A weekend.

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On Friday we left Pachuca for the Big City, actually the Biggest City in the world, Mexico (City, DF).

We took a cab all the way to the Pachuca bus station, before realizing we forgot the keys to my aunt's sweet pad. The taxi driver drove us back home... and then it started it hailing, it was some strange weather that I have never encountered. The taxi driver was the first of many who lived in a suburb of Los Angeles at some point in his life (Simi Valley, Inglewood, Sun Valley.)

It takes an hour and a half to get to the northern bus station in Mexico City. On the way you get to watch half of a counterfeit movie that has been dubbed into Spanish. Half, because it breaks down 45 minutes into the journey. The buses are nice, they have a bathroom, and reclining chairs... I mean they are no Argentinian super bus, but they are sufficient... for that short distance anyway.

We arrived at 8:30, we took the subway to my aunt's house in the historic center of the capital AKA Centro Historico. It is eight blocks from the Zocalo, and across from the opera house Bellas Artes. It's a prime central location. We went to dinner at Cafe Tacuba... it's a pretty famous place, I think Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo used to hang out there. This Mexican rock group formed here too, they are called Cafe Tacuba or something.

Afterwards we walked around looking for places to get drunk. We went up into this youth hostel that had a great view of the Zocalo, it played loud reggaeton on broken speakers (that's my shit, boyee.) After a beer and a half, we went down the street to a museum run by the Spanish embassy.

House music was emanating from the roof, there was a long line full of people that might fit the description of Mexican Hipster, but I'm new here so I don't know. There were girls with bangs, and dudes with tight ironic t-shirts that didn't make sense. ("If it doesn't work it's Physics, If it doesn't make sense its Wade." The guy didn't even know what the shirt meant, I guess it's just cool because it's in English... *Marketing Scheme: We should sell t-shirts that we buy at goodwill's to Mexican Hipsters with a high-markup*)

There was a group of Chilangos (that is what Mexico City residents are called) hanging out with a gringo. He was living here for 14 months, he owned some sort of guest house and a copy shop.

We went inside, danced to weird techno. It was weird in a good way, they fucking played that Beverly Hills Cop theme song, ie. "dun dun, dun duh dun dun dun, dun duh dun dun dun duh."

The party was on the terrace snack bar of this museum. On the weekends its a sort of club run by the museum... It was a great use of space. The party ended around 2:30... the Chilangos and the Gringo knew an after party.

So we piled into one of their cars. There were four people in the back, and two in the front.

We drove a few blocks, and then a cop started following us. He pulled us over.

He asked the driver why he had so many people in the back seat. The driver responded by telling the cop he was a lawyer, and basically it was legit or something. Then he handed him his law license. The cop walked back to the car to talk to his friend... then the car full of other people showed up. They were like, "lets go to this after party, hurry up!" So the driver of the car I was in, said "fuck it" and just drove away.

The cop had is ID and everything, but he just sped off. I guess it was a copy of an ID. Supposedly cops in Mexico won't chase after you for small shit like that. They also won't put your name into a computer or whatever. They are looking for bribes. I heard that you should start by offering 100 pesos and work your way up... but you never drop more than thirty bucks on crooked cops. The Gringo told me that even if they pull a gun on you, they probably won't shoot, because bullets are really expensive in Mexico.

You hear stories about dudes who have been stuck in Mexican jails for years... yeah someone should tell those guys to offer the jailer sixty bucks.

So after evading police we ended up at the after party. It was on a lonely street in a random district that nobody had ever heard of. The party also consisted of the crew I was with, plus the owner of the house. He did have one of those big wheel electric cars, that are cool when you're five. But I wasn't five, and I was tired... so we tried to find a cab to get a ride home.

They (the US state department, Lets Go!, and Lonely Planet) say not to take cabs in DF because of robberies... but I've heard from many people living there that it's sort of bullshit. I mean there are like seventeen million people in Mexico City, the odds that you are going to get jacked are quite slim.

We found a cab and got home at 4. (We didn't get kidnapped, murdered, or robbed... but a hard candy that I really wanted to eat fell out of my pocket.)

On Saturday we walked around historic downtown... and then went to Chapultapec park... It's this big park... we walked to Polanco, which is the poshest place in DF and found the American Apparel store. I bought a hoodie, with thermal lining. I will no longer be cold.

On Saturday night we went to the Condesa to visit my family. My uncle there with his wife, a five-year old, and a six-month old. Sofia speaks English very well, with a slight accent. It's very cute. She spent the entire time explaining, in detail, scenes from Chicken Run, Wizard of Oz, and the time her daddy stepped in water. She is really funny.

After we left, we went to an Argentinian restaurant. We drank wine and ate steak. Then we walked around Condesa looking for places to drink. Condesa is the hippest area of DF... there are lots of bars and restaurants on every street. We found a tapas bar for a few mojitos. We kept walking by restaurants, and I kept wishing I was hungry so I could eat there. But I was full.

On Sunday we headed to the southern part of the city Coyacoan. It's much more quiet than the other parts of the city... we went to a plaza... I ate a frozen banana... we went to Friday Kahlo's house... it was pleasant. We came back to the center and went to look at the Diego Rivera mural in the Palacio Nacional... then headed back to Pachuca.

Fun.

Mexico City is a great city, there is so much to see, if you have a free week you should really consider flying out here, hang out in the city, and then come to Pachuca. I'll buy you a taco, hell even three. ($.70)

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