Good morning, and welcome to your tour of Mexico City! As your guide through this adventure, I’m going to share with you all of the sites and secrets this amazing city has to offer. Be prepared to spend some quality time here and get to know why this destination remains so popular with tourists from all over the world.
Before we head out on our tour today, it is important to pack a few things. First, bring a coat! Even though you are further south than normal, don’t expect stifling temperatures most of the year. Second, it is a good idea to have some local currency (pesos) with you, especially for the market. Also, don’t forget some good walking shoes. We can use public transportation and taxis for long distances, but the best to see Mexico City is on foot. Finally, bring the best camera you have with plenty of batteries and memory cards! There are fantastic urban shooting spots everywhere we turn and you will want to capture these memories forever.
The first stop on our whirlwind tour of the largest city in the western hemisphere is the oldest section. The historic centre of Mexico City (the Centro) is filled with a number of notable buildings and attractions. We will start our tour in the Zocalo, the largest public square in Latin America that is the central hub of the Centro. Here in the plaza we can start visiting some of the spectacular buildings, including the Palacio Nacional, the archeological site of Templo Mayor, and the eclectic Cathedral Metropolitana. We could spend our entire day in this square alone!
From the Zocalo, let’s start wandering through the blocks in the surrounding areas of Mexico City. We will come upon a number of notable churches including Santo Domingo, the Chapel of the Most Holy Conception of Tiacoaque, and La Santisima Church. There is no shortage of unique Catholic architecture that we can marvel at for hours. But then there are also all of the civic structures! We cannot forget the Supreme Court of Justice, the Palacio de Correos, and the Senate of Mexico.
After all that walking, someone can work up quite the appetite. I think it is time to look for a local market in order to get some fresh food and take some time for a bit of shopping. Small markets pop up all over Mexico City, so finding one is the easy part. If we feel a bit more ambitious, we could head to the Central de Abasto, a truly remarkable space that covers the same area as some small cities! One of the sites for the freshest food in the country, this would be worth our trip.
Now that we are filled up with some fresh food from the market, it is time to pick out which museums we will visit. With nearly 200 galleries and museums, you have endless choices of what you can see. Mexico City is one of the world’s art hubs, so you cannot miss some of the renowned art museums and galleries. The Palacio de Bellas Artes is a good place for us to start, but we also should check out the Museo de Arte Moderno and the Museo Soumaya. There are plenty of historic homes and palaces, contemporary museums, and historic sites to check out another day!
As the day is winding down, it is time to check into your hotel. As a thriving metropolis, Mexico City has a large selection of accommodations for every budget. However, it is highly recommended that international travellers stay within the tourist zones of the central city. This also means you are closely accessible to everything Mexico City has to offer.
Just because we’ve checked in doesn’t mean it is time to sleep. First, let’s find some dinner. Mexico City is a cosmopolitan place so we will be able to find food from a number of different cultures if we would like. But we are in Mexico City, so we should try to find a restaurant with local flare, and ‘Mexican cuisine’ will be at every turn. We should also try the large variety of seafood available, as Mexico City is well known for its ‘surf’ fare.
It’s getting dark outside, but our night isn’t finished yet. Let’s think about catching a show or concert. There is a large number of theatres in the area, so we are bound to find something to suit our tastes. Or, we could find our way to a local club and listen to some music on a more intimate level. Of course, if you aren’t too tired we can always just walk the streets as we are bound to bump into a few mariachi bands and other street performers along the way.
Even though we are tired from our long day, I think it is time to plan out tomorrow’s excursion. I would say that we should check out the borough of Xochimilco and the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Once we are there we can explore the area in decorated gondolas on the canal system, taking in the historic neighbourhoods from the water. We will also be able to check out some of the pre-Hispanic and early Hispanic past of the city on foot as we wander the old streets. Seems like a great day two days to me in Mexico City!