An Unexpected Central America Trip ✈️ Part 1
I’m writing this from our hotel room on the last day of the trip.
Originally, this journey was supposed to take us to Guatemala. Our coffee supplier had invited us to visit the plantations where our beans are grown. We were going to see the farms, meet the people behind the coffee, and visit the community projects financed through the sale of our coffee bags. A few days before departure, the trip was cancelled due to unrest in Guatemala.
My husband and I had two options: cancel everything and lose the money, or get off the plane in Mexico City, which was our layover before Guatemala. We chose Mexico City.
I don’t regret that decision for a second.
Mexico City
I had never really considered traveling to Mexico, and definitely not Mexico City. It completely surprised me. We were told to stay five to six days.
We stayed in Zona Rosa, a lively and central neighborhood known for its restaurants, cafés, nightlife, and LGBTQ-friendly atmosphere. It felt safe, walkable, and full of energy. Our hotel was Hotel Genève, a historic hotel that opened in 1907. It has an old-world feel, classic décor, and walls covered with photos and memorabilia from another era. It’s not ultra-modern, but it has character and a strong sense of history.
Of course, we visited the Teotihuacán pyramids. Seeing the Pyramid of the Sun in person is impressive. The site dates back nearly 2,000 years and was once one of the largest cities in the world. We chose a guided tour, which I strongly recommend. There’s very little information posted around the site, and a good guide makes a huge difference. Looking back, I would have booked a guide for the Museo Nacional de Antropología as well. The museum is enormous and filled with important artifacts, including the Aztec Sun Stone. It’s absolutely worth visiting, but having someone guide you through the highlights would make it even better.
Every evening we went out for dinner and had incredible food. I recommend finding breakfast spots outside the hotel. Locals clearly take breakfast seriously, and the cafés were full. I knew tacos were popular in Mexico, but I didn’t expect a taco place on almost every corner.
One night we went to Mexican wrestling, Lucha Libre, with a tour group. That was the right choice. The arena is chaotic, loud, and intense. Having a guide made it easier and much more fun. We met other tourists, and by coincidence they were all around our age. Our guide was funny and knowledgeable, which made the experience even better.
That night we also met two Americans and ended up having a surprisingly fun evening together. We finished the night at a bar where we somehow managed to drink all their beer. The next day we met up again and went to one of the World’s 50 Best Bars, Licorería Limantour. The gimmick there is that you exit through a soda fridge when you leave. Small detail, but memorable.
Mexico City exceeded every expectation I had.
