Mexico: Last Reflections

After a month in Mexico, we have certainly become experts on Mexico, Mexicans and Mexican culture, so you can take everything in this blog as gospel and completely valid. LOL !

We came to Mexico with some trepidation—not really believing the stories on TV and the newspapers, but still wondering how safe it really is.  If our experience is any reflection, the tourist areas that we have visited are extremely safe and visitor friendly. Throughout our travels, we have been struck by how few outside tourists and travelers we have run across—the vast majority of tourists we have seen, even in well-known places like San Miguel de Allende, have been Mexicans and this has been true in Oaxaca, Puerto Escondido, and especially in Mexico City.

Mexico City—what do you say about a metropolis of 28 million people.  It is crowded and polluted—you cannot get over that.  But it is also incredibly interesting and exciting.  There are so many cultural and tourist attractions, spread throughout the city, that it is almost impossible to choose which ones to do amongst the many offerings.  We have simply scratched the surface and would need at least another month to make even a dent.

A hidden courtyard in San Miguel de Allende.

 Getting from one attraction to another is often a problem.  Our first experience with the TuriBus (we waited an hour only to be told it would be better to come back tomorrow) is really emblematic of the difficulties of getting around town. Coming back the next day, we got on, but because of the snarl of Friday traffic an incredibly long slog of more than four hours inching through streets around town clearly tested our resolve and patience.

Art from the Aztec era (1400)

Since then, we have discovered Mexico City´s excellent subway system, Metro.  For three pesos—less than $.25 one can go throughout the city, in a relatively short period of time. Erin’s friends tease her because she doesn’t like using the Metro, but we think it is a boon to the average tourist—as long as you use it outside of rush hour.  Without the subway, Mexico City would clearly be in gridlock. 

Mexicans, like Americans, love their cars. Sometimes the beauty of Mexico City’s lovely neighborhoods like Polanco and Xochimilco or even colonial towns like Oaxaca and San Miguel de Allende are obscured by the noise, dirt  and pollution generated by traffic.  We’ve seen few accidents, but a taxi ride across town is always an adventure with your heart in your throat.  On the other hand, if you can relax and accept that your driver is adept at what he does, weaving in and out of Mexico City traffic with skills almost balletic in nature, you can enjoy the ride.  The Mexican government is working very hard trying to deal with the traffic though.  They are building more mass transit alternatives like metrobuses and light rail; and they are introducing new toll roads and forcing drivers to not use their vehicles one or two days a week.

One regret; we won't be here for Dead of the Dead, a great Mexican holiday for all.  Candies made in preparation above.

We are continuously struck by how hardworking Mexicans are.  The wages for many working class Mexicans are still very, very low—especially by American standards.  Waiters have told us that they make 1800 peso a month—less than $150.  Hotel workers are paid perhaps twice that. Although things are cheaper here, we do find ourselves wondering how we might live on $150-$300 a month.  Many of the waiters and hotels clerks we have gotten to know also tell us that they work at least two jobs, six and sometimes seven days a week.  Underemployment is another problem.  It is hard to imagine the number of street vendors you run across on a daily basis—sitting in a park, at an outdoor café or even on a subway car, you will be accosted by a steady stream of vendors, with every imaginable type of trinket, gewgaw, or artisan craft.

But Mexico is not just a country of the poor and working class.  The middle class and the well-to-do are very evident as well. The cafes and shops of Polanco are full of prosperous, well-dressed men and women.  One thing we have noticed when we are dining in a restaurant or having a drink at a bar or coffee shop—Mexicans like to talk and are much more animated and lively than Americans. Erin tells us that she thinks Mexicans are the nicest people in the world—and we have certainly run across many kind and generous folks—but they are not ebullient and overly solicitous.  It is very important to greet people with a Buenos Dias or Tardes—but passing people on the street, few will give you a smile.

One of the extraordinary Diego Murals at the Palacio Nacional

 Our favorite things about Mexico—certainly being able to spend time with Erin and meeting her friends and colleagues.  A note about your tax dollars at work--the young men and women working with Erin at our U.S. Embassy are fantastic !  We all can be VERY proud.  They are very bright, dedicated, kind, open and lots of fun.  We have been so happy to have spent time with them.

Other favorites--  Our Sunday afternoon in Xochimilco.  The colonial city of San Miguel de Allende—just walking around the town or sitting in the central square people watching. The fishing boats of Puerto Escondido. The art and love of country of Frido Kahlo and Diego Rivera.  The history, art and culture of the ancient civilizations like the Aztec, the Mayans, and the Zapotecs. There is so much that we have not been able to see.  There is so much history that is new to us, but we are anxious to know. We certainly hope to return someday for perhaps a longer stay.

And for those of you have missed the Charlie updates--here's the latest--our budding DJ.