Mexico City and 1 week home in Florida
One of the big obstacles of riding through Mexico is the huge metropolitan area of Mexico City, with over 20 million people the second largest city in the world. I don’t want to ride my bicycle there. Traffic is just chaotic and riding a bicycle here is not advisable, much less with a recumbent and a lot of luggage. Plus there is a considerable risk of theft here in the city; I had been warned by many friends to be extra careful in Mexico City and not ride there or even take the subway at night…
Last week I got to Toluca (about 40km West of Mexico City) and stayed in a hotel. I left my bicycle there and took a bus to Mexico City. After an interesting half-day / evening in the metropolis and some great chamorro dinner I went to the airport and took a flight back home to Florida.
This last week was very recuperative for me and allowed me to reconnect with my family. I also took care of some logistics and picked up my mountaineering gear for upcoming Pico Orizaba.
Yesterday I retraced my route back from home via car (to West Palm Beach), TriRail (to Miami airport), airplane (to Mexico City airport), metro (to bus terminal), luxury bus (to Toluca) and on foot (to hotel) to get back to the hotel and my bike here in Toluca. What a trip! Rainy / overcast weather provided better air quality and visibility of how vast the Mexico City area is. Amazing!
Today I need to cross Mexico City one more time, now with the bike and all my gear (including the 40 lb mountaineering backpack). This will be quite a challenge, as the buses from the West (Toluca) and to the East (Puebla) end at different terminals. Between those there is either the metro (not an option with my bike and luggage) or taxis. We’ll see how I can navigate the city one more time…
4 comments October 28th, 2009