I am Alejandro Morales. From Saltillo by birth and heart. More than ten years ago I came to Mexico City to study. Since then I have been sharing a house with friends and strangers. First I did it out of necessity. Now I do it for pleasure. Two years ago I founded Covive because I am convinced that we need to recover the human essence of sharing spaces, things and experiences. Because if we know how to share a house, we can better share the street, the city and the scarce resources on this planet.
What is Mexico City for you?
Since I arrived I have experienced the diversity and contrasts of the city. I have shared a house in ten neighborhoods. In the east, west, south and center of the city.
For a while I took the subway at full speed at five in the morning at Cerro de la Estrella station. To get to a class in Santa Fe at seven o'clock. Ten hours later I would do the same on the way back. For a while I rode my urban bicycle up and down the Ajusco. I would go down to meet friends in Copilco. I would go up to return home.
After these extreme relocations I learned that to enjoy the city more it is key to live very close to your work.
The diversity of this city has also allowed me to coexist with the same and different people. I once shared a house with a Chilean who studied Anthropology during the week and on weekends was a mime on Madero Street. I also shared a house with a man from Veracruz who convinced me to train rugby for a couple of months in Ciudad Universitaria.
In this city there is something for everyone. That makes it special.
What would be the best way to get to know Mexico City?
Multimodal tour through the heart of Mexico City. Walk from the balcony of Chapultepec Castle to the Angel of Independence. Then take the Metrobus to the bronze dome of the Monument to the Revolution. If you still have enough time, take an ecobici to the Alameda. Walk through Bellas Artes, Madero and get to the Zócalo.
Can you give us a top 5 recommendations in Mexico City?
- Sunday afternoon in Xochimilco. On Sunday afternoons you can take a two-hour trajinera tour. It is a good opportunity to enjoy nature and relax, without the hustle and bustle of a typical party on Fridays or Saturdays.
- Luis Barragan House. A jewel of Mexican architecture. Declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Built in 1948. Full of beautiful spaces of light, color and vegetation.
- Where to eat. El Auténtico Pato Manilla. A little place at Condesa that sells oriental duck tacos.
- Where to drink. Jardín Juárez. Share a table and a beer with friends or strangers. Among plants(now during COVID they are selling plants at home).
- Where to dance. Barba Azul. Ballroom in Colonia Obrera with live salsa, merengue and cumbia bands. Pura sabrosura. (While it is still closed for COVID I share with you a playlist of CUMBIAS).
