¡Tengo Hambre!
When I first found out I was going to be living in Mexico City for a month, I figured I'd pack up and head to a beach for two weeks - five weeks in a city that lies in a country that I'm pretty familiar with seemed a bit much. My stomach disagrees though, and I now don't know how I'm possibly going to eat all of the tacos and gorditas and quesadillas (con queso, porque no es normal aqui) and drink all the mezcal and tequila and licuados y jugos. My Spanglish is also greatly improving.
Somehow, this city keeps surprising me: the food, the bars, the restaurants, the people. Lo and behold, humanity hasn't completely gone to shit yet, and some people are still super nice to others. *heart warms* This week I:
- Made burrito bowls with my roomie and then watched some random romantic film on Netflix. It was a real chicks night. Until we ran out of data (we haven’t had wifi since we got here – two weeks later, we finally do) from tethering from our phones and had to end it early. We ended up just going to bed, never knowing what happened to this Nicholas Sparks couple. (I could’ve guessed, though. Bleh. if you're gonna make a movie about love at least make me laugh - rom coms all the way.)
- Worked a lot. Because in February apparently clients can begin to pay freelancers again. I got a job from one of my old coworkers at her new agency (sup Kathryn? Thanks for funding my travel) and also got another random freelance job. Ended the night getting tacos at a food stand outside of the workspace and catching the end of La La Land, the movie that was playing at our outdoor movie night on the roof.
- Had a spa day where I got my first manicure and pedicure in waaay too long. You know when your feet no longer start to look like your feet and instead start to resemble canyon rocks? This took care of that problem. I was also working, and my friends managed to get some great photos of me doing my thing while getting pampered and drinking wine. How do you normally work?
Man-i work a lot.
- Went to town hall where we had a sponsored vegan lunch. It was good but I was hungry an hour later. Marinated cauliflower is only so filling.
- Went to a happy hour for WeWork, another (giant) co-working space that’s international. Drank a capirinhia, watched the sunset off of their gorgeous rooftop, and met up with more friends – along with some remote year staff that was in town.
- Went salsa dancing! There’s a Cuban salsa place called Mama Rumba that a few of us showed up to and danced the night away. Dancing here is awesome – no guy wants to talk to you for 45 minutes about pointless things or wants to buy you a drink or wants your phone number – they just wanna DANCE.
It was awesome. I danced with maybe 8 random Mexican men that twirled me around (and some remote guys as well who were super great sports about the fact that I could only follow someone who knew what to do). We were out unexpectedly late and I ended up getting (surprise) tacos with Sami before heading home. Mmm. Tacos. It’s not our fault that the place across the street is open 24 hours…(also no pics of this because I was so busy shakin' it)
- Worked more from the workspace and took a quick break to have some of the best guac and a margarita at this place called Resi down the street. The guac had watermelon and feta cheese in it – SO GOOD. Also we got ceviche and I ate a lot of it.
Not a bad office.
All of this, in my mouth, please.
- Went to RYx – a take on TedX where we get speakers that are based upon a theme each month. This month’s was “failure” and we heard a few remotes and a few locals talk about things that they’d pursued that failed. It was nice to hear and encouraging that such smart people can also be failures. So relatable! Joking. We also had a free food truck meal and drink. People went out afterwards to a place called Gin Gin, but I had already gone/am an old lady sometimes, so I went to Bed Bed.
- Worked pretty early Friday morning so that I could have time to do a Food and Cantina tour that a few of us went on. It was worth it. We had an awesome torta, seafood quesadilla, CRICKETS, ANTS, ANT LARVAE – YES WE ATE ALL THIS – salsa shots, tequila shots, a mint julianne (basically a cuba libre or a mint julep with coke), tacos al pastor, and beer. So. Much. Food. Small amounts and over the course of a day, but still. AND we got mariachis to sing songs to us. Oh, I also tried pato which is so gross. I’m not a picky eater, but I’m not a fan. Think of ceviche, then think of pork skin ceviche. Appetizing? *shudder* I only got it because out guide said the word “pickled”. There’s a pickled thing I don’t like, I suppose. (fact: if you don't know me, know that I would take a bouquet of pickles over flowers from a significant other.) However, I’ll forget that I tried this and order it again later.
- Attended a “guac-off” put on by some other remotes at their apartment. I was sad that I couldn’t participate – everyone at home knows that I make the best guac – but the 15 that were competing didn’t disappoint.
- Went to the clerb because I was already out and, why not? What was supposed to be an 80s/90s night, however, ended up being 70s night. The club: Patrick Miller. The drinks: poker chips. You stand in a line to buy them (only beer, for 30 pesos each) and then stand in another line to redeem them for said beer. It’s a weird system, but whatever. I was told I dropped it very low and I was not aware that I was quite that drunk. But the proof that lies in the dance circles that I was surrounded by convinced me. This is the only photo I got, post-club, of course: TACOS.
- Woke up the next day, somehow sprightly, and decided to grab lunch with Magic, Mikko, and Gina before hopping on a Turibus – you can see the entire city for around $8 from 9am to 9 pm. We did it all day and ended up meeting up with some other people that were on a different bus. Saw SO MUCH!
- Ended up going to Roma Mercado (the cool spot I wrote about finding last week) for beers at the rooftop beer garden (which I didn’t know existed). It was fun!
- Met up with Carly and Jenn and Marko for dinner at Moxie where I had a tostada and some beer.
- Went to Pulqueria Insurgentes to meet up with yet another group for some Pulque. Pulque is this weird, kind of thick fermented alcoholic beverage that originated in Mexico City and tbh is kinda weird/gross but it’s not horrible. We all split a blueberry one but I got a tequila pineapple before dancing on one of their five floors. The basement was playing Selena and I reminisced on my childhood while sipping before deciding what to do – go out or go home?
- Ended up getting a glass of wine with Carly and Aaron before heading back. It’s always those random late night things where you end up talking about life crap and how you have no idea what you’re doing or how you’re doing it but you know that you’re exactly where you’re supposed to be and yada yada yada it gets all emotional and stuff. I knew I had to be up early so I headed home (“early” aka 2 am).
- Went on a track event to Coyoacan where our group saw the Frida Kahlo House (Casa Azul), walked around the neighborhood, went to a famous Mercado where we had supposedly the best tostadas in the city (they were just okay), had this Mexican coffee brewed with cinnamon and a special brown sugar (so good), got THE BEST CHURROS EVER, visited the cathedral, stopped and had beer and mezcal at a bar, visited the Trovsky museum, had a beer with our tour guides afterwards at a bar that one of them worked at, headed back to our neighborhood and had more beer and pizza at this awesome beer garden, andddd finally went home early around 9 to rest up for the week.
*breathes* SO many activities this week! I think Mexico City is one of the few that I’m really embracing doing something almost EVERY day or night. There are also a lot more remote year events that are planned, and the city manager (Paulina) is a lot more attentive than previous ones have been. (Hi Pau! We’re besties.) I’m super stoked to see how the rest of the city plays out – a lot of people are leaving early for Carnaval in either Colombia or Mexico, but I’ll be right here (possibly alone but whatever) until March 4th when we jet off to Bogota.
Coming up: black boogers, TinderBall, and a getaway to Riviera Maya to see my beloved parents for the first time since Remote Year started. Stay tuned…
Professional writer, designer, and do-it-aller. Remote Year citizen/alum. Currently living in San Francisco and probably trying to avoid the terrifying amounts of pigeons.
