The big city calls - Arrival in Mexico City

Von Campeche aus ging unserer Reise weiter in die Hauptstadt von Mexiko! Am Vortag fragten wir bei unserem Host George nach, wie wir denn von der Unterkunft am besten zum Flughafen kommen können. Er fragte nur, welchen Flug wir genau nehmen und antwortete „Ich organisiere etwas, vertraut mir, das kriegen wir schon hin!“. Am nächsten Morgen stellte sich heraus, dass er und seine Frau den gleichen Flieger gebucht haben! Sein Bruder wollte die beiden an den Flughafen bringen und nahm uns netterweise einfach mit.

As expected, the airport of Campeche was very small, and the check-in of our backpacks was accordingly very easy. As in all public places, we had to disinfect our hands again several times and when entering the airport, our temperature was measured again. On top of that, we had to fill out a health form for our flight with information about the flight number, our seats, the places we visited in the last 14 days and contact information. (Fun fact: We were not asked for this form again.) Because we were both obviously the only Europeans, we were also checked extra for our residence permit before entering the hand luggage check.

Wir flogen mit der Billigairline Volaris, die Flüge von Campeche nach Mexiko schon für 30€ pro Person anbot. Auch trotz dem zusätzlichen Gepäck, das wir hinzubuchen mussten, war es dennoch ein Schnäppchen. Bei so günstigen Flügen darf man aber natürlich keinen großen Luxus erwarten und insbesondere für Tomek war die Beinfreiheit nicht gegeben. Netterweise bot uns die Stewardess kurz vor dem Start an, dass wir uns ein paar Reihen weiter vorne hinsetzen können, wo deutlich mehr Platz ist. Obwohl der Flug recht voll wirkte, waren drei dieser „komfortableren“ Reihen vollständig frei. Das Angebot nahmen wir gerne an und konnten während dem zweistündigen Flug auch immer mal wieder den Ausblick aus dem Fenster genießen. Je näher wir an Mexiko City heranflogen, desto deutlicher wurden uns die Dimensionen der Stadt!

What we found really great was the principle of how it was regulated during disembarkation that not too many passengers come out of the plane at the same time. From front to back, only three rows are allowed to get their luggage and disembark at the same time. The stewardesses regulate this by simply being the only ones who are allowed to open the overhead bins. They then stand behind the corresponding rows and only when everyone is disembarking they open the overhead bins for the next three rows, and so on. It's great that everyone really follows this rule and not standing up earlier!

By arriving at the airport of Mexico City, we noticed immediately that there are significantly more people on the road. In addition, the airport is very large and so we walked with our luggage of course first completely in the wrong direction. Outside the airport were super many cabs and buses that go to the city center. But we decided after a quick look at the route planner that we take the metro to the accommodation.

Metro in Mexico City

A trip with the metro costs just 5 pesos per person (~ 20 cents) and with that you can go as far as you want in town, if you always stay below ground. From the airport to our hostel we had to change trains once and at the transfer platform we did not immediately know where to go. We stood around looking lost for less than 10 seconds until a man approached us and asked us where we wanted to go. That was super sweet and a nice start to our time in the city.

What we found very interesting is that the first car of the metro is always reserved exclusively for women and children. Accordingly, there is also a barrier on the platform. This is for the safety of women and children and we thought that was great! Later we also learned that this is also the case for buses and other means of transport. At the time we were on the metro, it must not have been rush hour, because it was quite empty. We also didn't feel unsafe at all, yet as in any big city, you should always have a look at your luggage.

In Mexico City, it is apparently also normal for the metro to be used as a sales area. Very often people get on and want to sell something during the ride between two stations. We found it very funny how different the goods were: Chocolate, batteries, chewing gum, snacks, charging cables, etc. We jokingly said that you don't really need to go shopping after work, just ride the metro. Surprisingly, there was a lot of interest in the goods.

The first impression of the city

When we got off the metro at the right station and went up the stairs, we expected a noise level like at TimesSquare - since we were in a metropolis with several million inhabitants. But we arrived in a small park in front of a church, where it was surprisingly quiet.

We also noticed immediately that there were policemen on every street corner. But that didn't make us feel less safe. We also found it interesting that there are people handing out disinfectant gel on pretty much every corner. On the particularly busy streets, the police also make sure that all passersby walk only in a certain direction, so that fewer people come towards each other in a confined space. Also, some people were standing along the road holding up signs that you have to wear your mask. We have not seen this before and would not have expected so, but we found it super!

Die Zeit bis zum Einchecken überbrückten wir in einem kleinen Restaurant und spazierten noch zum Zocalo, dem Hauptplatz von Mexiko City. Dort wurden wir mal wieder von Leuten angequatscht, die uns etwas verkaufen wollten. Amüsant fanden wir, dass einer der Jungs als allererstes zu uns sagte: „Keine Sorge, ich möchte euch nicht überfallen, ich möchte euch nur kurz meine Geschichte erzählen.“

Unser Hostel (Werbung) lag direkt am Zocalo im historischen Zentrum von Mexiko City. Wenn man in so eine große Stadt reist, die zudem noch überall als eine der gefährlichsten Städte weltweit bekannt ist, informiert man sich natürlich vorher etwas mehr, welche Stadtviertel gut sind und welche man besser meiden sollte. Das Hostel „Casa Pepe“ hatte sehr gute Bewertungen und das historische Zentrum wird auch als sehr sicher bezeichnet, sodass wir guten Gewissens ein Zimmer buchten. Im Preis war auch ein Frühstück auf der herrlichen Dachterrasse enthalten. Uns gefiel es dort tatsächlich auch sehr gut, weshalb wir auch das Hostel sehr gerne empfehlen.

Out and about in the city

Da unser Hostel so nah am Zocalo lag, ging unser erster richtiger Spaziergang am nächsten Tag dann auch dorthin. Dort wurden wir erstmal von „dezenter“ Weihnachtsdekoration begrüßt. Bei der Größe der Stadt ist es auch nicht verwunderlich, dass man sich auf ihrem Hauptplatz winzig vorkommt. Der Platz ist mehr als 50.000 Quadratmeter groß. Dort befindet sich auch die größte Kathedrale des Landes. Als wir dort waren, fiel uns sofort auf, dass ein Teil des Platzes mit Zelten besetzt wurde. Dies ist eine Protestbewegung gegen den amtierenden Präsidenten, der am Zocalo auch seinen Sitz hat. Wir haben von den Protesten allerdings nichts mitbekommen.

Very close to the Zocalo are the remains of the Templo Mayor. The temple was the most important and largest temple of the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan, which is now Mexico City. Unfortunately, the museum was closed due to corona, so we could only take a look at the remains from the outside.

As always in any new city, we like to just walk the streets without much of a plan. So also in Mexico City. However, we quickly noticed that the streets were sometimes very crowded and there were countless people on some corners who wanted to sell you something. Even though this was an exciting insight, the risk of infection was too high for us in such a large city and we preferred to look for streets where it was a bit quieter.

The environment at the Palacio de Bellas Artes is also very interesting, which is considered the highest and most important house of culture in Mexico and in which theater plays as well as dance and music performances take place. Right next to the palace is the Alameda Central, a beautiful park with many fountains, where you suddenly no longer have the feeling of being in such a big city.

My 28th birthday in Mexico City

Excursion to the world of the Aztecs - Teotihuacan

Just about 55 km north of Mexico City are the Aztec temple sites of Teotihuacan. A tour was offered by our hostel, which included the drive there, the entrance to the site and a guide there. Also included in the price was a visit to the Basilica de la Guadelupe and to the Plaza of the Three Cultures in Mexico City. Since the whole thing was quite cheap and we were so easily picked up from the hostel and did not have to worry about anything, we decided for booking this tour.

Unfortunately, we were told only when we left that exactly on this day, December 12, the appearance of the Virgin of Guadelupe is celebrated and accordingly usually every year thousands of visitors make a pilgrimage to the basilica. To avoid crowds during Corona, the church was closed on this holiday. Accordingly, we could not go there with our tour. We found it very unfortunate that we were told this only on the way and not when booking the tour.

Dennoch war es ein sehr spannender Tag und schon auf dem Weg aus Mexiko City raus erlebten wir die verstopften Straßen, den verrückten Verkehrsstil der Mexikaner und fuhren am Markt von Merced vorbei, wo sich die Menschen beim Einkaufen nur so aneinander drückten. „Hier gibt es kein Corona!“, sagte unser Guide nur spöttisch. Auf dem Weg zu den Pyramiden fuhren wir an etlichen Favelas vorbei, die sich am Rand von Mexiko Stadt gebildet haben. Die kleinen bunten Häuschen wurden von den Leuten errichtet, die in die Stadt fahren wollten, um Geld zu verdienen, sich aber kein Zuhause in Mexiko Stadt leisten konnten. Sie lebten daher unter geringsten Bedingungen ohne Wasser und Strom, bis der Staat diese Favelas als Siedlungen akzeptierte und sie doch mit der nötigen Infrastruktur ausstattete.

After an hour, we reached the gates of Teotihuacan, where only about 3,000 people are currently allowed in due to the pandemic. And so we were able to walk with our group to the Pyramid of the Moon, across the Street of the Dead and to the Pyramid of the Sun, where there were really only a handful of other people. Normally you can climb the pyramids and there is a long line of people waiting below the pyramids to do so. This is also not allowed due to Corona, however we were able to take some nice photos of the pyramids that way.

We continued to a small factory where, among other things, pulque, mezcal and tequila are produced. Our guide showed us different stones, masks and plants and of course we were allowed to taste a shot of mezcal and tequila each.

At the subsequent lunch we got to know the other participants of the tour even better and found that we had some things in common. A Dutch-Norwegian couple also wanted to go on a world tour on April 1st and had cancelled everything for it. Mexico is their first destination and they had just landed a few days before. Another couple, originally from Brazil but now living in the U.S. was previously visiting their family in Brazil and made a stop in Mexico. And there was a Colombian who works as a teacher but can work from anywhere because of online teaching. While we were sharing our experiences, we were surprised by an Aztec couple performing a dance with drums and loud chants. Very exciting!!!

The third stop of the tour took us back to the city and we looked at the Square of the Three Cultures. There you can still see the influence of the Aztecs in remnants of temples, and in the background you can see a monastery that dates back to colonial times. Around the area you can see the modern times of Mexico City, because high-rise buildings were built in the 1970s, which had only one goal: to offer as many people as possible a roof over their heads. Accordingly, at that time, no attention was paid to the appearance of the houses. However, not all of these houses are still there, because some collapsed during the severe earthquakes in recent years.

On the way from the Square of the Three Cultures back to our colectivo, we saw the crime of Mexico City with our own eyes for the first time. At a statue, a man had taken a seat and was talking on the phone. He had his backpack to his left, but not close to him, but placed a little further away. We saw another man sit down around the corner next to the backpack. The man already looked in poor conditions. And even though we were walking in a fairly large group towards the statue, he started grabbing the other man's backpack. Our tour guide tried to point this out to the man on the phone and the thief also immediately stopped his attempt. But we also thought at that moment that if someone leaves his backpack like that, then he shouldn't be surprised if he really gets robbed.

Afterwards, we were supposed to be driven back to the hostel. But since there were riots at the Zocalo at that time, all streets were blocked and we were dropped off a bit outside. On our 30-minute walk back, we noticed nothing of the riots and arrived safely back at the hostel.

After four nights in the capital, we flew to Mazatlan, on the west coast of Mexico, to visit a friend of Tomek's there.

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