Let me start by apologizing for the long gap between
posts…the excuse is lame and clichéd, but we have been really very busy.
My parents and mother-in-law are visiting from India and
we took a trip to Mexico City last month. This trip had been planned almost six
months in advance, and we had allotted seven days for it. On our last day in
Mexico, we realized that a week was not enough for seeing the myriad churches
and other sights.
The first thing that hit us when we got out of the airport
was that Mexico looked just like any big Indian city…we related it to Chennai
because we are all from there. The roads, the traffic, the incessant honking,
and the drainage odor wafting in the air, all felt very familiar; the only
things unfamiliar were the people and the language.
We had been forewarned that the city was dangerous in the
nights and that we should be extra cautious when using the public
transportation or local taxis. It could be because of our experience in Indian
buses and trains that we found the trains quite comfortable, except for the
occasional peak time crowd.
We stayed in a serviced apartment and managed to cook at
least two meals on most days, at other times we ate from local joints. Being a
food enthusiast, I enjoyed all the dishes I ate there and have been planning to
write about them.
This was our first international vacation and we enjoyed every single moment.
Thanks to the Google translate App on my husband’s phone and research done by
my father, we were able to cross the language barrier a bit.
Our first restaurant experience in the city taught us that
the people there are extremely patient and accommodating, especially to
tourists like us. Another interesting factor that we noticed was that most of
the people there, including servers and vendors, are literate. We would show
them the phone (with the translated queries) and they were able to respond
accordingly.
Overall, I have only one thing to say, Mexico City and its
nearby locations are worth visiting. The beautiful churches, ancient pyramids,
and castles together make Mexico City and its surrounding areas a tourist’s
paradise.
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| There were many roadside eateries all over the city. We did not venture to eat from there, because we weren't sure what all was being served |
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| Appetizers: Tortialla chips and fresh bread |
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| Tomato Soup |
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| Vegetable enchiladas in a spinach cream sauce |
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| We went to Isckon temple in Mexico city and this was part of the prasadam lunch provided there: Bread and potato stuffed empanadas (tasted like samosas) |
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| Salad |
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| Maha prasadm: Rice pudding and a berry pie |
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| Fresh papaya juice |
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| Fresh tamarind juice |
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| Vegetable soup |
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| Main course: rice, greens, and eggplant |
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| Dinner made at home: Curd rice with exotic garnishing, spicy boondi and bhujiya sev with mango pickle |
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| Lunch at La Zanahoria (The Carrot): Steamed vegetables with a spicy salsa |
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| Fresh naranja (orange) juice |
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| Another enchilada, but this one was in a salsa verde sauce. Tasty and lighter than the spinach and cream base |
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| Dessert was from...any guesses? McDonalds...yes you read it right!!! |
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| Varieties of bread bought from a bakery right across from our apartment. The breads were light and fluffy, with a nice crust. Another thing we liked was the price, four breads and one sandwich cookie together cost less than $1.50 |
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| This bread had sugar a encrusted outer crust, very yummy! |
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| Sandwich cookie |
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| Soup from a can and fresh bread, not a bad dinner! |
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| Lunch at Dipao Restaurant |
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| Olive oil and balsamic vinegar to go with bread |
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| Vegetable Pizza |
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| Vegetable Pizza |
