I love hosting Mexico City virgins and helping them discover all the great things that the city has to offer. Matt and Bo stayed with me at The Loft – A Mexico City Gay Rental for five days and four nights, and asked me to spend some time with them showing them a little of the city, which I am always happy to do.
They arrived in the late afternoon on a Thursday and decided they just wanted to walk a little and try some street food, wanting to rest the first night before the weekend, when they really wanted to experience the nightlife.
After settling in, we walked two blocks from the home where you will find the best street food, outside of the metro station. They were all in when they saw that tacos were 5-pesos (around .25 cents USD or .25 Euros.). Being satisfied in the belly and with a smile on their face, I walked them to the center of nightlife in Condesa, just about 10 minutes walking from the house.
In Condesa, I did recommend that they try a Pulque, a traditional drink in Mexico and once called the drink of the gods because it was reserved only for the ruling class of the Mayan civilization. It’s made from the ‘syrup’ of the Agave plant, the same plant used to produce Tequila. Pulque is a little thick with a natural sweet taste and can be served in different flavors, typically flavors of traditional Mexican tropical fruits. We went with the ‘natural’ flavor.
While enjoying Pulque, I ordered chapulines (grasshoppers), a popular snack, It’s something I always recommend and convince guests to try, even if just one small grasshopper. Matt only took a second to gain the nerve to try, but Bo needed a little convincing and more Pulque, but eventually, he tried. They always do!
We spent some time walking in a couple of the green spaces of the area, Mexico Park and España Park, then we returned home so they could get a good night of rest before their first full day.
On Friday, their second day, I cooked breakfast for the guys and they wanted me to show them some of the Historic Center of Mexico City. I recommended Uber because it was their first time in CDMX, and while the metro is super cheap, it’s all underground, so you miss a lot of the city between your departure and arrival.
After arriving in the city center, I gave them a walking tour of the highlights; Zocalo, Cathedral, Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts), the old post office, Torre Latinoamericana, Templo Mayor. They wanted to have a drink at a rooftop terrace, although I was a bit skeptical because I know those places are tourist traps, they really wanted that experience. We ordered 3 mojitos (one each), they were small, and I still am not convinced they had any Rum. They realized why I was skeptical when the bill arrived for three drinks, $1500 pesos ($75 dollars). In my 15 years in Mexico, this, without a doubt, was the most expensive drink I have ever tried. Stay away from Mercado Centro Terraza. You will know them, the waiters are screaming from the balcony trying to get people to come upstairs.
After being fucked without a kiss at Mercado Centro, we walked to a restaurant Oaxaqueñisimo because Bo loves to eat and loves Mexican food, there is no better flavor than food from Oaxaca. The restaurant is fun visually with a lot of colors, the service was excellent, the food even better, and for three people to eat and we all had a drink, it was the cost of ONE mojito at the other place.
Getting to be late afternoon, almost 5 pm, we decided to take the metro back home and rest for a bit, and shower for their first nightlife experience in the city. Matt and Bo are both nightlife guys and enjoy the party while on vacation.
After resting and freshening up, we headed down to Zona Rosa (the gay neighborhood) where we did bar hopping at several bars. Zona Rosa is a popular destination for the gay traveler in Mexico City, although I have seen a lot of changes in recent years with fewer gay flags flying and a lot more heterosexual couples in the bars than gay people. Perhaps because Mexico City has become so gay and gay-friendly that there isn’t really a need for an exclusive gay area anymore.
After a night of some bar hopping in Zona Rosa, we ended the day with a little more street food and headed home.
Saturday morning, after breakfast, we visited Chapultepec Forest, the main park of the city, and twice the size of Central Park in NYC. There are pandas in the park’s zoo and it has a free entrance. Matt and Bo had never seen a panda before, so this was something new and I could share that experience with them. After hanging out in the park, and eating a lot more street food, we walked down one of the most famous streets in Latin America, Paseo de la Reforma.
In Chapultepec Forest, you will find the only Royal Castel in the Americas, where an actual Royal Family lived. The emperor at the time ordered the construction of Paseo de la Reforma from the castle to the city center, where the government seat was located. Today it’s a bustling avenue with lots of shopping and restaurants, almost all the embassies of the world, and the Mexico Stock exchange. Of course, the most famous landmark is the Angel de la Independencia.
From Paseo de la Reforma we went to China Town. They wanted Chinese food, and what better place than China Town. After eating a great Chinese meal and eating sweet dumplings and fried ice cream, we headed home to rest and prepare for a big Saturday night out.
In the evening, I invited my best friend to join me and my guests for a night out. We started our night at a Karaoke bar in the gay area of Zona Rosa because the guys wanted to get a little buzz and sing a few tunes. Matt and Bo enjoyed the bar so much that they went beyond a little buzz and went straight to drunk with tequila shots.
After some drinks and feeling good, we took them to Sodome, a gay sauna. The guests have traveled to over 30 countries and visited saunas around the world, so they wanted to check out one in Mexico City. It wasn’t more than 30 minutes in Sodome that they declared this place the best Sauna in the 30 countries they had visited.
Sodome has a bar area with a pool and nude gogo dancers. Obviously, all the clients are also nude, mostly with a towel around their waist and enjoying socializing. There are also steam rooms and foam rooms that get a little more frisky. Then the huge dark room is more compared to a maze where there is a lot of action. The place is huge and has three stories. The best time to go is the weekends between midnight and 3 am (they close at 3 am, or at least stop letting people enter). When we were there, I would estimate there were 300 guys there, although it’s so big it didn’t feel crowded. The dark room was crowded and the narrow ways in the darkroom is hardly enough space to squeeze through, so there is a lot of body contact in that space.
We had planned on visiting one more place, but Matt and Bo enjoyed Sodome so much that they decided there was no reason to leave. As a host, I was just happy that I had introduced them to a place that they enjoyed! That is the goal for me, make sure my guests have the best experience, whatever that is for them.
Sunday was the last full day in CDMX for my guests, so I recommended that they go out alone, I had been with them every moment during their first two days. I enjoyed my time with them, but I think it’s important for couples traveling together to have some of their own memories without their host. They went to a nice dinner and went to the top of Torre Latinamerica where there is an observatory deck on the 45th floor. They arrived home around 11 PM and were ready to rest before leaving the next day for Cancun. By the time they arrived in CDMX they were already exhausted from time exploring Central America, but they survived!
Now Matt and Bo are on their next adventure. Good luck, stay safe, and see you again soon!
I do not use real names or photos of guests due to privacy.
