Many vacationers from the U.S. think of Cancun or other beach cities when planning a trip to Mexico, but Mexico City shouldn't be overlooked. I spent my birthday weekend in Mexico City and loved what the city had to offer.
Here's my list of things to do if you have a weekend in Mexico City:
1. Eat, Drink and be Merry
I'll start with the obvious one. The food in Mexico City is amazing, the drinks are cheap, and there's a lot of fun to be had. The easiest way to combine great food, drinks and fun into one night is to head to the Cuauhtémoc district of Mexico City and find Plaza Garibaldi. Here you'll find plenty of restaurants with mariachis playing traditional Mexican folk music.
Your food options in Mexico City are abundant. For my birthday dinner I went to Pujol, a Michelin star restaurant ranked #9 in the world. The service was impeccable and the food was delicious - including a mole sauce that is aged nearly 7 years - but if I'm honest, my favorite meals in Mexico city were not nearly as fancy.
Warm churros from street vendors were to die for. Eating tacos al pastor while sitting on a plastic chair was heaven. My favorite? The torta ahogada from El Pialadero de Guadalajara. As the name of the restaurant implies, this is a traditional Guadalajaran entrée - a sandwich soaked in salsa. They give you plastic gloves to keep your hands from getting stained by the salsa. Add a cold beer and you have a perfect afternoon meal.
Speaking of beer, my favorite beer in La Ciudad was the negra cerveza from Leon, which admittedly isn't some fancy craft beer, but it really hit the spot.
As you'd imagine, there's also plenty of tequila options in Mexico City and it's a lot cheaper than in the U.S. I was able to drink some really top quality tequila without breaking the bank. I also had some not top quality tequila that came with free
appetizers.
But don't be afraid to venture beyond the familiar drinks. One of my more memorable drinks came from the Mexican equivalent of a dive bar. I was the only tourist and all the menus were in Spanish, so I knew it'd be good. Nobody was drinking Leon beer at this spot. Instead everyone has a glass of a white milky substance. Honestly it didn't look appetizing at all. But when in Rome...So I had some, and yeah, it didn't taste much better than it looked. It was sorta sour; maybe it's an acquired taste. So what was it? I asked and turns out it's called pulque. It comes from fermented agave and was much more popular a hundred years ago before beer become ubiquitous.
2. See the Pyramids
A short 25 mile bus ride from Mexico City and you'll see some impressive pyramids and ruins at Teotihuacan. At its peak (over a thousand years ago), this city was the sixth most populated in the world.
I was told these were "Aztec Pyramids" but when I got to Teotihuacan it quickly became clear this city and its pyramids were constructed long before the Aztecs existed. Archeologists estimate the city was established in 100 B.C. - nearly 1,500 years before the Aztecs thrived.
The two impressive pyramids at Teotihuacan are Pyramid of the Moon and the massive Pyramid of the Sun. If you've been to the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza (a nice side trip on a Cancun vacation) and seen the beautiful Temple of Kukulcán pyramid, be prepared to be blown away by the size of the Pyramid of the Sun. While Kukulcán reaches a height of about 80 feet, the Pyramid of the Sun tops out at over 230 feet, making it the third largest pyramid in the world.
3. Take a Taxi to Xochimilco
Mexico City, then known as Tenochtitlan, was once the capital of the Aztec empire. Originally it was built on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco. The Aztecs created dams and channels to control the lake water levels and used canals to connect many of the surrounding lakes and villages. After the Spanish conquest, the lake was drained and today Xochimilco is all that remains of the extensive canal system. Xochimilco is a World Heritage site and can be reached from Mexico City with by bus or taxi. It's not exactly close and a cab can take over an hour, but it's worth it.
The canals of Xochimilco are full of beautifully decorated boats called trajineras. The best way to take in Xochimilco is by hitching a ride on one of the trajineras for a canal tour. Along the way you'll stop at chinampas (plots of land along the water) for opportunities to buy souvenirs or grab a bite to eat. You'll also certainly see the Island of the Dolls which is pretty creepy - lots of dolls hanging from trees accompanied by a scary story of a man who allegedly killed a young girl.
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