Mexico City

Pros: Another fabulous culture just across the border.
Cons: Know the language or travel with a friend who does.

This is a re-post of a piece I wrote for a Write-off called My Favorite International City. It was hosted by elorraine, who got married and disappeared from the site. A list of participants is at the end of the review; I wonder how many are still...

Pros: museums, mostly friendly people, temperate climate
Cons: air (polluted and thin), crowding

Once upon a time (1981) I sublet an apartment in Mexico City's Zona Rosa (pink zone, not the red-light district... far more chic). I traveled there before (going back to 1974) and have since (including two months ago), but would not claim to know the ...

Pros: Amazing pyramids and temples -- over 2,000 years old
Cons: Somewhat remote from downtown

Evil priests sacrificing young virgins to strange and powerful gods; warriors wiping out marauders from outlying wastelands; sorcerers scanning the night skies for signs of inspiration, or of impending famine. These are some of the tales you hear...

Pros: Cosmopolitan city full of history and tradition
Cons: Pollution, crime, overcrowding, traffic

I love Mexico City. I love the huge sprawl, the cosmopolitan nature of the downtown area, the hustle and bustle of 21 million people going about their business. But I’d be blind to not admit that its also a city of 21 million problems.

I guess...

Pros: Clean, cheap, reliable, safe transportation
Cons: Rush hour crowds like nowhere else!

Mexico City can be intimidating to the first time visitor, but get a good subway map and a booklet of subway tickets, and the whole city opens up to you -- safely and cheaply!

Fortunately for travelers, Mexico City has one of the...

Pros: Big name stores with little price tags!
Cons: Nothing in particular

Review Topic:  Shopping

Why the heck am I writing about shopping? I'm a guy. I'd rather go get some cavities filled than go shopping. But while I don't like shopping, my wife does. A lot. That means I go...

Pros: Great hands-on activities for the kids
Cons: Don't have a place like this near home

One of the most enjoyable museums in Mexico City is the famous Papalote Children's Museum. If you've got kids, they'll love it! Bright, colorful, and filled with educational experiences for children of all ages. I was surprised at the sheer size of the...

Pros: Colonial architecture, tree lined avenues, great museums
Cons: Some things are a bit run down

The Alameda is a park in central Mexico City occupying several city blocks. It was designed during the 19th century by a viceroy as an upscale, luxurious park for the upper classes -- no commoners allowed -- and walls were put up around the park just in...

Pros: Huge -- tons of cool things from pre-hispanic history
Cons: None

Mexico City's Anthropology Museum (Museo Nacional de Antropologia) is one of the largest, newest, and most fascinating museums in a city that's just chock full of great museums. It easily ranks among the great museums of the world's capital cities....

Pros: Stunning visionary works by internationally known artists, FREE
Cons: have to hunt around if you want to see all the best of them

Mexican art is, first and foremost, about murals -- huge expansive works that can't be confined to a small square of cloth or a mere block of marble. Murals are work that needs to escape, to be seen, and to be noticed not just by museum goers or the...

Pros: trees, monuments, museums, people watching
Cons: wish i were there right now...

There's something magical about a city park. It's like a small slice of countryside that's tamed and kept in a cage of urban activity. While people of all nationalities enjoy their city parks, it's really strolling through the biggest city park in the...

Pros: Stunning artwork, more pleasant than its reputation might let on.
Cons: Busy, polluted, manic ...

One of the three largest cities in the world, Mexico City, its country's capital, comes with something of a reputation; several people expressed suprise that I would want to travel to somewhere seen as weighed down by crime, pollution and traffic. ...

Pros: Nice people who let you speak Spanish, lots of civic art and great food.
Cons: High altitude & pollution can be a physical challenge. Lots of traffic and treacherous sidewalks.

I just spent a week in Mexico City and I found it a revealing new way to enjoy our neighbor south-of-the-border. Until now, I've only spent time in smaller, beach-oriented locales in Mexico: Mazatlan, Zihuataneho, and Rosarito. I found the capitol to be ...

Pros: Historical and religious attractions that will boggle your mind.
Cons: Limited diet coke/pepsi, no washcloths...well, those are minor!

Loco bus drivers…a Cathedral that brought me to tears…phoning home on a street corner in the pouring rain. All wonderful memories of a recent trip to Mexico City. Today, I’d like to take you through some of the wonders that our group experienced...

Pros: A fascinating city that will make you rethink your preconceived notions of Mexico.
Cons: Polluted and crowded; can be unsafe in places.

I recently went on a week long trip to Mexico City for a class in my part-time MBA program. There were fifteen of us on the trip. I must confess that I was dreading the experience: enforced group fun is not generally my cup of tea. But the trip (and...