pregnant lady, I was more into the quiet wine bar atmosphere.
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