frugaltravelista.com

I always eat whatever the people of the country eat. I don't feel like I'm traveling if I eat what I can eat at home. So not only do I eat at local restaurants with authentic food, I try to eat as much street food as possible. Some of my favorite Mexican cuisines are cactus, street bean tacos, and shrimp cocktail with ketchup (that’s right, ketchup).

Coyocan, an artistic neighborhood in Mexico City where Frida Kahlo lived, features outdoor markets, bustling, streets, and beautiful plazas. The man had a bucket filled with what looked like chili covered peanuts. The boys each had a little baggy filled with chili nuts, which they were eating like popcorn. But when I saw that legs and antenna it became clear that this man and his sons were selling chili covered bugs.

The movie portrays Diego Rivera, her husband and Mexico’s most famous artist, as a terrible man, and he might have been at times, but her home and words tell a slightly different story. When Frida died, Diego hired a caretaker to look after her home and ensure that parts of the home remained closed off to the public for 100 years after her death. Once the 100-year mark arrived, the home was opened to the public and the world was made aware of the condition of her body. She has prosthetic legs that she turned into art work, pictures of unborn but mutilated babies because her body couldn’t handle childbirth, and she painted dozens of self-portraits making herself appear whole despite her brokenness.

Our handy Lonely Planet guidebook told us that place where the live Mariachi’s perform, Garibaldi Plaza, was unsafe at night. But the hotel offered a guided tour that not only included mariachi music but also dinner in a fancy revolving restaurant atop the Mexican world trade center and assured our safety. We saw dancing, singing, musicians, and met an Argentinian couple who became our friends. After having gone, I recommend that any future travelers to Mexico City go and see the mariachis.