mexico city musings and an extraction from my notes
plus, a Q&A with Grace Atwood of The Stripe (!!)
¡hola! excuse the much later than usual send, but I swear it’s still technically sunday from where I’m writing to you. after five full days spent in Mexico City, I’m thrilled to be back in Cabo for the first time in four and a half years!! I’m doing some content creation across hotels here for five nights with work and will surely have fun updates come next week’s send. but in this week’s sunday series installment, I’m sharing CDMX musings, beginning with the trials and tribulations of getting there.
a peek into my notes app: thoughts on close calls and kindness
it wasn’t until mid-way through the Lincoln Tunnel that my Uber ETA was encroaching upon oh-you-really-f*cked-up territory. we weren’t moving. I did the math and one thing was clear: I was so, so screwed.
let’s start with the obvious: I should have left earlier…a whole lot earlier. in fact, even a semi-risk adverse person would have been out the door an hour before me.
but what happens when your luck so rarely runs out on a million and one close airport arrival times? you just keep testing it. until you get burned.
when my Uber driver began barreling down the shoulder of I-95 (on his own validation!) profusely apologizing, I felt like an idiot. it wasn’t his fault (OKAY, I would have taken the Holland, but that’s neither here nor there…) that I tempted fate with another no-room-for-error airport journey. with some risky moves and a lead foot, he cut down our ETA—which had increased by 40 minutes from the initial estimate—to 4:46…two minutes ahead of when the international baggage cutoff would come into effect, 60 minutes before departure.
what does one do other than count by the minutes when every minute counts? telephone, tell a friend.
so, I called one of my best friends, Lianna, who confirmed that I was seeing it correctly: there were no other flights to Mexico City that evening. if I missed the baggage cutoff, I’d need to hightail it home and try again the next day, or, rebook to a different destination that got me further south and then book a separate flight to Mexico City. all of this would be expensive and time-consuming, so I wasn’t keen on either scenario.
next up in my anxiety-ridden state, I called Michael, the founder of SmartFlyer and the most air-savvy person I know. “what happens if I miss baggage cutoff by five minutes?” I asked, exasperated. the eternal optimist, he told me I’d be fine. we both knew there was a high probability I wouldn’t be, and that if I weren’t, I’d just be calling him back to help me rebook, so we both wanted me to win this one.
after my Uber driver, Roma (imagine if I were going to Rome!) pulled up to Terminal A, shoved my bag and well wishes towards me, I sprinted through the entrance like a bat out of hell. but the part of the movie where I was supposed to be saved with thirty seconds to spare didn’t come. I couldn’t find a United agent and, instead, defaulted to the silly little machine, which naturally, with its lack of human empathy, told me this flight was CLOSED. no bag tag could be printed.
then, literal fight or flight set in.
I sprinted to find a human. that human told me they couldn’t help and to go to kiosk 3…the one across the terminal.
every minute that ticked by represented one less reason someone would help me. inherently, I knew my case was getting weaker with every second that waned.
by the time I waited in line behind another passenger seeking help at kiosk 3, I was ELEVEN minutes past baggage check cutoff. when it was my turn to meet the agent’s eyes and plead my case, she practically laughed at me, saying we’d need to rebook and that there was nothing she could do.
but we’d only just met—and she certainly didn’t realize how determined I was to find a loophole, any loophole to get to my destination.
and this is where the growth comes in. a few years ago, I probably would have gone for pity, maybe cried, and likely gotten red in the face doing so. instead, I remained calm and played into her compassion. when that didn’t work, I asked as kindly as I possibly could (making it clear that I KNEW I was at her mercy) for someone else who could help. I waxed poetic about how loyal I am to United. I was told this was irrelevant. but I kept pleading until, finally, she asked for another higher-up person who had the authority to make the call. this woman said that while she COULD do it, she wasn’t willing to. she told her colleague that she’d need to call the gate for special approval and that they’d “never do it.”
but that’s when—after several minutes of hushed conversation—they did exactly that. she shook her head as she tagged my suitcase and told me, “this bag likely won’t make it, but you better hurry up…”
boarding started in six minutes, and I was off to the CLEAR/Pre-Check line with a euphoric grin spread across my face.
I don’t share this story to gloat, in fact, quite the opposite. I also don’t share as a reminder to leave for the airport earlier (I’m gonna work on it though…or more likely, go back to my no bag checking ways). but seriously, this is my reminder that how we show up in the world matters. the kindness my driver showed me in making my swift arrival his personal mission was above and beyond. the rule breaking the United ladies (begrudgingly) did reminded me to always believe in the most delusional outcome possible. the person on the other side of that call at the gate—who I never got to thank—saved me from the stress of rebooking and subsequently needing to shuffle my plans and losing out on an exploratory day in a city I was eager to see.
the orchestra of exceptional people who went outside the prescribed rule book of what was expected of them all made such a difference to me in merely an hour. so imagine how many other people are out there doing incredibly kind things if I/we chose to look for them? and better yet, what can I/we do to pay that kindness forward?
top nine spots I ate in Mexico City
if we’re connected on Instagram, you know I spent the last five days eating my way through CDMX. it’s the type of city where people have strong opinions about what’s worthy of a meal, so while I’m no authority, you won’t find Contramar (tried it) or Pujol (couldn’t get in) on my list. but I’ll share some others that rocked my world!
Panadería Rosetta: a bakery with a quarter million followers on IG should really deliver, don’t you think? considering I got pastries here four times, I would say it exceeded my pastry standars! they’re famous for their guava roll, but I also adored the honey croissant
Café NiN: cute for breakfast or lunch, I got a cardamom affogado here. same family of restaurants as Panadería so the pastries are bomb too!
Aúna Café: up in Polanco, this one was recommended to me by the team at Casa Polanco. I’m still thinking about the chilaquiles I got here several days later…
Lalo!: another winner for breakfast, the pancakes alone are worth a stop
ZANAYA at the Four Seasons Hotel Mexico: I know many feel strongly about not eating on property at a city hotel, but I’m not one of those people—especially after a 10:30p arrival after a harrowing airport journey. had one of the BEST tuna tostadas I had on the whole trip here!!
Máximo: our biggest splurge meal of the trip, this one gets hype for good reason. they are known for their wagyu burger, but I think I loved the tuna sashimi dish we had best, not to mention some killer desserts
Taverna: the vibes at this candlelit Mediterranean spot were immaculate. we had a round table for the nine of us (I was on a bach!) and ordered practically everything on the menu. the spicy fish wings were so beloved we ended up ordering a third plate
Botánico: collectively, this was probably our crew’s favorite cuisine on the trip, but the ambiance (you’re outside in a garden) also wins big points. had the best spicy-skinny-mezcalita-with-tajin of the trip here! the scallop tostada was also a standout.
Ticuchi: this may be one of the darkest restaurants I’ve ever been to…candlelit doesn’t do it justice! the mushroom tamale was incredible
meet Grace Atwood
is the founder and voice behind The Stripe. Grace is currently based in Charleston, South Carolina after 15 years in Manhattan and Brooklyn. She grew up on Cape Cod, which she credits for her love of the ocean (and probably a nautical stripe or two). The blog began in January of 2010 (originally Stripes & Sequins), born out of a love of fashion, beauty, and making.
Kayla Douglas: Your blog, IG feed, and Substack offer such a fun mix including life in Charleston, fashion and beauty recommendations, what you're reading, and more. What lens do you use to decide if a product, place, or book will resonate with your community?
Grace Atwood: Thank you! I have fun with it. Honestly, I have always been a product recommender. The one friends go to for books, but also beauty products, shoe recs, etc. I remember reading Lucky Magazine before blogs were a thing and thinking, "I could do that!" I genuinely enjoy trying new things and talking about them. If we are at dinner and you let me, I'll take over the conversation just talking about product recommendations. (I try not to do this!) The lens is simply this: do I love it? Like really love it? Am I excited to share this book I couldn't put down, this lip gloss that doesn't get stuck in my hair, this mascara that stays on all day, etc.? If I really love it, I know my audience will really love it too. I think it's also important to talk about what you don't like as well. (In a kind way of course). If you are only ever positive, how will people trust you? Context is important too. For example, I'm not a big romance reader so it has to be a really amazing romance novel for me to pick up, let alone give an A. Or, with skincare: I have very dry skin so I caveat that!
KD: Many people default to, "I don't have time to read!" How do you prioritize reading when you have so many content creation and writing demands on your plate?
GA: First of all, I don't have kids. I just have a lot more free time than people who have kids. Second, I'm a homebody. I would genuinely rather be home reading than out. Third, I really just love to read. I like to read for an hour in bed every night (it does not always happen but that is my ideal) and at least a few times a month, I'll spend at least half of a Saturday or Sunday reading. My favorite thing in the world is to read a whole book in a day. Nothing is better! I actually wrote a blog post about this, but I think that if someone says they don't have time to read, they might not be reading the right books. I know so many people who pressure themselves to only read "good" books. You know, National Book Award winners, dense non-fiction. And I get it, I like reading those books too. But: maybe try a fast-paced thriller or mystery! Or if you are more of a rom-com person, an Emily Henry book!
KD: The Library on The Stripe offers a wealth of reviews on titles ranging from thrillers to memoirs—you even have a "New York City" filter which I love! What makes a book an "A" for you?
GA: First of all I am not a literary critic... I wasn't even an English major. (I was a finance major, for the record). I am just a woman who loves to read. So: my rating system is not very technical, it is a farrrrrrr cry from the NYT Book Review or something more "serious." And there are books I read that make those "best books of the year" lists and I just wonder whyyyyyy as I was bored the whole time. For me to give a book an A+ rating, it means that I personally loved it. Would I give it to my mom? Buy copies for my girlfriends? Scream to my audience about how much I loved it? There you go.
KD: With so many new titles being released each week, how do you decide what to read next?
GA: I think that it is really just (mostly) a factor of my mood and current work load! I try to always be listening to some sort of non-fiction to keep learning, growing, etc. I have a running list on audible as I tend to download titles as I hear about them. With paper books, I try to keep a balanced diet between thrillers (my not-so-guilty pleasure), books that my audience tells me are a MUST, memoirs, literary fiction, etc. If I've just read two thrillers in a single weekend I will choose something more literary. If I need a break from the world I'll grab something I can get really lost in and read in a few sittings.
KD: You're headed to a desert island—which five books are you bringing with you? What a fun question!
The Idea of You - I am deserted on the beach and am going to need something spicy.
Save Me The Plums - one of my favorite books of all time. Ruth Reichl's memoirs of her time as editor in chief of Gourmet. The descriptions of the food and the magazine world are so wonderful!
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - a forever favorite!
Devil in the White City - probably my favorite book of all time. It's so scary and it's all true!
The Encyclopedia... because I'm going to get very bored and will burn through the fiction and memoirs too quickly!
KD: Tell us about the most recent work of fiction that left you with a book hangover.
GA: I think it would probably be Strange Sally Diamond. This was such a great thriller but it was also a little bit heartwarming? I wanted more of Sally when the book was over. It was full of twists and turns with a protagonist that is difficult but loveable. Lisa Jewell (one of my favorite authors) said it was the best book she read all year... high praise!
KD: What book is on your TBR pile that you're most excited to pick up next?
GA: That is a very hard question and took me a little while - my TBR pile is currently taking up two shelves of my book wall. I would say probably the new Ruth Ware. I am such a thriller person and love her books. I'm also excited to read How to End a Love Story, which at least 5 people have told me to read.
KD: The Sunday Series was conceptualized as a love letter to my favorite day of the week.
If we were with you in Charleston on Sunday, where would you take us to spend the afternoon? Is it bad that I would take you to my home? I honestly love reading at home. And right now, in the Spring, nothing is better than sitting out on the porch with a good book. In an ideal world, we go for a long walk, get a bagel from Ruby's, and spend the afternoon reading.
KD: Where can we keep up with you (including your Substack!) to learn what you're reading and recommending next?
GA: I am all over the place! There is my blog, my Substack, and of course Instagram. Specific to reading, I have a special page on my blog - The Library, which I update in real time as I finish books. We've built it out so that readers can filter by genre and ranking to find their perfect book!
I'm the same way with airport departure times. I love to cut it as close as possible. If you can, may be nice to send a compliment to the agents who helped you get your baggage on. I wouldn't mention that they may have bent the rules, that they were very kind and extremely helpful in a difficult situation.
Lovely interview with Grace! 👏🏻
Mexico cityyyy. Love it. I went to Lalo, too! Basically ate everything on the brunch menu, even the huevos con escamoles. Pujol was pretty remarkable but given all your excellent meals, you didn’t miss a beat!