About a year ago my friend asked if I wanted to check out Mexico City.
Answer: yes.
I’d wanted to go to Mexico City for years, but was too nervous to venture out solo. We headed out for about 2 weeks and checked out Mexico City, Teotihuacan, Hierve el agua, Oaxaca City, and San Agustinillo, a beach town on the Oaxaca Coast. The trip started with a mezcal tasting with our air b and b host, and included all the greenery a New Yorker in February could hope for, al pastor, earthquakes, donkeys, crickets, ancient ruins, petrified waterfalls, mineral springs, ceviche in back alleys, so many dogs, and beach goers taking breaks from circus school.
One thing I tried for the first time on this trip was using a film camera. I brought a 35mm camera, some Kodak Portra 400, and wandered. It was enormously free-ing to not see the photo pop up on the back of the screen after every shot, and it felt like Christmas when I got the scans back. The film photos ended up being some of my favorite images from the trip. I don’t know if I could ever go no camera, but I’m leaning towards just shooting film wherever the next vacation takes me. Quieting the fear in my brain of “what if you miss a shot?” and trying to be a bit more relaxed. Vacation, yah? Mexico you’re beautiful, I want to see you again soon.
