Food and History in Mexico

Mexico City is a massive city, we could have spent months there and never run out of things to see or do. Our favorite area of the city was the Condesa neighborhood where our hotel was located. It is one of the more affluent areas of the city, and is full of greenery and beautiful paths, as well as a lot of great bars and restaurants. We took a hop-on hop-off bus tour through the city in order to see more neighborhoods, and got off in the Del Carmen neighborhood famous for the Frida Kahlo house. Unfortunately we didn't plan ahead and tickets to the museum were sold out for a week - so definitely buy in advance if you want to go there! We did get some delicious tacos while walking through the neighborhood, though.

We also took a day trip to Teotihuacan, the ancient Aztec city full of pyramids. Our tour bus left at 6am, but even with the early start time it was still baking hot while we were there. Definitely needed sunscreen, water, and a hat! Our tour guide showed us around the ancient city and gave the history of how many parts have been destroyed. Next time we would love to take a hot air balloon ride, we saw some while they were there and it would be a breathtaking view.

We had only ever heard amazing things about Oaxaca and its food, so we were eager to experience it for ourselves. The region is full of diverse plants and recipes, and there are a lot of restaurants that try to keep the traditional recipes alive. We were surprised at how many fancy restaurants there were in the city, they very clearly cater to tourists and are of varying quality. Our absolute favorite restaurant was Los Pacos Centro. It offers a 7-mole tasting of all of the traditional moles that come from the Oaxaca region. We had a wonderful time pretending we were professional food tasters and took tasting notes and described what we liked and didn't like about each one.

The part we didn't love about Oaxaca was the noise and the pollution. There was constant car honking, fireworks, brakes screeching, loud stereos, etc. no matter where we went. Plus, the cars and trucks that drive through have a lot of exhaust which makes the streets very dirty and polluted. If we were only there a few days it wouldn't have been a problem, but by the end of our 10-day stay we were definitely ready to leave the city. The one reprieve we got was our excursion to Hierve el Agua, a "petrified waterfall" a ways out of the city. The journey to get there was extensive - it required a taxi, a bus, and the back of a pickup truck. But for those who aren't travelling on as much of a budget, there are a lot of tour buses that take you there as well! It was a beautiful location and a great escape into nature.