Our friends dubbed it “The Amazing Race” Challenge: We had to get Rua Hatu on to a mooring then get both our luggage and all three pets to our rental car, and also leave the dinghy at the boat.
Thankfully the guy we rented the mooring ball from was happy to give us a ride on his makeshift boat (I’m convinced it was home built using parts of other boats). Most of his family was aboard as well and they enjoyed watching us gringos (“white people”) shuttle two cats and a dog to shore. Once we made it to shore we had to play Tetris to fit all our stuff and the pets in the car.
We finally made it on the road and the ugly side of Mexico showed its face: the police. We hadn’t even left the city limits of Acapulco yet, nor had we broken any traffic rules when all of a sudden “blerp, blerp”! After lightening our wallets, the police officer let us go and he probably went home for the day with his loot. Shaken and with increased blood pressure we continue our trip and made it to Mexico City without further issues.
We crossed the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains with the highest point on the highway being at 3,100 meters. The landscape transformed from dry, scrubby beaches in Acapulco to pines and other cooler climate trees as we ascended the mountains. By the time we arrived in Mexico City the climate was more moderate again with cool temperatures in the mornings and warm afternoons. We enjoyed seeing so many green trees and lots of flowers in Mexico City’s streets.
The house we rented together with the crew from SV Milagros was very light and spacious, divided over five floors with a garage and a rooftop balcony. Our pets spread themselves evenly across all floors to maximize their own personal space (and minimize everyone else’s).
For our first day of exploration we took the cable car over Iztapalapa enjoying the beautiful views over the city and its colorful buildings. Despite warnings in various guides about sketchy neighborhoods along the cable car route, we were greeted by wonderful people everywhere we roamed. We filled up on snacks and drinks at one of the street markets along the route, including a new favorite: Huaraches! Literally translated as “sandals”, these fried masa and bean dough lumps are loaded with tasty meats and sauces.
That evening, after even more great food, sushi this time, we rocked out at the Greta Van Fleet concert. Their music was excellent, but the most interesting event was outside the venue! We’ve never seen so much odd bootleg merchandise for sale before. Greta van fleet mugs, t-shirts, lucha libre masks, even comforters and pillows, all hastily emblazoned with crude Greta Van Fleet labels!
The next day we visited the Museum of Anthropology inside the huge, densely forested city park of Bosque de Chapultepec. That night a visit to Lucha Libre, the wonderfully theatrical version of masked wrestling found only in Mexico, provided hilarious entertainment.
On our last day we drove an hour northeast of the city to visit the ruins of Teotihuacan with its huge pyramids. At the end of our two hour long tour we were invited to try pulque, the agave juice that is fermented inside the agave. Its taste is very similar to kefir or kombucha. We were also offered to try a liqueur made of cactus figs, called “tuna”. Very sweet and delicious!
The flight of Milagros’ crew was early on Thursday morning and on the way to the airport our wallets were again lightened by a brief encounter with the police. After packing up the pets and provisioning for the five hour drive to Acapulco, we finally hit the road. Thankfully, we made it without further incidents.
I think we succeeded with our amazing race to the beautiful Ciudad de Mexico!