Liene's Adventures

What do you do when you discover that you have some extra unused vacation days, but the year is about to be over?! You take a vacation! That is exactly what we decided to do when we discovered we have a week available of unused leave. With the weather turning very cold and wintry in Virginia, we wanted to escape somewhere warmer. Mexico City seemed like an interesting destination for a short getaway; and one that we had never been to before. 

As the trip was relatively short notice and we had not budgeted for it, we decided to use our airline miles for the flight, which totaled only $532 in taxes round-trip for our family of 4. Could be better, but not a bad deal for a last minute flight. I reserved an AirBnB, booked a rental car, and we were ready for the trip!

 

December 4, Day 1

First day was all travel and logistics. With our flight leaving at 5:40PM, we had a relatively un-rushed day with some last-minute packing in the morning and a short drive to the airport. The 5-hour flight was uneventful with the usual snack mix and drinks offered on the plane. I even managed to get in a quick evening nap. Although I was very eager to see Mexico City from the airplane window, it was almost 10PM so it was dark outside. However, the endless city lights shone like a million glow-worms all the way to the horizon, in all directions… After all, Mexico City is the most populated city in North America and the 2nd most populated in the world (after Tokyo)! The size of it was almost impossible to grasp!

So late in the evening customs moved along quickly as there were not too many passengers. Soon enough we were welcomed to Mexico: Bienvenido a Mexico!

Once we got to the car rental office, the drama started. I had reserved and pre-paid a car for $74 for 7 days. However, the usual scam in Mexico was to force clients into purchasing a ''mandatory insurance'' before they ''can'' release a car. The original quote of this scam to us started at $780. There was no way we were going to pay for that. After about an hour and a half and lots of arguing, lots of back and forth, lots of frustrations and 2 asleep children in rental office waiting room chairs, we finally settled on $300. Needless to say, neither party was happy, but it was past midnight and we all just wanted to go home. 

The drive to our AirBnB took another 30 minutes and by the time we got to beds it was already 2AM!

 

December 5, Day 2

A few weeks before the trip I had booked us a Mexico City Electric Bike Tour (''CDMX Electric Bike Tours''). I figured it would be a great way (on the 1st day) to get acquainted with the city, understand its layout, and see the main sights. As I had not anticipated such a late night for us, it was very difficult to get up at 8AM to be on time for the tour. 

However, once we got some coffee and started our 30-minute walk through the neighborhood’s streets to our tour meeting place, we perked up very quickly! Our AirBnB was in one of Mexico City’s most desirable and expensive neighborhoods – Condesa. The streets were wide and green! The sun was shining, and the sky was blue! People were jogging. There were beautiful, lush parks and intricate, old architecture… I really did not expect that, and we were completely mesmerized. It was beautiful!

Another thing we noticed right away was that people here loved dogs. There were dogs everywhere. Not the homeless kind, but ones with owners – jogging, walking, sitting on a park bench enjoying the warm morning... And dog-sitting here was a popular business apparently as we saw many dog walkers with not just 2 or 3 dogs but sometimes 10 or 13 dogs in tow! We had never seen such a craziness before. But it somehow worked.

When we finally reached our bike tour meeting spot, most of the other people of the group were already there and the bikes were waiting for us. As we had never ridden an electric bike before, we got a short instruction and soon after we were ready to hit the streets of Mexico City. Our kids were too young to ride electric bikes on Mexico City streets, so they sat on little seats behind us (like a moped). And even better – we did not have to pay any tour fees for them, and they rode free of charge.

The tour lasted 4 hours and took us on a 13-mile (21km) journey through Mexico City. We saw many popular monuments and rode into the Historic Center with many popular buildings such as the National Palace and Palace of Fine Arts. 

As it was December, the main square was already decorated for Christmas. 

From here we headed on to Mexico City’s Chinatown and popular San Juan Market. Both were just wild places with colors, smells and noise engulfing us from all directions. Chinatown was also ready for Christmas and Chinese New Year with their traditional lanterns strung across streets. 

San Juan market was one of those places where you could get everything from fresh fruits to a freshly chopped up chicken. And yes, they had worms, scorpions, crickets, grasshoppers and other exotic treats for sale here too. I am adventurous but I could not force myself to try them. Sellers even offered to dip them into chocolate for our boys to try, but it was still a hard ''NO!'' They were not brave enough either. 

Thankfully, a more ''regular'' lunch was part of the tour, and we stopped at a street taco stand to take a bite of our first Mexican taco! They were very delicious, and everyone went back for seconds.

From here, our bike tour continued through various city neighborhoods, along popular attractions and into the biggest park of Mexico City – Chapultepec Park. If you can imagine Central Park in New York City, then this park is 5(!) times the size of the New York one! It was a massive park within the 2nd most populated city in the world. There is a whole zoo in this park, lakes, ponds, museums, train rides, bike rentals and tons of greenery, trees, gardens, fountains and other attractions. We only rode through a small portion of this park but that was fine with me as I had a hole day dedicated to just exploring this park in the next few days.

The last stop of the tour was another tasty treat – a churro café called El Moro. It was one of the more popular places and has been open since 1935. The churros were outstanding and we, of course, had to go get seconds. This was a place we visited several more times during our 7-day stay.

With this, our bike tour was over, and we were on our own. Based on what we had seen, we decided to head back towards the Historic Center and make a longer stop at Chinatown and San Juan market. They had fresh fruit that reminded me of our years living in Hawaii and which I truly missed. We got some locally grown red and white guavas, persimmons and mangoes. Not the store kind, but truly tree-ripened, sweet, juicy farm-grown fruit! And several kilograms of fruit cost me maybe $5. Mine and my husband’s backpacks were full of bags of fruit! I was looking forward to having them for dinner! 

We wandered around the market a little more and then headed towards the Historic Center once more. This time around it looked much different than in the morning. The square was full of sellers, hustlers and street performers. It was loud and crowded.

The smaller historic streets were nothing but an endless marketplace block after block. Although we had no interest in buying anything, the atmosphere was enough to pull us in and make us wander around for quite a while. Not that we particularly enjoyed it, but it was definitely a part of Mexico experience. 

Farther away from the Historic Center, the marketplace turned into everyday chaos of mopeds, cars, vendors and honking everywhere.

With evening approaching, it was time to head back towards our AirBnB. We plugged in walking directions in Google maps and set off. After a while we started to realize that this was not quite the wisest choice. Although it was the most direct route back, it was definitely not the safest one. We were being taken through the neighborhood of Doctores which, apparently, was known for its stolen car chop shops (which we saw many of), shady characters and graffitied buildings… Our main goal was to get through here before it got dark, which we successfully accomplished. However, this experience taught us a good lesson about Mexico City – research the neighborhoods before venturing into them. 

After we successfully made it back ''home'', we enjoyed some of the fruit for dinner and soon went to bed. This had been a long day with 13 miles (21km) biked and 9 miles (14.5km) walked around Mexico City. 

 

December 6, Day 3

Although we still had not quite caught up from our lack of sleep from the 1st night’s late arrival, this was another extremely early morning. We had reserved a sunrise hot air balloon ride in Teotihuacan which was about an hour’s drive away. That meant we had to get up a little past 4AM to get ready and make the drive to Teotihuacan by 6AM. 

Navigating Mexico’s crazy pothole filled roads in dark with pedestrians running across the highway, no streetlights, and toll booths popping up in random places was quite an experience (to say the least). But what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger! Apart from a few wrong turns and a hit-and-run injured pedestrian in the middle of a road (the police were already there), we eventually made it to Teotihuacan. 

Hot air balloon ride was the most expensive splurge of the trip. It cost more than our actual flight to get to Mexico itself. But this was one of those once-and-done bucket list items. And what more amazing place to do it if not over ancient pyramids at sunrise? We were equally excited and worried. Although statistically hot air balloon accidents aren’t that common, there was just something worrisome about floating in the air with a fiery ball of cloth attached to a wicker basket… 

Our check-in started with pastries and coffee (which we really needed!), and then all the riders were split up into groups and led to their balloons. After lots of research, the company I chose for our ride was Volare. All their pilots were certified, and they had been the longest continually operating company in Mexico since 2005 with no incidents. 

While we waited on our balloon to take off, we saw many other companies take up into the sky and float off… I guess early morning was the only safe time for rides like these as there were dozens of balloons in the air at this hour. I never saw any of them take off again later in the day. 

And then it was our turn to lift off… Although I am afraid of heights and can’t even climb a castle tower, for whatever odd reason I never got that fear here. The morning was magical with yellow sunlight starting to push through morning fog. It was extremely peaceful and relaxing. There were countless other balloons all around us - in front, behind, above and below – and they were all effortlessly gliding in the same direction. 

And then the pyramids came into view! The largest of them all, Pyramid of the Sun, stood above everything else in the landscape. Our pilot stopped the balloon and hovered over the pyramid for a while so that everyone could get a good look at it. 

As we continued our ride, we could explore the town of Teotihuacan from above as we were floating right over it. The streets and churches and people’s backyards – it was a very interesting vantage point. 

After about an hour the balloon had reached its landing zone. Our skilled pilot successfully landed the floating basket, and we were shuttled back to the starting point of our tour. With this, however, the experience wasn’t over yet. Back at the Volare office everyone was seated at a buffet table for a hot breakfast of scrambled eggs, breakfast tacos, beans, nachos and coffee. And to top it off, a mariachi band was there to entertain the guests. 

What a memorable morning this was!

Our next order of the day was to drive over to the historic site of Teotihuacan to see the pyramids. We had flown over them in the hot air balloon earlier, but we also wanted to do a thorough walk thorough of this famous site. 

The holy city of Teotihuacan ('the place where the gods were created') was built between the 1st and 7th centuries A.D. It is characterized by the vast size of its monuments – in particular, the Temple of Quetzalcoatl and the Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon, laid out on geometric and symbolic principles. As one of the most powerful cultural centers in Mesoamerica, Teotihuacan extended its cultural and artistic influence throughout the region, and even beyond. And an interesting fact is that although most of the ancient culture in Mexico is Aztec, Teotihuacan predated the Aztec Empire by more than one thousand years and thrived alongside many Mayan cities.

We started our exploration by heading towards the Temple of Quetzalcoatl. Along the way we could view the desert landscape with huge cacti that looked more like trees than plants! 

 

The closer we got to the pyramids, the more local vendors appeared selling various souvenirs and local crafts. And many of them were authentic Mexico-made crafts. My boys picked out 2 Aztec jaguar whistles for themselves – a decorated clay whistle that made a roaring jaguar sound when one blew into it. They had fun with it for the rest of the trip!

The Temple of Quetzalcoatl was one of the more fun structures in the complex because we had to climb the steps of the pyramid to get to the top. Once there, a huge ornate wall of ancient carvings / stone heads revealed themselves! It was very unexpected and stunning! We just sat down and watched this ancient art in silence (as did many others). 

From here we walked towards the other end of the complex and towards the main pyramids of the Sun and Moon. Along the way there were several other structures to explore with some well-preserved wall drawings, the most popular of which was the Puma Mural – the largest one to date found in Teotihuacan. 

Many of the desert lizards seemed to call this place their home as they were sunbathing on the hot rocks along the pathways.

Until a few years ago both the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon could be climbed to the top. Nowadays, this is not an option anymore due to preservation efforts. Although, we would have loved to attempt this feat…

Altogether, we spent almost 3.5 hours at the complex with a total of 4.5 miles (7km) walked. The day was sunny and hot, and we were completely exhausted. Taking into account that we had to get up at 4AM, this already felt like a long day. Although it was only 2PM, we could barely stay awake, so the decision was made to head back to the AirBnB and just take it easy for the rest of the day and maybe even catch up on some sleep, finally. 

On the way back, however, we got to experience what the infamous Mexico City traffic jams were all about. Moving forward at the rate of 10 miles (16km) per hour seemed like a norm. By the time we eventually got home, hours had passed! Along the way, we got to witness all kinds of fun cargo being transported.

Our boys instantly found some friends in our little courtyard. Although my kids did not speak Spanish, and their friend did not speak English, they seemed to understand each other quite well. And a local cat, in the midst of it all, was everyone’s friend regardless of the language.

In the evening, we hit the streets in search of some dinner. Street tacos sounded like the perfect meal. And as they say – go where the locals go, which is what we did. We picked an unassuming looking small taco stand crowded with locals and tourists alike. And it was the right decision! For US$1.39 we could get a taco loaded with meat, beans, cheese and any other topping we wanted. We got 8 of them which was way too much, so we had some leftovers for the next day.

 

December 7, Day 4

This morning, we finally allowed ourselves to sleep in a little longer. We got up only after 9AM, and by the time we got ready, went to get some coffee, and packed for the day’s adventure, it was already well past 10AM. 

Out of all the options on my must-do / must-see list, we decided to drive to the town of Tepoztlan. The drive took us over some serious mountain ranges at over 10,000 feet (3000m) in elevation! I was not prepared for that at all! It was quite amazing to see the landscape change as our ears popped from the altitude change…

An even bigger shock came as we noticed a ''mountain'' with some clouds coming out of it. It literally looked like a volcano. Wait! Was there a volcano here?! Was that a volcano?! After some quick google searches, the answer was affirmative – what we saw in front of us was indeed an active volcano named Popocatepetl! Just wow! We had no idea, so this came as a great surprise and we tried to get a look at it every time the road veered in its direction. 

Eventually we were over the mountains and had reached the little town of Tepoztlan. The parking situation in these little villages is quite peculiar. Although there are some official parking spots (the signage and rules of which only locals understand), we quickly found out that the best and safest way to park was in the yards of locals. You just had to drive around and look for a painted sign or taped paper on a fence / gate with a big letter ''E'' on it. Then you go and talk to the homeowner and for some cheap money (like US$4 / day) you get a safe parking spot in their yard and can go about your day.

Once parked, we headed into town. Already from the first steps we were in love with it! Tepoztlan was quaint, compact but full of character and history. It had colorful houses, ornate architecture, historic buildings and churches. It was lively with street vendors and food stalls but not overwhelming like Mexico City. 

One of the main attractions of the town was Tepozteco Archeological Area where a steep trail through a jungle-like forest led to the Aztec Tepozteco pyramid, on a clifftop above the town. Of course it was on our list to see, so we packed our backpacks full of water and headed up. The going was slow (and steep) but it was beautiful. Seeing the jungle-like forest was a nice change in this usually dry and dusty area of Mexico.

Step by step we made it to the top! Although the pyramid was quite impressive, we were more attracted to the vast view all around it. The town of Tepoztlan had remained deep below the cliffs, and mountains had risen across the landscape. 

Everyone who had made it up here seemed to be in no rush to get back down, including us. We just sat on the steps of the pyramid and reminisced about the people who used to live here… 

Going down was, understandably, much quicker than going up, and soon enough we were back in town wandering its historic streets.

That is, until my 9-year-old started complaining about earache. He had mentioned it earlier in the day, but we assumed that going over the mountains and elevation change had messed with the pressure in his ears which would eventually resolve. But it did not, and it got worse – tears were flying everywhere. Where do you even start looking for a doctor in a small Mexico town on a Saturday night?! We asked around until we were directed to a small door next to a pharmacy where a nice doctor saw our boy and determined that he had a double ear infection. A few minutes later we were out the door with antibiotics and pain medication in hand. What an unexpected cultural experience!

By this time, it had gotten dark already. Although we would have loved to explore the town a little more, our sick kid was in no condition to do so. All that was left was a long drive back over the mountains to return to Mexico City.

 

December 8, Day 5

Off we go again! Today’s road trip was taking us to the town of Puebla about 2 hours southeast of Mexico City. Puebla was awarded the title by UNESCO due to its preservation of its 16th and 17th-century historical buildings. Many of the colonial buildings are adorned with azulejos (colorful tiles). 

We arrived quite early, well before most tourist crowds, and the town seemed still asleep. We found another parking spot in the courtyard of a local resident and walked off into the colorful streets of Puebla.

What we noticed here was that the Christmas spirit was in full force – the buildings and streets were decorated, parks had big festive sculptures set up, and Christmas trees could be found in all the main squares. 

We got some paletas (Mexican ice cream popsicles) and disappeared into the colors of the town. Street after street, through markets, past churches and across squares – we explored the historic center of Puebla zigzagging its street labyrinths for hours. As time went by, the streets got louder, the vendors set up their stands and the town had woken up for a busy day ahead.

3 hours and 4.5 miles (7km) later we found ourselves back at the car. We had seen plenty to have a good perspective of what Puebla was about. We all agreed that the quiet morning time was more to our liking than the afternoon hustle.

After a short discussion we decided not to go home but head to Atlixco – an off-the-beaten-path little town about a 30-minute drive from Puebla. Situated at the foot of the Popocatépetl volcano, it was very intriguing to us.

A quick drive, another parking spot at a local residence and we were ready to explore! Atlixco was actually much more crowded than I anticipated it to be, but there was a reason for it which I was not aware of yet…

The second we immersed ourselves in the local atmosphere, we realized that it was even more festive than Puebla. Every street was decorated with poinsettias, lights, candy canes, reindeer and other Christmas decorations. People were gathering to take family photos and tourists were Instagramming their best festive shots!

We headed towards La Escalera Ancha – a painted staircase with 87 steps.

From here we walked up to the courtyard of San Francisco Church which was surprisingly void of people. For a while there we were not even sure if we could be there but eventually more people showed up. There was a beautiful view over the town here and the church itself was just radiating centuries of history.

A long uphill climb took us to the highest point in town – Archangel Saint Michael church. The summit offered 360-degree views in all directions with the most popular being the glass overlook platform towards Popocatépetl volcano.

After we had absorbed all the views (and eaten some churros), we headed down towards the town. The streets had become especially crowded and people had lined up along the main square. Some parade floats started showing up! So THAT was why Atlixco was so crowded tonight! There was an evening parade! We had no idea, but we sure enjoyed watching the local dancers, mariachi bands and all the cultural presentations passing by us one by one. 

Once the parade ended, people dispersed in the festive main square full of Christmas lights and displays. It was a party! A very crowded one. We could not fully enjoy it in fear of having our kids getting lost in all the hustle and bustle happening around. After a few laps around the main streets, we decided to start walking back to the car. It was late and dark, and we still had a long drive back to Mexico City. 

As you might have noticed, we had quite a few early mornings or late nights when we had to drive in the dark, hours upon hours. I would say the biggest concern in doing so was the huge potholes that would pop up randomly in the middle of a highway. And I am not talking about just spilling your coffee kind of potholes. I am talking about a hole that would immobilize and swallow up a quarter of your car instantly. We did not feel unsafe in any other way really, but constantly watching out for these random car-swallowing potholes was a little nerve-wracking. And yes, some locals like to drive with no lights on, there is that too.

 

December 9, Day 6

This was our last day before flying back home, so we planned to stay local and take it easy. The morning started with a walk to our usual street-side breakfast place for coffee and French toasts. 

After that we packed up for a long day of walking around Chapultepec Park. I was really looking forward to exploring it as we had seen just a small part of it during our bike tour on the first day.  As we approached the park, we noticed the gate was closed. Odd, but maybe this side entrance was locked for a reason. So, we walked along the fence to another entrance where we were stopped by a guard and informed that the park was closed. What do you mean ‘closed’?! I was aware that museums and the zoo inside the park were not open on a Monday. Monday in Mexico was like a Sunday in Europe or USA. But we only planned to walk around the park on its paths and walkways, and trails to look at the fountains and sculptures and lush gardens and flowerbeds… No, apparently the WHOLE park was closed, including the grass and trees and flowers. No green space allowed on Mondays! I was truly dumbfounded. This was my whole day, and one I was really looking forward to! Had I known this before, I would have switched my days and itinerary around, but at this point it was too late. No park. 

Aimlessly (and annoyed) we dragged ourselves through the streets of Mexico City trying to decide what to do. We were making our way forward on Avenida de la Reforma. It was one of the longest avenues in Mexico City with tall buildings, monuments and plazas lining the sides of it. We set Garibaldi Plaza in the Historic Center as our destination and headed towards it on Avenida de la Reforma. There was a local market happening which we explored.

Many Christmas decorations had been set up along the avenue with great photo opportunities. But it did not quite speak to us as we were still disappointed about missing out on Chapultepec Park.

The closer we got to Garibaldi Plaza the shadier the neighborhoods got. We were back in an area with weed-smoking homeless and graffiti covered buildings. This was another neighborhood that made us be on the edge, although occasional little nooks and crannies of it were hiding beautiful historic churches and parks where no tourists were ever present.

The Garibaldi Plaza itself was quite a disappointment with drunks laying on doorsteps and an overall unappealing scene. The noticeable presence of patrolling police units let us know this was not the best place to be. We sat down for some more paletas and quickly decided to head on. There was no need to linger. 

Tlatelolco Archeological Zone was a 25-minute walk away through another hair-raising neighborhood, Lagunilla (which borders the absolute most criminal and dangerous neighborhood in all of Mexico City – Tepito). It was not a pleasant walk. We were weaving through flea market stalls and vendor booths, amidst dumped old vehicles, sleeping dogs and garbage piles. My large camera bag and blonde hair were a dead giveaway that I did not belong here.

We made it to Tlatelolco just 30 minutes before closing, and although part of the area was already closed for the night, we explored what had remained open to visitors. 

Tlatelolco is an archaeological excavation site in the middle of Mexico City where remains of the pre-Columbian city-state have been found. The main pyramid is over 700 years old. 

Our visit here was short, and with sun setting below the horizon, we did not want to risk walking 9 miles (14.5km) back in the dark across Mexico City. We called an Uber and 15 minutes later we were back in our own neighborhood of Condesa. We walked over to our favorite taco stand and scurried across the park to get El Moro churros one last time. We will surely miss our favorite tacos, churros and breakfast French toasts. Funny how in just short 7 days we already had our favorites!

The remainder of the night was spent packing up our luggage for an early morning flight.

 

December 10, Day 7

At 7AM we were impatiently waiting at the rental car office gate. As expected, they went over the car with a magnifying glass looking for any scratch or dent that they could possibly claim as our fault in order to get more money for ''damages''. They were particularly interested in the scratched-up rims, the pictures of which (taken as proof at the start of our rental) had conveniently disappeared from their computer. This was not their lucky day, however. We had taken a very detailed video of the car when picking it up, showing the scratched rims in the video. They had to admit the damage was there before us and there will be no money flowing their way. Our deposit was returned, and we headed to the airport. Check-in and customs were as quick and simple as when we arrived and shortly after we were sitting by the gate munching on a breakfast empanada with coffee, waiting for our flight to board. 

Mexico City left an impression as a place of extremes and opposites. My husband said he did not like the feeling of always having to look over his shoulder. Although I did not feel like that everywhere, some areas made my heart beat faster, for sure. On the other hand, the culture and history of Mexico is amazing and something to appreciate. Our absolute favorite of the trip was the little town of Tepoztlan. If I had to visit one of these places one more time, I would definitely choose Tepoztlan, and the same goes for my husband. The kids? They just go along with the flow. And as long as they get an occasional paleta and get to climb a pyramid, they are happy. 

With this being our 3rd trip to Mexico, I am not sure that we will return here again. There are many other places we have not been to yet at all, and the world is big. But all the times that we have visited Mexico, it has definitely been worth the experience and adventure. 

 

Costs for 4 people (2 adults + 2 kids)

Flights: 34,000 miles + $532 in taxes

AirBnB: $567 

Car rental (ACE / Infinity): $74 + $300

Travel insurance (medical + rental car): $128

TOTAL: $1601

 

Extras:

Volare Hot Air balloon ride: $525

CDMX Electric bike tour: $117

 

Our previous trips to Mexico:

Caribbean Cruising with 2 Kids - 9-Day Western Caribbean Cruise on Norwegian Getaway

Unplanned Trip to Mexico