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Television Travel / TV Travel / An Idiot Abroad / Mexico Travel / → All Tags

How Not to Be 'An Idiot Abroad' in Mexico

Though Karl Pilkington might not be the best tour guide for practical international travel, he did have one important revelation to share on this week's episode of An Idiot Abroad - they don't actually have Mexican Jumping Beans in Mexico.

As part of his quest to see all seven wonders of the world, Karl visited the Mayan site Chichen Itza which includes the Kukulkan Pyramid, also known as the castle, and is considered one of the world's seven wonders. The temple was used for human sacrifice is surrounded by several other structures, including rows of ancient pillars which Karl refers to as "an Ikea for columns."

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Airport WiFi / Airport-WiFi-Map / MEX / → All Tags

Uploading Drunken Spring Break Pics From the Airport Will Cost You

Mexico City managed to be left off the State Department's recent warning on travel to Mexico -- not because spring breakers are less likely to go there than Cancun or Cozumel, but because the outbreak of violence in the country has been concentrated further north. But the city is seeing plenty of through traffic as North Americans head to sunny destinations further south.

Japanese Tom Hanks Hiroshi Nohara liked Benito Juarez International Airport so much he lived there for almost half a year. But he must not have been checking his e-mail there -- at the price of $0.50 a minute through Telmex, he would have run out of funds long before being able to Priceline a ticket home. Sorry, those pics of you and your friends doing shots of tequila may not get uploaded to Facebook until after you've arrived home.

Reading your RSS feeds on spring break? Tell us where you picked up the signal.

Related Stories:
· Mexico Travel Alert [Travel.state.gov]
· Airport Lover Hiroshi Nohara Headed Home [Jaunted]
· Airport WiFi Map [Jaunted]

Living in Airports / Airport Heaven / Hiroshi Nohara / MEX / → All Tags

Airport Lover Hiroshi Nohara Headed Home

Japanese Tom Hanks Hiroshi Nohara is headed home, after spending 117 days in Mexico City International Airport and then shacking up with a mysterious woman known only as Oyuki for close to two weeks.

Nohara reappeared at MEX on Sunday, carrying three plastic bags full of clothes and blankets. His flight back to Japan left Monday, with a stop scheduled for San Francisco.

While Nohara never fully explained why he was living in the airport, we like to think that he was part of some Illuminati super-plot or was at least wrapped up in some kind of real-life Bourne scenario. 'Cause really... "The Terminal"? Honestly, it wasn't that good.

Related Stories:
· Man Returns to Japan after Mexico Airport Stay [AP, via Google]
· Japanese Tom Hanks Moving On Up [Jaunted]
· Japanese Tom Hanks Can't Get Enough Of Mexico City [Jaunted]

[Photo: China Daily]

Sticky Situations / Gum / Gross / → All Tags

Chewing Gum Overwhelming Mexico City's Sidewalks

The sidewalks of Mexico City are being overwhelmed by gum, spit out and ground into the pavement to the tune of 70 pieces every three feet. So the city's point man in keeping public spaces clean, Ricardo Jaral, has a message for those of you who would toss your flavorless chew in the street:

When you finish chewing a piece of gum, you either have to put in a piece of paper and deposit it in a trash receptacle, or swallow it.

Isn't that bad for you? Jaral says nope:

I've always swallowed my gum, and it's never done me any harm.

At least you'll still be allowed to pop a piece on a whim: While you're now allowed to chew in Singapore, you can only get so-called therapeutic gum from pharmacies after showing ID.

Related Stories:
· Mexico Tells Citizens to Swallow Their Gum [MSNBC, via]
· Mexico City Will Eat Cake, 22,000 Pounds Of It [Jaunted]
· World's Largest Ice Rink Now Open In Mexico [Jaunted]

[Photo: laughingmonk]

Party On / Cultural Travel / Parades / Christmas / → All Tags

Mexico City Will Eat Cake, 22,000 Pounds Of It

Happy Three Kings Day! Spanish-speaking countries all over the world celebrate the appearance of the Magi at the manger today, and nowhere is the party bigger than in Mexico City, which baked an 22,000-pound cake for the event.

The Rosca de Reyes, a sweet bread studded with candied fruit, measures nearly a mile long and contains 1,400 plastic babies akin to those found in King Cakes for Mardi Gras. (But you don't want to find this baby because then you have to throw a party for all your friends on February 2.)

Catch up with the festivities in Mexico City now by heading down the Paseo de la Reforma to the Monumento a la Revolución, a Porfirio Diaz-era structure where the Tres Reyes party moved in 2005 from the Parque Alameda Central. The parade, a relatively new addition to the celebration (dating back to just 2007) looks a lot like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, except for the dudes on camel-, elephant- and horseback. They're the kings of course.

Related Stories:
· Massive 11-Tonne Bread Readied for Traditional Mexico Party [AFP, via Yahoo!]
· Three Kings Ride Through Mexico City for First Time [EFE]
· Mexico City Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Remi.B]

No Reservations / Television Travel / Food Travel / Tony Bourdain / Street Food / → All Tags

Anthony Bourdain Finds "Ryan Seacrest's Love Juices" In Mexico

Five seasons into "No Reservations" and Anthony Bourdain is running a little low on far-flung locales to eat his way though, so it's no surprise that this season starts in not-all-that-exotic Mexico City.

But Bourdain promises to show us that Mexico is about more than just tacos, tortas and quesadillas, and then proceeds to, well, eat a hell of a lot of tacos, tortas and quesadillas. Of course his are filled with tongue, tripe, brains and eyeballs, so what the ep lacks in imagination it more than makes up for in offal.

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Living In Airports / Vacation Rentals / Hiroshi Nohara / MEX / → All Tags

Japanese Tom Hanks Moving On Up

Mexico City International Airport's most famous (and only?) resident Hiroshi Nohara has moved out after spending 117 days in Terminal 1. Absconding with a mysterious woman known only as Oyuki, the now-clean shaven tourist is shacked up in an apartment in the Distrito Federal according to the newspaper Reforma. Oyuki says she invited the traveler to her place so he could sleep in a real bed.

Nohara's actually left the airport once before--to tour Azteca Stadium--but this time, he says, he's not going back. His tourist visa is set to expire in March, though how (or if) he plans to leave Mexico then is still unclear.

Though Nohara seems to have found his place in an unusual way, vacation rentals were a big trend in 2008, with families trying to keep lodging costs down and single travelers looking for crash pads that were big enough for Parisian dinner parties. The titan of the short-term rental space is HomeAway.com (and its offshoots), but different countries have their own local sites, Frugal Traveler Matt Gross reports, like Pap.fr, Kamernet.nl, Vivastreet.it. And of course there's always Craigslist, which now has a version for just about everywhere. Including Mexico City.

Related Stories:
· Man Living at Mexico Airport Has New Home [AP, via Google]
· Lessons From the Frugal Grand Tour [NYT]
· Japanese Tom Hanks Can't Get Enough Of Mexico City [Jaunted]

[Photo: China Daily]

Christmas Alternatives / Christmas / Ice Skating / Winter Travel / → All Tags

World's Largest Ice Rink Now Open In Mexico

For the second year in a row, Mexico City is home to the world's biggest ice rink. Set in the heart of town--in the Zócalo--the ice spans more than 300,000 square feet, making it about 20 times bigger than an NHL hockey rink.

The five-hour opening ceremony Saturday included Mexican pop stars, pro skaters inaugurating the ice and the lighting of Christmas decorations--including a 163-foot tree--in the square. There were even some mountains of snow for kids to enjoy.

While it's not exactly sweltering in Mexico City right now, the weather is far from frightful: Highs above 70 are forecast for this weekend. The rink will be open until January 10, and admission is free.

Related Stories:
· Mexico City Opens World's Largest Ice Rink [EFE, via MarketWatch]
· Where to Ice Skate... In Mexico City? [Jaunted]

[Photo of the 2007 fun: El Fotopakismo]

Living in Airports / Airport Heaven / Hiroshi Nohara / MEX / → All Tags

Japanese Tom Hanks Can't Get Enough Of Mexico City

A former Tokyo janitor named Hiroshi Nohara has been living in Mexico City International Airport since September 2. Why? He hasn't said, though he did tell reporters recently, "My life is 'The Terminal 2.'"

Camping out in Terminal 1, which serves both domestic and international destinations, he relies on donations from airport restaurants and transiting passengers to get by, content to sleep in a chair. Despite the freebies, he is not, the Associated Press says, in good shape:

During his stay, Nohara's wiry goatee has grown into a scraggly mass. His red-tinted hair is speckled with dust and dandruff, and his cream-colored jacket and fleece blanket are dingy with overuse. He smells like he hasn't had a shower in months.

With a valid tourist visa that won't expire until March, authorities can't really toss him out of the airport. But he has left on his own at least once: Nohara went to see the Estadio Azteca, one of soccer's most storied venues.

Related Stories:
· "The Terminal 2?" Japanese Man Makes Airport Home [AP, via Google]
· The Japanese Tourist Won't Be Tossed Out [Expreso.com.mx, in Spanish]

[Photo of another long layover at MEX: 00ucci]

Sad Travel / Dangerous Travel / → All Tags

Deadly Meeting Between Mexican Politician's Plane And Busy Highway

A Learjet 45 crashed Tuesday night beside a busy highway in Mexico City. What’s worse, the 14 killed includes Mexico’s interior minister, Juan Camilo Mouriño. In addition to a roadside tortilla vendor and other unlucky souls who died on the ground, officials estimate that an additional 40 people were injured.

Mouriño was President Felipe Calderon’s right-hand man. Other passengers included anti-drug prosecutors, prompting questions of foul play. To squelch the conspiracy theories, officials have already released radar images and radio transmissions between the pilot and ground control.

Mouriño had his critics, including some who burned giant plaster replicas of him in the streets. But the guy was just 37 years old. This settles it. We have a message for celebrities and politicians, particularly young, handsome dynamos who seem to be particularly at risk: Fly commercial.

Related Stories:
· No Sign of Foul Play Found in Mexico Plane Crash [LAT]
· DJ AM, Travis Barker Expected to Recover After Plane Crash [Jaunted]

[Photo: frecuenciaspopulares]

Crime / Fashion / Dangerous Travel / → All Tags

Crime Travel: Give This Mexico Clothing Boutique a Shot

Mexico City likes to break records. The world's largest city is also one of Mexico's wealthiest and one of its most dangerous. After a dip in crime in the early 2000s, misdeeds are back en vogue. Now, the market is responding, with a bulletproof clothing boutique cropping up in Polanco, the Rodeo Drive of the DF.

The store, called Miguel Caballero, takes its name from its Colombian owner. Bulletproof items there range from leather jackets to polo shirts, parkas and white ruffled tuxedo shirts. But before you apply for a sales position, be forewarned:

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Buses / Public Transportation / Tipping / Scary Clowns / → All Tags

Etiquette Travel: Mexican Bus Drivers Ask For Tips

Does the guy or gal who spots you running to the bus stop deserve a little somethin' extra for holding the door open for you? Drivers of peseros, or microbuses, in Mexico City are demanding a little gratuity on top of the two-peso ($0.20) tickets to pay for gas and other repairs.

Fare hikes were applied to the local public transit system, but they only applied to the newest buses, leaving drivers of older, less environmentally sensitive vehicles in the lurch. Hence at least part of the reason for the extra fees.

If you wanna avoid the debate between 15 and 20 percent, just make room for taxi fares in your budget if you're traveling to Mexico City. The clowns alone ensure a very scary ride.

Related Stories:
· Mexican Bus Drivers Want Tips Despite Harrowing Rides [AP, via Yahoo]
· Buses coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: AP]