"Mexico - fun, diversity, culture - they... " a Mexico Travel Page by Srechko

I visited Mexico on 3 occasions in the past. First two times I just stayed in resort / touristy towns of Puerto Vallarta and Cancun without any exposure to mexican culture so these visits don't really count.

Last visit was part of my 56 day long Mexico & Central America journey, I spent almost a month in the country, and this time I had a better chance to feel the culture. Conclusion is - I liked most of it - and I would like to come back some time again...

I visited following towns/cities:
Mexico City
Cuernavaca
Tepoztlan
Acapulco
Puerto Escondido
San Cristobal De Las Casas
Tuxtla Gutierrez
Cancun

Here is my top 12 - the best things I've seen and I experienced in Mexico.

1. San Cristobal De Las Casas - colorful town located high in the mountains with a strong Maya influence - the most beautiful town I've seen on my journey.
2. Canyon Sumidero - amazing boat ride.
3. Maya Villages Chamula and Zinacantan around San Cristobal
4. Mexico City - city that I didn't like at first, but after spending there 8-9 days I got to like it so much that I might even consider living there (if only there wasn't that much pollution..).
5. Tepoztlan - pyramide climb.
6. Beaches - My favourite was Puerto Escondido - touristy but not spoiled by it like Cancun
7. Palenque Maya Site
8. Security - I felt very secure pretty much everywhere I went - even in some shady areas of Mexico City.
9. People...Aside from a few bad experiences where I was a target to be ripped off - people are amazing, and most of them look happy with their lives.
10. Mexico City metro - the best, the cleanest, and the safest metro system I have ever seen
11. Cuernavaca market - the biggest market I have ever seen.
12. Cost of living - Other than Cancun and some areas of Mexico City, country is reasonably priced.

Unfortunately there is top 5 - the worst things I've seen and I experienced in Mexico:

1. Cancun - Nothing mexican there...
2. Mexico City pollution - Pollution is really bad so that you can smell fumes and gases almost everywhere...
3. Cleanliness - some cities ... There are still piles of garbage to be found around the country even though most of the places I have seen looked clean (e.g. San Cristobal was spotless).
4. Ripping off - It is a touristy country and in some areas I had to be extra careful not to be overcharged (which still happened a lot).
5. Tuxtla Gutierrez - just did not like this city much (noisy and dirty)