I have only been to Mexico once, even less than my three visits to Guatemala, brace to Honduras and four times to the Untied States of America. However, I did spend three weeks in Mexico that time and along with El Salvador it is far and away my favourite country in North and Central America. Food wise, of course it is hard to beat but there were many other fascinating sights to check out in Mexico and here I list merely my top 5 memories. During my time in Mexico with my ex-girlfriend, we visited Mexico City, Teotihuacan, Monte Alban, Oaxaca de Juarez, San Cristobal de las Casas, Palenque, Misol Ha and Aqua Azul. We left by land to Guatemala.
Cool grafitti in Oaxaca de Juarez, Mexico.
Travelling around Mexico
Getting around Mexico is easy enough even without a good knowledge of Spanish. You can hire a car in Cancun and take things from there. Public transport is also excellent and we hopped on and off buses. For some of the sights we used guided tours – Teotihuacan and Palenque for example. The underground metro system in Mexico City is also fantastic. Mexico City, Guadalajara and Cancun airport connections as well as the popular Cancun shuttle buses are also easy to organise.
Tasquena on the Mexico City metro system.
Our bus to Monte Alban, Mexico
1.Estadio Azteca, Mexico City
As a football geek, the idea of “doing the Maradona” in the exact place where the famous Hand of God took place was something of a dream so this place was incredible. I did a full tour of the stadium which is massive and well worth it. I wrote about the tour before on a post about touring Estadio Azteca, Mexico City.
My visit to Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico.
Maradona was here – Hand of God statue in the Estadio Azteca!
Doing the Maradona at the Hand of God end!
2.Tequila and Mezcal Museum, Mexico City
Tequila is well known the world over and can only be called Tequila if it comes from Tequila region of Mexico. What I didn’t realise before my trip is that Mezcal is just as good and also made from Agave. It’s a great drink and I toured the Tequila and Mezcal Museum as well as doing a tasting session outside the city and trying Tequila ice cream.
Touring the Tequila and Mezcal Museum in Mexico City, Mexico
Drinking Tequila in Mexico City!!
Friday’s Featured Food: Tequila Ice Cream in Oaxaca de Juarez
I’ll have Tequila please!
3.Teotihuacan
When I first heard of Teotihuacan, it was a Noel Gallagher song! Yes, the Oasis songwriter once visited and wrote a song about it. But this is a place of ancient ruins and easily doable on a quick day trip whilst you are based in Mexico City. I never got round to writing about Teotihuacan on its own but for sure I’d pop it into my top 5.
Jumping for joy in the Mexican countryside – visiting Teotihuacan in Mexico.
On a tour at Teotihuacan, Mexico.
4.Charms of Oaxaca
Mexico overlanding was a surprise. We left the bright lights and sheer delights of Mexico City behind, heading south for Oaxaca. The official name of this city is Oaxaca de Juarez and I loved it. We also used this as a base when backpacking Monte Alban.
Main Cathedral in Oaxaca de Juarez.
Backpacking in Oaxaca de Juarez, Mexico.
Staying in La Betulia, Oaxaca de Juarez, Mexico.
5.Backpacking in San Cristobal de las Casas
Another city that I loved in Mexico was San Cristobal de las Casas. This was our last stop before heading into Guatemala for a month of extreme hiking and overlanding. So it was our last place to get a fantastic fix of Mexican cuisine before leaving it behind for the less than quality food in…Guatemala!
Backpacking in San Cristobal de las Casas – enjoying the food in Mexico.
Thirsty Thursdays: Michelada and Nachos in San Cristobal de las Casas.