Bueno? | CMDX, Mexico
For me, nothing beats seeing a city with friends that call it their hometown. Car rides through town are filled with history lessons, political rants and nostalgic retellings of youthful tales; in the process, I create greater appreciation for what life is like beyond my backyard.
In Mexico, I have a few amigos and they know how to have a good time. So when I was told that the most traditional way to start a vacation is with a proper Chilangaso, how could I say no. Derived from Chilango, the name of a Mexican from Mexico City (CMDX, formerly District Federale, aka df), a Chilangaso is the first night of a trip when you go on an absolute bender and realize a week’s potential in a single starting session. With the exception of your bank account, things go from zero to one hundred really quick, and my friends were hell bent on starting my adventure off on the right foot. It was quite the stumble.
Enter Tequila. A nectar from the Gods, in Mexico, the repasado variety flows like water and there are many ethereal fountains to cure one’s hangover with another. And what better way to nurse oneself back to a buzz than over an incredible seafood lunch for 4 hours, and then kick-on to the next hip place for few more, followed by a swanky vinyl bar that serves Mexican Sake, only to end up at an 80’s disco until 6 am. Wake up around lunch and repeat, but this time with tacos and a rooftop. And then again the next day.
Why do this to oneself? It would be easy to say that peer pressure has everything to do with it. When enabled by friends (and friends of friends who become friends frighteningly fast), it is easy to take what is passed to you. Even the servers will heckle you to drink because they know that you are NOT driving in the streets of Mexico. The answer to a hurting head is not agua or Tylenol but a Coronita, the cutest, most non-threatening beverage courtesy of AB-INBEV. To those who don’t speak Spanish (yo), your first thought is there was a loss in translation; after second reflection, you accept it and drink on because well, why not.
So an agenda curated with cultural interests was left snoozing in favor of a social calendar. Even attempts to visit museos and stroll through parques were shut down; on Mondays, attractions are closed for schools to enjoy. So what does one do now?
Senor, una cerveca por favor?
