Going to Mexico City in about a month: Tips or suggestions?

[justiceischeap]

I'll be going to a one-day workshop while there (it's the reason I'm going--to photograph the Island of the Dolls) but will have 2 other days to do things. I think one day we'll be heading to the pyramids but looking for suggestions on the other day.

Thanks!

[ohheckyeah]

1. This probably

isn't the type of tip you're looking for but just be careful to stay on the beaten track. My husband thought it was a good idea to wander around and got shaken down by the Federales twice. He said they had big shiny guns.

I use to go to Mexico by myself and had no problems, but I stayed in well populated areas. I didn't realize my female friends thought I was crazy going by myself until my fourth or fifth trip. LOL

[justiceischeap]

4. Thanks! We definitely plan to stay on the beaten track.

That's why I was looking for suggestions.

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. If you can, and there are no demonstrations

go to the zocalo and the downtown district if you want to see those buildings going back to the colonial period. You can also go to the Templo Mayor, the view from the Templo towards the Cathedral, can be interesting as well.

And if there is a demonstration... there is always one, no I wish I were kidding, beat a hasty retreat. Demonstrations in Mexico can, and do, become violent and increasingly more often now. I would hardly take my advise, but hey, give up an opportunity for a news story? I also speak Spanish like a local though, since I grew down there.

We have professional gear and to keep the damn tourist look and temptation from others, we took a point and shoot. The best way to do see more of the city is to take the turibus.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g150800-d651175-Reviews-Turibus_Circuito_Turistico-Mexico_City_Central_Mexico_and_Gulf_Coast.html

If you wish to stop at other places... or if you are a fan of museums, Anthropology is a must Franz Mayer if you are a fan of other stuff, such as textiles, but it is one or the other.

Here is a link to the story we ran AFTER we came back on that museum, and a few photos we ran from that trip. (It was a Tough 610)

http://reportingsandiego.com/2014/10/05/franz-mayer-museum-in-mexico-city/


And do NOT buy bottled water from a street vendor. Nor drink water from the faucet. But go to a store and buy bottled water. 7-11 and Oxo are almost everywhere these days. A major supermarket will work too. If you are a fan of coffee, there are many real good coffee houses, and I do not mean Starbucks.

Also, unless you are from Denver, or anywhere in the Rockies, remember, you are at over 5,000 feet above sea level, Yes, you can be short of breath and exhausted becuase of that.

[justiceischeap]

3. Thanks Nadine. All very good tips.

I plan on using my "pro" camera at the workshop but will use my mirrorless the other two days.

[nadinbrzezinski]

5. Try to take an all around lenss

for the mirror less. The less you need to carry the better. Wear comfy, if need be, running shoes.

And definitely if you want to see more of the city take the touribus and get on the upper deck. There are two routes, so you could conceivable do the transfer back and forth and just stay on the bus and see quite a bit of the city from the bus.

They do have disclaimers as to route changes et al due to demonstrations these days... at least for three years. We took it three years ago ourselves and that is how we got downtown, and back.

Taxis are cheap, but if you are going to, I will sound like my mother, take one out of a sitio, stand. (And sometimes there is not a one to be found...so we have taken them by flagging them) Or try to take one meant for tourists, more expensive, driven by professional trained drivers for kidnapping and all that. There is a rumor some of those are up armored, but I have never confirmed it. If you go to Anthropology there is a stand of these things there.

Not trying to scare you, but Mexico does have a serious issue with kidnappings, And there is a travel warning for many regions of Mexico from State. Which reminds me, when you fly in and out, do not stop in the neighborhoods around the airport. One of the travel warnings is for Mexico City. The Cathedral of Guadalupe is an impressive site, the old colonial one, I prefer that building, but the cathedral itself is on the edges of this area, so I would avoid it. Another area to avoid, and this near downtown is Tepito... been a conflictive zone since I remember, but...

The pyramids themselves are considered neutral, and tour busses usually are left alone, but some of the areas around it are not.

(That does not mean we do not intend to go visit mom in September- Oct time frame, but we take our full game for street conflict with us)

[justiceischeap]

6. I'm taking one lens for the mirrorless 24-300mm.

We've been reading up on Uber in Mexico City since we only need to procure one taxi for ourselves and that's from the airport. I've read that Uber is the safest bet because there's no cash on hand--if we need any other taxi's, we'll have our hotel arrange them.

We're actually going to Mexico City to photograph The Island of the Dolls, which is in/near Xochimico. And the pyramids will be a one-day excursion that we've seen a tour for and will take that tour. We're pretty aware of the dangers of being two women in Mexico alone but it doesn't hurt to have reminders.

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. Save some cash and do not take Uber from the airport

the services at the airport are all authorized and safe. They do take credit, though I would exchange some dollars to pesos, since a lot of places in the street do not.

We always take the taxi from the airport to my mom's home, which is at the other side of the city, the fees are pre arranged when you take the taxi, there is no monitor and they are by region So going to Polanco would be cheaper than Tecamachalco for example.

In US Dollars last time it was 20 bucks, and it was clear on the other side. With the current exchange rate, it would probably be 15, since the Peso has lost a lot of ground. We usually do the exchange if we arrive in the morning or during the day at the airport.

Oh and dummy me, tell your card company what your travel dates are... in advance. Or they could freeze your CC thinking somebody ahem, took it.

There are stalls when you leave customs, where you can essentially hire the taxi. You pay before you get on it, they will give you a ticket.