What to Know About Travel

What I’ve Learned Lately About Travel:

1.  Mexico City is awesome–not horrifically dirty or unsafe as rumor might have you believe.  Do you love walkable cities, art, great food, cafe culture, music, and dance?  Then you’ll probably love Mexico City.

Check out my Mexico City visual diary here.

Check out what I have to say about one truly wonderful Mexico City neighborhood.

And who knew Mexico City has Venice-like canals?

And of course there’s a fabulous history of art that’s kept alive in many ways.

2.  Saying YES to life puts me in a traveling mindset no matter where I am.

3.  No matter your circumstances, if you want to travel there are ways to afford it.

4.  Destination weddings rock!  We had one in Hawaii, and we went to one on Catalina.  And I hope we’ll be going to more!  Here are three reasons why I love them:

- Destination weddings provide people with an “excuse” to travel somewhere.  Even though we are California natives, we’d never before been to Catalina.  It reminded me of a sweet Mediterranean village.

- The wedding becomes about more than spending a day with family and friends.  We spent days before and after our wedding hanging out with our loved ones on the beach, eating meals together, and doing all kinds of fun activities (such as ziplining, swimming with dolphins, and snorkeling).  The wedding, then, is an opportunity to spend some living time together outside of the usual demands of everyday life.

- A destination wedding can be fun to plan.  It doesn’t have to be stressful.  When you relax into it, all kinds of serendipity abounds.  I recommend deciding where you want it to be and when without worrying in advance who will or won’t be able to come.  People’s schedules and lives are always in flux.  If they are meant to be there, it’ll happen.  We thought we’d have only 4 or 5 people attending, and we ended up with 40!  Also:  network and explore.  Contact people to let them know what you are doing.  Next thing you know, all kinds of possibilities will float your way.  We had one friend living in Hawaii who ended up helping us find a brand-new venue that didn’t even open until a few weeks before we got married.  We found our officiant online–and she has ended up becoming a good friend. There were many other amazing aspects of ourfree-floating planning that you can read about here.

Five Things I Believe About Travel

1.  “All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.” — Martin Buber

2.  Travel teaches us to see life and ourselves anew.

3.  Travel teaches us flexibility of mind, body and spirit.

4.  Wander nearly rhymes with wonder.

5.  The traveling mindset can be cultivated anywhere.

Mexico City in Pictures

Paul and Cannon, who have lived in Mexico City for six years.

De calores en el mercado.

Mexico City

Paul and Cathy

Chapultepec castle mural

Chapultepec Park, largest city park in the world.

Vendors add spice to the streets and parks.

Fiesta at Paul's; in the adjoining room, people were dancing salsa.

At the Frida Kahlo Museo Casa Azul

The bridge that connects Frida's and Diego's pads.

San Angel Inn

The Zócalo, one of the largest city squares in the world.

Several of Botero's wonderful "fat lady" statues grace the square.

Zocalo horsies

Palace of Fine Arts

Bellini revolving restaurant on the 45th Floor of the World Trade Center

Delicioso outdoor cafe breakfast.

Perros in Parque Mexico

Mercados galore within walking distance of Paul's place.

No, these aren't statues, they are xoloitzcuintles.

Dave and me hanging with Diego at Delores' pad.

The fabulous greenhouse cafe at the Delores Olmedo Museum.

Xochimilco canal boat, with champagne.

With Raymundo, our driver extraordinaire.

Dinner con amigos.

Climbing the Pyramid of the Sun in Teotihuacan.

Standing where the ancients did.

Our appetites sparked by all that climbing, we ate a great meal at La Gruta, a restaurant in a cave.

Sabor Amor...the flavor of love.

(Photos by Dave Rhine)

Mexico City, Day 1

Paul said he loves living in Mexico City because it's not as organizado as the U.S.  And you certainly feel that sense of "disorganization" in his charmingly chaotic neighborhood called Condesa.

Walking Condesa is a delight of sight, smell, and sound.

We've been here for just a day, and I'm struck by the patchwork quality of the architecture.  Also, there's a non-linear nature to the car- and foot-traffic, a bohemian flair to the variety of ways people dress, and a plethora of personas in the streets doing everything from eating in the numerous sidewalk cafes to selling magazines, candy, fruit, and shoeshines.  A guy ringing a bell walking down the street, Paul told us, was signaling to people he would sharpen their knives.  A honking noise let people know they could bring their garbage out to the truck rolling through the 'hood.


In Paul's apartment building, a neighbor's phone ringing might send you rushing to your own phone.  Last night at 10:30 p.m., as I lay in the cool sheets with the window open to the dark night, I could hear a little kid's sparkling laughter, a neighbor's salsa music, and something that sounded like banging on a pan.  Funny how if this were happening in my own neighborhood, I might be annoyed.  But here I accept it as the colorful nature of this place.  (That's a good reminder to live at home as though I'm on vacation, a mindset I love to cultivate.)

Paul took us into a non-descript building that turned out to be a huge mercado selling every meat, fruit, and vegetable you could imagine in what looked like hundreds of stalls.  The multicolored variety was exciting to behold.  We bought chicken fillets cut and pounded for us on the spot, and avocados bigger and more flavorful than any I've tasted in agriculturally-rich California.

Mexico City has the largest city population in the world after Tokyo and Seoul.

Given all this tumult, the streets we've walked on in Condesa and Roma neighborhoods are suprisingly clean.  This morning as Paul and I walked to his yoga-qigong class, I noticed that a liquid smelling of disinfectant had been poured around the streetlight poles, apparently to wash away dog pee.  (Dogs on leashes of all sizes are ubiquitous here.)

It's also not hot and humid, as I expected.  In the morning I needed a light sweater.  In the afternoon, it probably got into the mid-80s, but in the shade it was quite cool.  Paul ascribed that, in part, to the high altitude.  Compared to much of Mexico, the air here is rather dry.

My new discovery is the michelada.  It's about one-fifth lime juice and the rest beer, served in a chilled glass rimmed with chunky salt. Can you say deliciosa? Nothing like drinking a michelada at a sidewalk cafe, witnessing bright and animated dis-organizado.

Another Day in Mexico City

What do hairless dogs and peacocks have in common?

Xoloitzcuintles...when people say the word, it sounds to me like "sho-lo-squint-ees."

They're both unusual animals.  And they both live on the grounds of the Dolores Olmedo Museum.  Dolores Olmedo, who died in 2002, was good friends with Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo.  Olmedo's former home is a gorgeous property featuring the work of Rivera and Kahlo, as well as Olmedo's vast collection of pre-Hispanic, colonial, folk, modern and contemporary art. 

Diego Rivera loved hairless dogs (called xoloitzcuintles) and gave two to his friend Olmedo.  The dogs on the premises are now the ninth generation.  The peacocks strut all over the grounds, fanning out their colorful beauty for great photo opportunities.

After they fan out, they turn slowly like a showgirl exhibiting her costume.

Like the Casa Azul I wrote about in the last entry, this museum is alive with the sense of creativity, of someone who lived a lively, expansive life.   It was an otherworldly feeling walking the grounds and rooms with light rain drifting down.  What an amazing multitude of statues, pottery, paintings, photographs, furniture, and various other objects.  I was especially struck by how prolific Diego Rivera was; he worked in such a wide variety of styles and media.

When our eyes were starting to cross taking it all in, we went to the cafe, which is the former greenhouse.  The only customers, we sat in the glass building, watching the soft rain.  As we sampled cappucinos, hot chocolate, chicken tortas, and orange cake, we agreed this was best museum food we've ever had.

Our next stop was the Xochimilco canals a few minutes drive away.  I had no idea Mexico City had an old canal system you could take a boat down until Dave found about it online prior to our trip.

Similar to our boat.  We have a ton of pictures I'll upload later.

I understand the canals can be very crowded with tourists on weekends.  We hit it right on a Wednesday with very few people around.  Paul, our resident Spanish speaker, bartered the guys down to a reasonable price--and we were off for two hours on the water, just the four of us in a very colorful boat.

As you float down the canals, other boats approach selling beer, food, and handicrafts.  My favorite boats were filled with musicians.  For a few pesos, they'll play you a tune.  I loved singing "Guantanamera" with the band, one of the few songs I know in Spanish.

Paul opened a bottle of Veuve Clicquot he had generously bought and that Dave had hauled to the boat in a backpack.  Sipping champagne, we watched the shore life drift by:  modest houses with dogs lounging around, elegant houses with tiled patios, and many nurseries abundant with colorful flowers.

Another dreamy moment brought to you by Mexico City.

Housesitting in Mazatlan, Guanajuato & San Miguel de Allende

Our private pool for a month.

Three months on the mainland of Mexico without paying for a single night of lodging? That's the world of housesitting! As I write about in Wanderland: Living the Traveling Life, we've been doing this for a decade, and we get sits through various websites and referrals.

Our first stop was Mazatlan for a month, starting in mid-August. This was an unusual housesit: a five-unit complex. The owners rent out spaces during high season (fall/winter/spring)--and in the summer, they want someone there to keep an eye on the place. We stayed in a two-bedroom apartment, our responsibilities to pay the pool cleaner (with the owners' cash) and check the units for leaks after a downpour. 

Yes, it was hot and humid, reminding me of Southeast Asia. That pool was a godsend, and since we were the only ones there, swim time was clothing-optional.

Walking along the malecon.

The location at Olas Altas ("High Waves") was amazing. We were close to the malecon, the biggest water-front esplanade in all of Mexico at 13 miles long. Many mornings I'd walk down the malecon with other walkers, joggers, inline skaters, and bicyclists. 

Zumba in Mazatlan!

After a mile walk, passing fishermen offering fresh catches and beaches with morning swimmers, I'd meet up with a large group of Mexican women and two super-entertaining male teachers for a Zumba class. While we danced, waves offered a cooling spray. Afterward, I'd try to overcome my shyness by speaking in Spanish. The last thing I've ever been accused of is being shy, but being in another culture and trying to speak another language changes my personality.

Mariachis on the night streets.

We were also close to Mazatlan's Old Town, a picturesque compendium of 19-century buildings, plazas, and restaurants--and a huge mercado where we bought fresh produce. If we didn't feel like walking back, we'd hail a pulmonia, taxis that are cute souped-up golf carts. Strangely, "pulmonia" means pneumonia, drawn from the idea that riding in an open-air vehicle can give you a cold. Odd PR--but super fun!

Sunset on the malecon.

We got this gig through Eden, who lived nomadically for many years but has now happily settled in Mazatlan with her husband. She introduced us to her friends Carol and Alex, who are from the Bay Area, close to where Dave and I used to live. They became our new BFFs. We had a blast wandering around with them, going out to eat, playing cards, and watching sunset on the malecon that bustled with families late into the night. Dave and Carol met up for yoga a few times a week as well. 

With Carol & Alex

Next stop was Guanajuato, a beautiful mountain colonial town. It's the capital city of the state of Guanajuato in Central Mexico. Formerly a mining town, its streets are narrow and winding and it has underground tunnels you can drive through. At 6500-foot elevation, it was much cooler there...which also meant gasping for breath while walking the steep streets. 

With Nat & Jodie in the mining hills.

Fortunately, a small funicular could haul us back up the mountain, since we were staying at the very top, in a darling apartment near the Pipila monument, with a vast view of the colorful city. Nat and Jodie, housesitters par excellence, hooked us up with the gig and showed us around the city, including their favorite taco cart. They were full-time nomads for years but now are settled down in their favorite place in Mexico. 

Our view

I fell in love with wandering around the city on foot, stumbling across musicians and dancers in the streets, people-watching in the shady parks, and stopping into cafes and bookstores. While there are people everywhere of all ages, Guanajuato is a university town, so there's also lots of young energy. 

Guanajuato

It's famous for having a collection of disinterred mummies. But we skipped that "entertainment" and instead were drawn to the house where Diego Rivera and his twin brother (who died at age two) were born. It's now a museum with a labyrinth of exhibits, a collection of his works and preliminary sketches. I was entranced by this photo:

Diego & Frida

I easily could have stayed there longer, but next we were headed 50 miles east to San Miguel de Allende for six weeks. I know a lot of people who fell in love-at-first-sight with this UNESCO world heritage site, famous for its grand, colonial architecture and arts scene. Spoiler: While I enjoyed our time there, I wasn't as drawn to it as Mazatlan and Guanajuato, mainly because the cobblestone streets and narrow sidewalks are difficult to walk on and don't allow for as much lively outdoor public space. However, there's no question it's beautiful.

Our roomies for a week.

Our first sit was a week in a sprawling home with all the amenities. It was outside of downtown, but the homeowners--who were easy to befriend--let us use their car. We took care of two darling dogs, which meant only feeding and loving on them because they had a dog walker. There was also a housecleaner, a woman I enjoyed talking with in Spanish. 

Indigenous parade

Just a sample of the proliferation of Dia de Los Muertos fun.

Our next sit, for five weeks, had its ups and downs. Even though this one also included a car, we didn't have to drive much because we could walk everywhere: restaurants, shops, and El Jardin (the main tree-lined plaza). I could even stroll to Zumba at a nearby park. The gorgeous house was constructed of stone and was oddly cold. At least 10 degrees colder than outside. We wished we'd brought warmer clothes. When I was frozen to the bone, I'd hop in the hot tub, so I can't complain too loudly.

He loved Dave but not strangers.

The dogs, while adorable, were having some issues; they could be aggressive with each other and strangers. Fortunately, the homeowner hired a dog trainer to work with them. Still, handling their needs meant San Miguel was feeling less like vacation than our other sits.

so colorful

We were lucky to be there during the colorful Dia de Los Muertos festivities. In fact, September through October was a time of multiple festivals, with all kinds of events, parades, and our least favorite part, ear-splitting fireworks before dawn.

Nomads...and a few peeps I know from other lives!

Fiesta with housesitters.

We met a lot people from all over the world and were invited to a party one night for live music, belly dancers, and the most beautiful, haunting flamenco singer and dancer. We also had a few meet-ups with travelers and friends old and new.

Flamenco dancer 

There are lots of fancy restaurants in SMA, but our favorite food was at this taco stand.

One day we walked down a long street lined with stands selling a profuse array of flowers and shiny objects to place on headstones. It led to a huge public cemetery, like a ghost city in miniature, where people honored their ancestors by cleaning and decorating their graves. Music played and a full Catholic service was in action, with a priest offering communion. I felt like there we experienced the true meaning of Dia de los Muertos.

My favorite outing was La Gruta spa, about 30 minutes outside town, for some thermal springs rejuvenation. We next went to nearby Atotonilco, part of a World Heritage site, a religious complex built in the 18th century. The interior of the sanctuary features murals, sculptures, inscriptions, and oil paintings in Mexican folk baroque and indigenous styles. I hadn't seen anything like it since I was in Italy--and later I discovered it's been called the "Sistine Chapel of Mexico."

La Gruta

"Mexican Sistine Chapel"

In the pueblo we stopped for phenomenal tacos made by two sisters. A couple sitting near us, who have lived in the area for years, confirmed that we'd stumbled onto the best street tacos in the whole area.

que rico!

My other favorite thing was this: When I posted on a San Miguel de Allende Facebook page asking about Zumba classes, I got an offer to join a class at a private home. Of course, I jumped on that! Turns out that Vail and her mom started having the teacher come to them during the pandemic and never stopped. 

Zumba at Vail's

Vail has lived in Mexico for 30 years and is married to a Mexican man. She's also writing a book. So we made an exchange: Spanish lessons for an edit of her manuscript. Now that I'm home, we're meeting once a week on Zoom. She also threw in a food and history tour for Dave and me, since she runs the company. We enjoyed tasting food in five different spots and learning about the history of the city.

I'm grateful that housesitting makes it possible for us to live in so many places, trying out so many lives.