Santa María la Ribera & San Rafael [CDMX]

Today we are going to take a photographic journey through some of Mexico City’s lesser-known neighbourhoods. CDMX has 16 different Burroughs and each of these have smaller communities that make up the bigger picture. Our latest adventure had us arriving in Mexico City for a few days and we made our home base in Santa Maria. This is a central location with easy access to most of the major tourist attractions. It is also quiet compared to it’s nearby companions. We were lucky to be able to spend some time here and use this as our base of operations. Santa María la Ribera became our home away from home.

Mexico City was pretty quiet during out visit. The city had just exited a fresh round of serious lockdown measures and the vibrant city life had not returned yet. The museums and art galleries were closed alongside many of the parks and plazas. This was not a trip of pleasure and we were not here as tourists. Things being closed was only a minor inconvenience. We came here to spend some time with a close friend of ours, who would also be babysitting out dog for 2 weeks while we traveled to Zacatecas to visit with Norma’s family.

We did not want our dog to stress about traveling any more than she already had, so Mexico City would become Maya’s home for close to a month while we finalized our plans for travel back to Canada. Before we take our travel our travel adventures out of Mexico and across the continent to Canada, we have a few snapshots from along the way to share. Today’s visit to Santa María la Ribera and San Rafael is a first step in this journey.

What makes Santa María la Ribera & San Rafael so amazing?

We walked a lot in Mexico City. This was made possible by our central location and made necessary by our dog. There were not many tourist attractions open to visit anyways, so we decided to stretch our legs as much as possible. Mexico City is sprawling, so there was always something new to see.

Santa María la Ribera became our home base during our most recent visit to Mexico City. We spend many hours wandering around the nearby streets here walking the dog or on our way to buy something for dinner. This is the type of neighbourhood you come to realize that maybe this big, bad city is somewhere that you might be able to live for a few weeks, months or years.

We really enjoyed explore the smaller streets here, as it gives a more realistic picture of the “big city”. We managed to visit many small parks and plazas along our walks and got to eat at some smaller restaurants and taco stands that aren’t going to lure in many visitors to the city. This is a beautiful little pocket of the city that was worth exploring for a few hours for some (relative) peace and quiet.

Where is Santa María la Ribera & San Rafael and how do you get there?

This is right smack in the middle of the biggest city in the Americas. Santa María la Ribera & San Rafael are some of the lesser known neighbourhoods which are centrally located and filled with locals.

You can find these spots north of the more famous Condesa and Roma neighbourhoods, this is a very residential area that comes with a lot of character. There are many major roads (like Insurgentes and San Cosme) and important bus/subway lines that intersect this part of Mexico City. There aren’t any major attractions here to draw in the more curious tourists. For most visitors, this is a part of the city that you will drive through on your way somewhere else.

It’s not flashy or fancy and doesn’t have any major tourist attractions. Santa María la Ribera & San Rafael is located on the “other side” of Reforma Street. If you’ve made it as far as the Monument of the Revolution, then you’re almost there. Just a little bit further and you will find yourself off the beaten track.

Santa María la Ribera & San Rafael [CDMX]