One of my favorite parts of exchange is being able to explore a new country with people from across the globe. The energy of exchange students is irreplaceable. People are just as motivated to educate themselves about your exchange country as you are, while being just as spontaneous to try new things and have crazy experiences.
Katie and I are quite lucky with our university timetable in terms of days off. We both purposely put all of our classes on Mondays and Thursdays, so we can have Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays off. This has meant that our weekdays consist of visiting different parts of Mexico city or having long weekends away to “Pueblo Magicos”. The English translation being ‘Magical Town’, is the name for little towns located across the Mexico region. There are 132 Pueblo Magicos, that all have differing characteristics and things to do. Hostels are super cheap in these towns (around 20-30NZD a night) and buses tend to only be 2-3 hours one-way (costs around 40NZD for a round trip).
Highlights of Mexico City
One of our favorite activities to do during the week is visit churches across the city. During the colonial period in Mexico, the Franciscans, Dominicans and Augustians had a significant religious influence on mesoamericans. This led to the building of multiple churches across the region. As Katie and I both come from Catholic families, we love to visit these religious sites. Not only are these churches gorgeous and entirely different from one another, but they also bring a sense of home.
Did you know that Mexico City is one of the cities with the most museums in the world? In total there are 173 museums within the city district itself. During our days off, we have visited ‘Museo Diego Rivera (Anahuacalli)’, ’Museo Soumaya’, ‘Museo Jumex’, ‘Museo Nacional de Culturas Populares’, ‘Museo Frida Kahlo’, ‘Museo Antropologia’, ‘Nacional Palacio’ and ‘Museo Casa Estudio Diego Rivera y Frida Kahlo’. It has been an amazing opportunity to understand Mexico through their art and history. The variations of mesoamerican and spanish pieces have been fascinating to experience. There is also a bonus of practicing your Spanish and having a student discount.
Although we have only done it twice so far, there is a range of hikes to do across the city district! It can feel overwhelming living in a concrete jungle, so it was relieving to be in nature for the day. We did a 2 hour hike called ‘Circuito Xochitepec’ and another 4 hour hike called ‘ ‘Miradores De Dinamos’. “Circuito Xochitepec” had a gorgeous cross decorated at the top of the hill, amongst an insane view of the city. Whereas the top of “Miradores De Dinamos” hike was surrounded by mountain ranges. There is a variety of hikes to complete, however the altitude can make these walks quite difficult, particularly coming from a place like New Zealand.
On days where we are unsure on what to do, there is a range of suburbs we love to explore that are filled with restaurants, markets, cafes and parks. It’s a perfect chance to catch up with other exchange students and complete university assignments. The food and coffee is amazing wherever you go, and you are still exploring a new part of Mexico. So far, my favorite suburbs to visit are Coyoacan and Roma. Coyoacán sustains an authentic Mexican style, and is only a train away from our area. The buildings are colorful, and there is always a market or live music playing in the main square. Roma is located further central into the city and where many tourists tend to stay during their time. This means it is super close to typical tourist attractions, such as Bellas Artes and Angel of Independence. It is more urbanized than coyoacan, but provides a range of things to do. One of my favorite days in Roma was when we visited a range of vintage stores. Vintage pop-ups are super common here, and pieces tend to be insanely cheap.
Puebla: The Town Of Talavera
Our first trip away was to the State of Puebla, in particular to the main city of Puebla and Cholula. Katie and I having Fridays off is a massive bonus as we are able to have 3 days away rather than 2. On this trip, we went away with our flatmate Ida (from Finland) and our group of friends from London. The hostel was very cheap, only being 20NZD a night , and was really cute. It was also located right in the heart of Puebla. The town is famous for its colorful buildings and talavera. The Talavera of Puebla is a type of majolica (common earthenware with metallic glaze), the quality of its clay and creation dates back to the 16th century. It has the distinctive feature of a ivory-white vitreous finish as the base of its decoration. The main center involved multiple stores of talavera and a church that had a light show at night. On both nights, the center was buzzing with live music, shows and multiple restaurants.
On our last day, we visited the town of Cholula, which is a 30 minute uber from the center of Puebla. Cholula is infamous for its bright yellow church that is situated up on a hill. If you are lucky, you are able to see the distant snow mountain from the church. Katie and I agreed that it was the best church we have visited so far in Mexico. Not only was the view from the top stunning, but the interior of the church was covered in pink and gold.
Taxco: Town of Silver
Taxco was a pueblo mágico that I have been looking forward to visiting since the last time I was in Mexico. I would describe Taxco as a small town inspired by Spanish colonial structure that is situated in the hills. Alongside Ida Katie and I , we also went away with Maria (from Denmark) , Karolina (from Finland) , Mark and Oscar (Mexican but from San Diego) .
Located in the state of Guerrero, it is known for its mining of silver. On Saturday, they had silver markets that went on forever. We spent the whole day there and we were not able to cover it all! I am normally a gold girl , but the silver was the best quality I have ever seen. I brought myself a gorgeous cross necklace, anklet and bracelet.
Just before sunset, we caught cable cars up to this resort that looks over the city. Luckily for us, the resort was hosting a dance, mariachi and firework show. The view of all the mountains within the town was extraordinary, but the view overlooking the town was something else.
On our last day in Taxco, we took a day trip to ‘Poza Azules’, which are natural bright blue pools in the middle of the bush. All rural areas of Mexico use the mode of transport called a ‘collectivo’. This can range from a minivan to sitting on the back of a truck. Not only is this form of transport super cheap , but it is super safe and a great way to meet locals. A 40 minute drive from Taxco to Poza Azules only costs 1.20NZD. Before arriving to Poza Azules, it feel like I was back in New Zealand due to being surrounded by a range of fauna. Alongside swimming in the refreshing blue pools, our group decided to do ziplining over the natural water.
Importance Of Anchoring
A challenge on being exchange is the balance of being a ‘tourist’ and ‘living overseas’. Since you are only away for a limited amount of time, it is easy to get caught up in the idea that you need to be out 24/7. That you need to always be visiting a new tourist attraction, restaurant or part of the city. Particularly in a city like Mexico, where there is something on everyday. Honestly, you could never run out of ideas of things to do here.
But the reality is , you can not be everywhere at once. A part of being on exchange is actually living a normal life, but in a different city. Otherwise, money disappears from the bank quicker and you get run down. I can definitely say that I have fallen into this predicament, where I prioritized a new experience over what my body was needing (which was rest). It took me a while to realize I could not enjoy the entire exchange if I did not have some form of anchoring.
I found that I was able to recharge myself through doing habits I had back at home. These things include going to the gym, grocery shopping, calling loved ones from home, cooking, reading or god-forbid a lazy day at home. It recharges your social battery, brings you a sense of routine and provides focus to your wellbeing.
Alongside the weekend getaways or day trips around the city, the week long holidays have also been a highlight. Tec De Monterrey exchange students are very lucky as we get 3 weeks of break throughout the semester. In my next blog post, I will talk about our week-long trip to the state of Oaxaca.
So fabulous hearing about all your exploring . Wonderful cultures and religious history.