Mexico - Last Thoughts and Lessons Learned

Some final notes on our trip to Mexico

On food

• Street Food vs. Haute Cuisine - When in Mexico, stick to the unpretentious, cheap and always delicious food stands. $0.25 for a taco, $2.50 for a torta (sandwich), it's eating well on a budget. Our biggest disappointment, however, was the scarcity of fancier restaurants. We went to three of them. The ambiance in all of them was great, but the food was always disappointing. It's like they were trying very hard to cook some decent fancy food, but unfortunately, unsuccessfully. I would stick with the street food.

• Mysterious Meats - While in Mexico, you will see an array of leftover animal parts served for, guess what, your MEAL! Cabeza (head), pierna (leg), tripa (tripe), lengua (tongue); you name it; it's on the menu. Don't ask. Don't think about it. Just eat it. It's good, you'll see! Our last food adventure directed us to a very busy hole in the wall, where all of the sandwiches listed "pierna" as their main ingredient. All I knew was that "pierna" meant leg. Leg of what? I didn't know. I just ate it. And I liked it.
  

On New Skills

• Proudest Accomplishment - In the bathroom, learning how to squat with my backpack on, while holding a newspaper and bottle of water. In a swift move, rapidly raising my arm to go over my head, thereby unzipping the top pocket of my backpack to grab toilet paper from my private stash.

On Greedy Sunbathers

• Never Be One of Them - Greedy and careless sunbathing only leads to redness followed by itchiness, followed by bubbling, followed by peeling. It's just not worth it, man!

On Mexicans and Mexico

• Mexicans - Friendly, laid back and helpful.
  
• Mexico - Safe, fun and sunny! I would definitely come back.