But, honestly, I was exhausted at the end of the day, constantly looking over my shoulder/listening to native conversations and being on alert for anything suspicious took some of the fun out of it.
I'd go back, almost certainly will, but for anyone thinking about a Mexico visit, for heavens sake use your head! Avoid known trouble areas (Nuevo Laredo, Tijuana, etc.) and stay alert, and enjoy yourself!
I’ll tell ya, nothing like being greeted with military with machine guns. They were also on the corners of Cartehena, where we stayed. We were warned so much about keeping track of luggage and being “aware” that it made me paranoid. I bought my emeralds and counted the days (10) to pay my pesos and GET OUT.
I never let my Dad live that down. On the beach below the hotel, I got hailed with pesos as I laid on my blanket. My Mom was “surrounded” by males asking for a date and dear old Dad sat in a lounge chair snoozing through it all.
The highlight was looking down from the hotel balcony - it was on the corner ... and seeing a male unzipped and whipping something around ... as a teen, as first I didn’t know what he had in his hand ... first thought was that it was a snake ... nope ... .
There were too may riots in Bogota to visit the city so we went to local villages. I’ll never forget the contrast. DIRT floors and color TV. The little urchins took great pride in rubbing the bellies of these helamonster that scared the crap out t of me.
NEVER again will I go to a country that really has no real rule of law.