Bon Voyage! (pt. 1)

After a long summer away, I've finally returned to my cozy home here in Lawrence, KS. Of all my favorite things about being home, working again on my home desktop probably been the most joyful for me. Don't get me wrong, I adore my trusty macbook, but it's nice to be using this beast again, most especially because of the mechanical keyboard! Anyways, I said that I'd share my itinerary for my upcoming trip to Mexico City, so here it is! I'll be leaving here bright and early Monday morning to catch my 6:15 flight out of KCI. After a brief layover in Houston, I should get to the Mexico City airport around 12:45. From what I've read online, Ubers are fairly cheap and reliable throughout DF, so I'll probably use one to get to my AirBnb. ![Image of Chapultepec Park][1] I'll be staying in the La Condesa neighborhood, which is well known for its parks, boulevards, and nightclubs. According to Google Maps, it looks like I'll be only a short walking distance from Bosque de Chapultepec, which is Mexico City's rough equivalent to New York's Central Park. It also contains some of the country's most illustrious and well-known museums, and will be my primary destination on Tuesday! In the morning, I'm planning to get to El Museo Nacional de Antrolopogia as soon as it opens. This museum possesses one of the world's largest collection of Pre-Columbian artifacts from the ancient civilizations of Mesoamerica, and is often rated as one of the best museums in the world. ![Picture of an Arepa][2] Once I start to get hungry, I'll head north a few blocks to grab lunch at a place called Orale Arepa. They specialize in the South American delicacy of arepas, and have received rave reviews. I mean, who wouldn't want to devour something that looks this good?! Afterwards, I'll head back to the park to check out El Castillo Chapultepec. Besides being the only true castle in the western hemisphere, El Castillo was the former residence of Mexican presidents, and has a rich history closely tied the cycle of revolutions and political upheaval that has defined Mexico's national history. ![Picture of Chapultepec Castle][3] After a long day of educational sightseeing, I'll try to find a nice cantina in La Condesa to relax for the evening. I'm planning to bring along a couple of the books I'm reading now, and would love to find a nice quiet booth to just read and enjoy some cerveza. I've really been enjoying Ibram Kendi's *Stamped from the Beginning*, which details the emergence and evolution of racist ideas throughout America's history. I'm hoping to have finished it by the end of my trip. I don't want this post to be too long, so stay tuned this weekend for the rest of my trip itinerary! Lastly, I've had an extremely exciting opportunity come up that could significantly shape the course of my future career. This too, will have to wait for later, but for now just know that some really cool news is coming down the pike! Happy Friday to all! -Joe [1]: https://pickert-website-static.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/blog/9-8-19/Chapultepec.jpg [2]: https://pickert-website-static.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/blog/9-8-19/Arepa.jpg [3]: https://pickert-website-static.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/blog/9-8-19/Castillo.jpg