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Published: December 21st 2006
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Dia de Muertos (Day of the Dead)
A big celebration in Mexico on the 2nd of November every year In order for me to reach Mexico City, I had to take a bus to Acapulco from Playa Azul via Lazaro Cardenas (a small town where the mainbus terminal was) which took around 6 hours. And on the same evening take another bus from Acapulco to Mexico City (paid around 300 pesos - US$30 for the 1st class overnight bus..buses are really expensive in Mexico) which took another 5 hours and I finally arrived in Mexico City at 6am. So all in all, I had been on the road for 16 hours!
Mexico City is the largest city in Mexico. The city alone has a population of 18 million compared to the whole of Malaysia which is approximately 25 million.
Its is elevated at 2240 m above sea level and in November the weather is nice and cool.
I had received loads of advice and warnings on how dangerous and polluted Mexico City was prior to arriving in Mexico City. And so I was as anyone would be, anxious and cautious when I arrived in the city at the the break of dawn.
Took the metro/subway from the main bus terminal to the Zocalo (town centre) and was
Dia de Muertos (Day of the Dead)
This picture was taken at the zocalo or main square in Mexico City... impressed with the efficiency and cleanliness of the metro.
You can ride up to as many stops as you want for a flat fee of 2 pesos! ( US$0.20) That´s really dirt cheap.
Checked into Hostel Amigo, a professionally managed hostel that had a pool table, lounge area, a full service bar, free internet usage, TV and lots of breathing space....They served full breakfast and dinner which no other hostel has done so far during my travels.
My first impression of Mexico City was totally the opposite of what I had heard from others.
Its pretty clean, I felt safe (of course I am talking about the centre of town and not dodgy areas and places out of the town centre) and the air was clear, clean and cool.
The city is surrounded by medium rise buildings with historical facades mostly influenced by European and Spanish designs. Felt like I was walking somewhere in Europe a little...
It was nice to see Zara and Burger King stores located in historical buildings without the overt neon lights flashing at your face as most stores in other countries do.
I spent a total of four days in Mexico City.
Took a walkabout tour of the city (it was organised by the hostel for free) and learnt about the history behind the significant buildings of the city.
Visited places like:
The Main Post Office - It was designed by a famous Italian architect. The post office was adorned with gold trimmings and Italian marble and was more like a 6 star hotel than a post office.
Templo Mayor - The torn down Aztec pyramids within the city square.
Plaza Girabaldi -where all the Mariachi bands perform and you can buy drinks from the street vendor that served cocktails and beers all night. I was told that this was the only place in Mexico you could drink on the streets. I went with a group from the hostel and we had a really great time at this plaza with such a festive atmosphere.
National Museum of Antropology - The most modern and interesting museum I have seen to-date after the Museum of London. You need more than one day in order to finish seeing all the exhibits. We had to skip a few due to time constraints. Definitely a place you must see.
Shrine and
Basilica de GuadalupeChurch of the Virgen Mary of Guadalupe
Church of the Virgen Mary of Guadalupe where a miracle happened. Basilicas of Our Lady of Guadalupe or The Virgin of Guadalupe - The place where thousands worship and pay homage every year to the Lady of Guadalupe.
It is also the place where an indigenous Mexican named Juan Diego who is said to have witnessed an apparition of the Virgin Mary as Our Lady of Guadalupe and a miracle happened where the image of the lady of Guadalupe appeared on the robe of the Juan Diego. That robe is housed in the Basilica here where you it can be viewed from a far.
Teotihuacan - Took a day tour of the Aztec Pyramids (the 2nd largest in the New World after the great pyramid of Cholula) It was my first ruins and I found it amazing as it had an air of mystery with its impressive pyramids that stood out high amidst its vast and empty horizon.
The climb up the pyramids "took my breath away" leaving me panting! Lots of narrow and steep steps
in order to reach both the main pyramids.
The tour also took us to a place that sold arts and crafts. A local person demonstrated to us how a cactus
was used for
Basilica de Guadalupe
The actual robe of which the Virgin Mary of Guadalupe performed the miracle. many things by the Mexicans such as soap for washing, Tequila or Mezcal for alcohol, needle and thread for sewing, fibres used for making material for clothing and the inner layer of the cactus was used as paper for writing (paper from cactus - really impressed me when he wrote on the inner layer of the cactus plant and then peeled off the inner transluscent layer to reveal a thin paper with the message he wrote) We also got to taste pulque, mezcal and tequila, alcohol made from various types of cactuses. All the alcohol helped fuel our climb up the pyramids later.....
Suprisingly, I found food in this city the cheapest in Mexico so far.
A chef salad for only US$1.40 and a 1/4 roast chicken for only US1.00 at a take away counter.
By the way, when you order Orange Juice here, they use 7 to 8 oranges to make a glass and it is fresh and taste so good for only US$0.70. Most of Mexico cost about the same. No ice and no water added for sure.
I managed to find a good deal and bought myself a new digital camera in the city and
the photos in this journal were all taken with my new camera....
Hostel Amigo was a real party hostel as the bar was just downstairs. Met loads of travellers whom I got to meet again along the way throughout the later part of my trip around Mexico.
After too much of parties, it was time for me to head somewhere quiet for a change and so I decided to move down south again and head to San Cristobal De las Casas......
(Mexico City is a really huge city and I would definitely want to come back some day to finish exploring the rest of the city)
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liz hoo
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hey edgar
thanks for the memories Edgar. Had an awesome time travelling with you. Make sur eyou keep in touch and maybe we can catch up for some noodles or curry.