Ep. 14 – Ciudad de Mexico (CDMX)

Breaking Español

Ben just got back from his trip to Mexico city so we sat down to hear how it went. Ben was there with his brother for his bachelor party (Despedida de Soltero) and visited many areas, the huge park Chapultepec, and enjoyed a ton of great food.

Ben stayed in Downtown near the Palacio de Las Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts) which was filled with tons of people on the weekend for shopping and eating. Shopping is organized into separate areas based on the type of items (Medical supplies, Men’s Clothing, etc.) and there were lots of people trying to get you to buy their products as is typical in a busy shopping area.

Most of the time Ben was in La Roma and La Condeza area however. These areas are known as a Hipster area which means great food and drinks as well as beards and skinny jeans. At night these areas came alive with a vibrant young community that is progressing the cuisine and cocktail scene.

Beyond the hipster areas Ben and his brothers went to the “Central Park” of Mexico City named Chapultepec. This park once was the home of the Mexican president and now is the home to some of North America’s finest Museums. There Ben spent some time watching the performers in park as well as learning about Mexican history in the Museo de Antropología (Museum of Anthropology).

While the trip was filled with mostly eating and checking out cultural things, Ben and his brothers also made it to a salsa club “Mama Rumba”. This was an experience. Ben said that all 300 people in the club danced at a professional level and the eight piece band was killing it. Ben gave it his best to learn with the help of a young couple they met, but alas his skills are more appropriately focused on computers rather than the dance floor.

On the way back Ben was able to use the new Cross Border Express CBX bridge from the Tijuana airport directly across the border into San Diego. We have a saying here in San Diego aboout this place “We build bridges, not walls”

The CBX now allows people to park or get dropped off in San Diego at the entry to CBX and then walk directly across the border into the Tijuana airport. This is super convenient because the TJ airport has many more direct flights to other parts of Mexico and using the bridge saves hours of waiting at the border.

Consejos (Tips/Advice)

• Stay in La Roma area
• Use Uber, it’s really cheap
• Drink Mezcal, smoother than Tequila and richer in flavor
• Eat street food
• Visit Chapultepec
• Fly from TJ and use the CBX

Palabras Españolas (Spanish Words)

• Gente = People
• Amagable = Friendly
• Rica = Rich/Delicious
• Comida = Food
• Bonita = Pretty
• DF = Distrito Federal (like D.C.)
• Despedida de Soltero = Bachelor Party
• Lentes = Lenses/Glasses