Transport prices rise in Mexico City.

If you are visiting Mexico city and wishing to use public transport please note the following changes to the tarifs on public transport.

The metro now costs $3.00mx for one ticket and re-chargable cards are now available from the ticket offices at a cost of $100.00mx - they are a good idea for anyone spending more than a week in the city, all you need to do is add the desired amount of money to the card and swipe it at the turnstiles as you enter the metro station.

The Trolleybus (streetcar) is currently priced at $4.00mx and the local street buses often called peseros have stayed with a tarif of 3-4 pesos although the drivers are currently asking for an adjustment in the tarif system.

Night life in Mexico city - Condesa

One of our favourite bars if you want a friendly and relaxed drink in the Condesa.

Opened and still owned by three childhood friends, the bar has now been running with much sucess for a number of years and still retains some of its staff from the day it opened its doors for the first time over three years ago.

If you like Whiskey, "Diente de Oro" is the bar for you to visit whilst in Mexico City, with a very large range of Whiskies from all over the world aswell as drinks from Mexican beers to rums and tequilas. Most people comment that even as a traveller in Mexico city, they find that the charming little bar has a familiar and friendly "local" bar feel. The music ranges from Rock to Reggae and the dress code is casual. The bar certainly has a "feel" that you don´t usually find in this area of the city.

The staff are a fashionable young bunch and are always friendly and attentive - you get the feeling that they really like thier jobs and the atmosphere at the bar. Atleast two of the staff to my knowledge speak English, so no problems if you don´t speak spanish.

Prices start from $40 Mexican Pesos for a beer and starting around $60 for rum and whiskey.

Diente de Oro is open from 6pm, 7 days a week with the bar closing at 1.30am Fridays and Saturdays.

Diente de Oro :

Plaza Iztaccíhuatl 36 Local B

Hipódromo Condesa, 06170

Tel : 52644617

MetroBus Insurgentes - Campeche
Metro Chilpancingo

Turkish food in Mexico City

The opening of Mexico City’s first (that we know of) Turkish restaurant is welcome news.After living in London with a Turkish Cypriot boyfriend and eating a wide variety of turkish cuisine this was a place that i really wanted to try out.

Istanbul- a comfortable little place with an outdoor seating area a few blocks north of Reforma.
The small appetizers are the specialty here and the restaurant offers over 150 varieties of "Meze" , although only 7 or so are featured at any given time— the menu changes throughout the year.

A dozen main dishes are on the menu, including kebabs and grilled meats - mostly lamb, which is unusual in Mexico. There is also fish and everything is served with salad and rice.(I love turkish rice so this was a real treat too)

Desserts such as the dried apricots in caramel sauce, served with home-made ice cream or baked rice pudding are real pleasers.
This is home-style food, its not fancy and most importantly - it is undoubtedly authentic. Prices are reasonable, and the service is friendly.

Istanbul Turkish Cuisine

Río Pánuco 163, Colonia Cuauhtémoc
Tel. 5511-2482
Open daily 11:30-1AM
$200-250 per person

http://www.istanbulturkishcuisine.com/index.html

Mercado Medellín

For those visiting the city be sure to pass by the Mercado Medellín night market to see the Christmas market at full pace. Stands line the east side of the market and besides offering Christmas trees feature decorations of all kinds from mexican handmade decorations the other "made in China" variety.
But even better, are the puestos which open after dark and remain in service until midnight. These offer a variety of antojitos (little nibbles or starters) from pozole to enchiladas to sopes. Jolly diners fill long picnic tables set up in the street. There is warm punch to wash it all down and flan or buñuelos with honey for dessert.

The Mercado Medellín is located between Monterrey and Medellín, Coahuila and Campeche in the Colonia Roma. If you arrive by Metrobus, get off at Campeche and walk east. Nearest metro station is Chilpancingo. Open seven days a week until past midnight. The night market will be there through December 23rd.

Mexico at Christmas

Everywhere you turn at christmas in Mexico there are piñatas of all forms, sizes and colors, as well as candles for the posadas, nochebuena flowers, better known as poinsettias, and figurines made of wood, ceramic or paste for the nativitys
Very shortly after the fiesta for Our Lady of Guadalupe ends, the preparation for the Christmas season begins. The first of nine posadas is held on December 16.

These are fiestas, which represent Joseph and Mary's arduous pilgrimage on their way to Bethlehem, and there are nine posadas, from the 16 to the 24 of December,because they symbolize Mary's nine months of pregnancy.
The whole community is organised for the posadas . Beforehand they decide which and how many houses will not offer a place where Mary and Joseph can stay, and where they will finally find shelter, and break thepiñata. The community also decides how many posadas they will have. Some only hold one or two of them during the season.
The posada begins with the procession of the pilgrims.

At the head is Joseph, holding Mary's hand as she rides on the donkey. Sometimes, instead of having someone dress up as Mary and Joseph, and ride a donkey, a couple of neighbors carry a nativity scene.

Following them are all the neighbors, carrying candles and singing traditional songs to ask for posada, a place where they can stay. At the end of the trip through the streets of the neighborhood they reach their final destination. Doors open and the big party begins!
The piñata is strung up and everyone gets ready to break it! The children are blindfolded so it is harder to break! One by one the children try to break it, while they are hitting it, the rest of the people sing the traditional song for breaking the Piñata .
Afterwards people will enjoy the food prepared such as tamales, buñuelos, churros and hot chocolate.

During the Christmas season there are Pastorelas, which are theatrical representations of the shepherds on their way to honor baby Jesus. They must follow the star in the East to get there, but there will be many obstacles, set by the devils, for them to overcome. The pastorelas are comedies of course, and display a traditional sense of humor. Sometimes the characters even get to deliver political jokes, which the audience obviously enjoys!

Los Reyes Magos
All Mexican children anxiously wait for January 5, because this is when the Three Kings arrive with gifts for them! In Mexico city many children go to the Alameda park to see the Reyes Magos and ask for gifts and also in many shopping centres there will be the 3 kings talking to children.

In the afternoon, family and friends gather to share the "Rosca de Reyes" , which is a traditional wreath-shaped bread that is made only during the first days of January. Although the name indicates that it should be round, the Mexican “rosca de reyes” generally has an oval shape due to the need to make cakes larger than 30cm across for larger parties. For luxurious decoration, Mexican people use tanned and fig fruit, quinces, cherries, etc.; which besides from making it pretty, enriches its flavor.
The Rosca is served with hot chocolate and tamales.

Hidden inside the rosca is a figurine of the Baby Jesus. The baby Jesus, when hidden in the bread, represents the flight of Jesus, fleeing from King Herod's evil plan.

Each person cuts a slice of the rosca, and whoever gets the baby figurine has to invite everyone present to a new party on February 2, Candelaria day.
On February second, Candelaria day, the many Baby Jesus figurines are taken from the nativity scene to the church to be blessed. Practically all the markets will restore, paint and dress these dolls for the occasion. The nativity scene is then put away on this date until the next year when the new Christmas season begins.