I met up with my friend Sven Luckermans in Mexico City who writes a Belgium based travel blog, Mr Good Life. He flew in style onboard Lufthansa First Class from Frankfurt to Mexico City. It was his first time in Mexico City and he was getting in at 7pm. He was a bit held up by customs and immigration, but finally made it to the Four Points by Sheraton Colonia Roma Mexico City hotel.
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Since it was Sven’s first time in Mexico City, I decided to give him a quick rundown tour of some off beaten paths. We hopped on the Mexico City metro and got off at La Merced station where I had hoped to show him the bustling market. I was surprised that all the shops were pretty much closed at this time, so we decided to walk north and stopped by an abandoned looking church.
We walked on the main road of Eje 1 Oriente Anillo de Circunvalacion which was lined up with prostitutes. Eventually, we reached the Tepito metro station where we had some delicious street tacos for 10 pesos.
Since we were in the Tepito neighborhood, we walked to visit La Santa Muerte (Patron Saint of Death).
We walked back towards the Tepito metro station and got off at the Zocalo (Plaza de la Constitucion) which was the city center of Mexico City.
Across the street from the Zocalo was the Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral and it looked beautiful at night.
We walked through the pedestrian street of Avenida Francisco I. Madero towards the Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts).
Afterwards, we hopped on the Mexico City metro from Bellas Artes station to Insurgentes where we ended up in the Zona Rosa neighborhood. It was a short walk to the Angel de la Independencia (Angel of Independence).
Since I broke Sven’s Mexico City taco virginity, he was craving some more, so we ended up at Tacontento in the Zona Rosa neighborhood for a midnight snack. We ordered tacos and washed it down with horchata.
I hope Sven forgives me for bringing him to Barrio Tepito, the most dangerous neighborhood in all of Mexico City where drug lords, murderers, and rapists reside. It’s almost unheard of going there at night as an American and European tourist, but it was fun.
Hello,
I went to Bogota Colombia last yr. I found your hints very helpful re. getting a departure document before checking my bags with airline.
Will I encounter the same situation flying into or out of Mexico City?
Are the currency exchange windows open in the evening at the Mexico City a.p.?
I will look for authorized taxis.
Will I encounter a language barrier as I did in Bogota?
Thank you kindly
Eric
I’m glad you found my Bogota tips helpful! Mexico City is really easy to fly in and out of and it’s nothing like Bogota airport. There’s plenty of currency exchange windows open in the arrivals hall of both Terminal 1 and 2 in the evening. I’d look into using UberX from Mexico City International Airport since it’s really cheap – See http://first2board.com/pointssummary/2015/04/10/5-things-i-learned-from-my-recent-12-hour-layover-in-mexico-city/ . Most people in Mexico City don’t speak English except the young college aged students and people who work in the tourism industry (hotels). Have fun in Mexico City, one of my favorite places in the world!
Hello,
Thank you for your help.
I’ll probably seek out a sitio 300 taxi. I will meet my friend the next a.m.
I will stay on Londres St in Zona Rosa. I’ll venture out in the evening to el Penduto on Hamburgo. Vacation is already paid for.
Question for u: will I have to seek out a aeronautic for a timbre departure form similar to Bogota?
Thank you fer replying.
Eric
You won’t need to seek out anything. The taxes are already paid for when you purchased your airfare. Have a great time!
Hello,
Thank you for your reply(s).
I did see a departure tax in my fare breakdown from my confirm.
When I get there in the evening, I’ll walk to el penduto on hamburgo. It is open very late. I’ll stay in zona rosa. I like my cafeterias. I found a nice one in Bogota near dunkin donuts on calle 21.
Thank you for your help and kind words. Have a nice week.
Eric
great! Have a nice time in Mexico City 🙂 Zona Rosa is a great area for food and drinks!
Hi again,
Having been to B-kok, the hotel supplied me with a few bottles of water for drinking and brushing my teeth (travelers forget that). Do most/some respectful hotels supply their guests w/ bottled agua?
I was thinking of meeting my friend 1/2 way one day. I was thinking of a metro in/near Coyoacan. I would take the metro insurgentes or metro patriotimo? to one of the metros in Coyoacan. I did see one near a mall.
Thank you for your help.
Eric
No, you won’t need to seek out anything at MEX Airport when departing.