Landing in Mexico City - for the first time!!

Mexico City is HUGE

First impressions of landing in Mexico City - I had NO IDEA how many mountains surrounded this area!  WOW!  An amazing site, to be sure - and I was just pumped to get a view of this huge city that I had heard so very much about.

Once off the plane, I said goodbye to my group of new friends and headed off into the main area to find out about my flight and burn a little time.  This is when 2 things became very clear to me very quickly -

1.  There is no such thing as a smoking ban in Mexico - it's just everywhere!

2.  They take their baked goods very, very seriously.  All over the airport there were piles of pies, cakes, you name it.  Stacks and Stacks of them.  I did not partake, but it was funny to see.

The baked goods in the Mexico City Airport

I tried to find my flight on the displays, but they don't show them until very close to time -  I found myself hoping that the gate wouldn't be too far away.  Finally it showed, but like so many others, where it SHOULD have a gate, it just said "B" - and there was not a gate B to be had.

I headed over to the AeroMexico office, and asked, and they were able to look up my gate, which was at the very end of a long hall.  When I got down there I was amazed by the noise and the amount of people; Mexico doesn't stop anyone from going to the gate, whether or not they are getting on the plane, so it's a huge crowd of people -  hot sticky and loud.  Also, it's just so old and run down - while most likely this won't mean anything to anyone but my mom, it reminded me a great deal of the old terminal one in Sky Harbor - but bigger and raised up.

There is no such thing as a smoking ban in Mexico City...

A huge football team (soccer) got off the plane, and there was quite a bit of fanfare involved.  That many dark haired, handsome men in one place.... hmmmm... I could have returned home happy right there and then. 

Meanwhile, the noise and heat continued - women, including myself, fanned themselves with whatever they had available; boarding passes, magazines, or fancy fans they had brought with them.  I had to make due with my boarding pass.

I wasn't in Kasas anymore; where was I going again?  And why?  Was I crazy?  Hope not....

Time to load the plane - no real line involved, and the crowd was so crazy the employees at the airport really had no control over it - people just pilled onto the fight - I honestly believe anyone could have gotten on, ticket or not....