Adventures in Mexico City & Cuauhtémoc [CDMX]

Our adventures in Mexico were nearing the end of their natural course. Our trip was almost over. We had quite the adventure crossing the country in our car and had some spare time in Mexico City as we waited for our flights to Canada. Mexico City during lockdown wasn’t the best place for tourism and as a result, we spend most of our time wandering around the city on foot. After sifting and sorting through our collection of photographs from our time in the big city, we’ve come to realize we have many “extra” shots from neighbourhoods not featured. These are just a few shots from our adventures around Mexico City & Cuauhtémoc

It’s hard to consider anything in Mexico City as just an extra or a throwaway. The city is quite large and extremely diverse. The only reason these photos don’t have a more appropriate home is that we just haven’t had enough time to explore. Our visit to CDMX was with our dog, so we were limited to a radius around our adopted home in Santa Maria la Ribiera. We managed to push ourselves to the limit while exploring some vast distances. Our long walks took us as far south as Chaputlpec Park and many trips up and down Reforma (more pictures from these walks coming soon)

There is so much about Mexico City to love, and we can’t wait to come back again soon to see another slice of this city. The hardest part of this trip was walking past closed museums and attractions that we knew we would have fallen in love with if given the chance.

What makes Mexico City & Cuauhtémoc so amazing?

Mexico City is one of those unique cities like London or New York where there is a distinct and powerful “vibe”. It’s hard to explain and even harder to capture, especially as a tourist. This was our third trip to Mexico City together and we had just under two weeks to visit this time. There is a little bit of everything here and every neighbourhood has something different.

It was much different than previous trips, as covid has definately slowed things down in CDMX, but we took this as an opportunity to explore the city on foot. As we wandered between sections and neighbourhoods, we passed by some pretty incredible streets, parks and plazas. We explored some of the edges of Chaputlpec Park and Tamayo Park, where we found many world class museums we couldn’t go inside.

It was still fun to wander around and explore, but we still have so much to come back and explore in the future. The list of things to do grows every time we visit.

Where is Cuauhtémoc and how to I get there?

Cuauhtémoc would become the famous (and last) Aztec ruler. Today, it is the name of one of the city’s central neighbourhoods. Because of it’s size, Mexico City is basically considered it’s own state. While it may not be the bullseye geographically, it is the cultural and economic center of the country.

The “city” itself is home to close to 9 million people. When you take into account the surrounding suburbs and extensions of the city, it grows to over 20 million. This is a lot of city. Mexico City is home to both the old and new.

In the historic center near the Zocalo, you can find structures from the Aztecs and early Spanish colonizers side by side (or more accurately, on top of each other). This history meets the modern day replacement is a part of the city’s fabric. As the city grows outward it also grows taller, slowly replacing the old with the new.

We love exploring big cities like Mexico City. There are so many different paths you can take when the city acts like a big maze, directing your path along new and exciting streets. When you wander without a goal you are more likely to find the unexpected. Mexico City is a city where one “wrong” turn could lead you somewhere new and exciting. For this, and many other reasons, we have found a soft spot for Mexico City.

It’s become an easy place for us to fall in love with.

Around Mexico City / Cuauhtémoc [CDMX]