I was watching the NBA Finals game 1 between the Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks when I saw the new TV ad of Corona (the one with the crescent moon mimicking a lemon) and I remember my recent trip to Mexico City. Perhaps, many will read the commercial to mean that the lemon twist on the lip of the bottle is the most common way to serve and enjoy a Corona. However, for people who have been to Mexico and have heard about the “moon” legends and the origin of the name “Mexico” will think that the commercial is about patronizing a proud-to-be-Mexico product.

I find Mexico City to be not so different from Manila, Philippines, the place where I spent almost half of my life before I moved to Canada. When the company arranged for an airport service to meet me at the Custom’s exit, I already had a hint that this trip will be a challenge, but maybe not as challenging as Shenzen, China since I can speak a little Spanish. Usually, it is the cab ride to your hotel that will give you a hint. If you ask the taxi driver if he accepts your Amex card and the answer is no that is your hint. Second, if the driver is a snob and with an attitude, that confirms your suspicion.

The ride to the hotel exposed some of the unpleasant similarities of Mexico City to Manila – piles of garbage on the side of the road, street vendors abound, old buildings, obvious lack of system, no driving rules, I can go on. But once you are in the business district things get better and the food is nothing but oh so yummy.

Other similarities:
1. Both have strong Spanish influence in culture but Mexico is more Spanish because they obviously speak Spanish.
2. Both Cities’ inhabitants are mostly Catholic.
3. Both are crowded with so many people. Some say Mexico City has a population of around 25 million while Manila is around 18 million. I think that ratio is believable from what I have seen.
4. It is true that Filipinos and Mexicans, in general, are very warm and friendly people but they each have their significant share of crooks in the society. Sadly, safety is an issue in both places. Whatever crime of whatever modus operandi you can find in Manila you can also find that in Mexico City. In fact, I reckon it is much better in Manila. At least in Manila the question is “who among the members of your family have been victimized”. In Mexico City the question is “Who among the members of your family have not been victimized yet”.

Some petty and significant differences:
1. I haven’t seen so many classic Volkswagen Beetle taxis elsewhere in my travels. I may be wrong but I think that is an “only in Mexico” thing.
2. Mexico’s temperature is more forgiving with its average temperature of 17 celsius compared to 29 c in Manila. This is because Mexico City is more than 7000 feet above sea level in altitude (higher than Baguio in the Philippines) while Manila is basically just above sea level.
3. Things are much, much cheaper in Manila if you factor your exchange rate of Mexican Peso 11 to 1USD compare to Peso 50 to 1USD in the Philippines.
4. If you can’t speak the native language and can speak only English, you will be better off going to Manila where most people can speak English. This is not the case in Mexico where even the official business document I was working on was in Spanish.

Overall, if not for the rising safety concerns, I will definitely feel at home here. Maybe that is why tourists have long picked Cancun and Monterrey for their vacation spots. If ever I get a project here I’ll visit these places. The only problem is these places are too far to drive (what can you expect from a country that is about 1/4 the size of mainland U.S.).

I was only in Mexico City for 5 days and never really had a chance to stroll around. I will write about my visit to Our Lady of Guadalupe in my next post.