Discovering Mexico During Covid: The Central Highlands

Ten months in Brazil is definitely more than I thought I would stay in 2020. But as the health situation improved in January 2021 (before falling back into chaos with their second wave), I had to leave the country as the state of emergency had been withdrawn, along with the extended visa allowances for tourists. With borders still tightly shut all over the world, I had to find a place that was equally welcoming to foreigners, and big enough to provide quality content for a nomad like me. Mexico checked all the boxes. So there I went, on a flight to one of my favorite countries in the world, arriving in its capital, Mexico City.

Mexico is a massive country! It has so much diversity, from its northern desertic regions, to its three mountain chains, as well as two massive coasts stretching on both the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. My plan was to spend a few months in the country and discover a dozen cities at a very slow pace: one week in each place.

I started the journey in Mexico city to meet up with some good old friends, and continued in a few cities in the central highlands mountains, including Queretaro, San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato. I was pretty amazed that I had never ventured in the area through my more than 10 visits in the country! It is so close to Mexico city yet provides an incredible experience, throwing you back into spanish colonial times, but with an authentic mexican taste!

In Queretaro, I even had the chance to rent the apartment where Maximilian de Hazburgo rested on the eve before his execution. Maximilian was an Austrian who reigned as the only emperor of Mexico around the mid nineteenth century. I absolutely love these random situations where history comes back to me wherever I go. Definitely a weird feeling imagining I could have slept in the same room as such a famous figure of Mexican history.

Guanojuato was my highlight of this trip. A spectacular city, colorful and rich in history that deserves a visit when in the area. It’s a quick 4 hours ride from the Capital and tons of buses do the journey every day. I just love the mariachis constantly playing their favorite tunes in the central plaza. The selection of restaurants is also very good, a great way to sample the rich mexican cuisine and regional specialties.