Friday Freestyle 10/8: Argentina, Peru, or back to Mexico? 

Happy Friday – another week down and another weekend to enjoy!

What’s on my mind: 2022 as usual 

I had some more issues with airlines this week, but laugh and the world laughs with you, weep and you weep alone.

With that said, I’m back to thinking about where to spend the first 2-3 months of 2022. More on the below. 

Where to next: Argentina, Peru, or back to Mexico? 

Argentina

While Argentina is reopening November 1 to vaccinated foreigners (and seemed like a no-brainer), it may no longer be a shoe-in. There are a lot of positives working for Argentina, but here are my reservations:

• Furthest/longest to get to (17h+ flight with a connection)
• Flight is markedly more expensive than other options (~$750-800 vs $250-500)
• Requires a PCR test before departure and on day 5-7 in Argentina (~$200 per person for both tests)

The above does not take Argentina out of contention. We would likely need to stay 2.5-3 months to amortize the flights (and COVID tests) over 3 months instead of 2. The Airbnbs are actually the cheapest there compared to the other options (but we also might splurge to get something nicer).

Peru

With The World’s 50 Best releasing their 2021 list of best restaurants, I was reminded Lima exists. Lima has two restaurants in the top 10 and both are fairly reasonably priced. Here are my hesitations for choosing Peru: 

• Further than Mexico but closer than Argentina
• Flight is also in the middle of the three choices: ~$500 vs $250 and $750
• Requires a PCR test before departure (~$100 per person) 
• Airbnbs are also in the middle pricewise

Peru is basically the compromise between Argentina and Mexico in every way. We also have the option to do ~1 month in Lima and ~1 month in Mexico and then the flights would be ~$700.

While Peru is less appealing than Argentina, it is a bit cheaper and easier to get to and I have always wanted to visit Central and Maido (the two top 10 restaurants).

Mexico (again)

Lastly, Mexico. There aren’t really any reservations here as there are multiple ~4hr nonstop flights each day and no COVID tests required to enter. While Airbnbs cost more, that’s offset by cheaper flights and no tests required.

The big reservation here is that we just spent 5.5 months here. If we enjoy Playa del Carmen later this month, that could be an option. We could also try visiting cities we haven’t been to before. 

Verdict?

I don’t have much more clarity than before writing this all down. It’s clear if money and time weren’t an issue (when is that ever the case?), that Argentina would be the top choice. 

However, I can tell I’m really not keen to come back to Mexico (though it’s the easiest/cheapest option and there are restaurants I’d still like to eat in CDMX; also the weather will be best here). 

Also, I can tell that while the two restaurants in Lima are appealing, if I’m going to go all the way to South America, I might as well go to my top choice. 

Something to dwell about over the weekend and coming weeks. I’m confident flight and Airbnb prices will end up making my decision for me. 

What’s in my tummy: Pujol

It’s been a week since I wrote about wanting to eat less high-end/fine dining food and more tacos. I’m now following that up with having just eaten at Pujol last Friday–if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans. 

While I originally didn’t want to go back to Pujol, Yunji had never been, our friends also wanted to go, and we were able to get a reservation for the four of us to go together.

It ended up being incredible. While I was bummed that the format changed a bit (you used to have a choice of 4 options per course), I think the food was actually better. It makes sense though: if a kitchen can reduce the number of items they cook fourfold, the dishes should improve. 

The food was superb and the service was pretty darn good. The cocktails–though much pricier–were fantastic. I loved their riff on an agave negroni, but Patrick’s tequila martini stole the show. I finally got to try Casa Dragones and the vermouth was sublime–it still somehow tasted like a martini.

I, now, recommend everyone should go to Pujol at least once. After our yummy meal, I quickly checked to see if there was any way I could grab a reservation for their taco omakase, but no such luck. 

What I’m watching: Squid Game, duh

I first saw the images/artwork for Squid Game a few weeks ago while we were still in San Miguel de Allende. I thought/knew it was a Korean show, but I believed it to be a fun, cute gameshow. 

That was very far off. Squid Game is a show about folks who have run up tremendous debts who get invited to a life or death game where you play children’s games to “win”. The winner(s) get to win a ton of money and theoretically pay off their exorbitant debts and then some. 

While the first episode(s) really drew me in, it fell flat in the middle and I didn’t love the ending. There will definitely be a season 2.

Verdict: must watch so you know what the heck people are talking about

What I’m reading: Win

After Yunji read a book I borrowed from the library and raved about it, I knew I’d have to follow suit. Within the first few pages, I wanted to stop reading. The main character, Win for short, was a massive, rich douchebag.

I had to ask Yunji 2-3 times if she was sure I’d like it. She assured me I would. I am about 40% of the way through the book and am pretty drawn in at this point.

While Win is a douche, he is very smart and clever. I don’t want to give away too much, but basically there’s a murder and an item belonging to Win–which he hasn’t seen in decades–brings him into the fold. He then secretly assists the FBI in helping find the murderer as well as trying to uncover how these people tie in with his family. 

Verdict: if you enjoy mystery and ultrarich protagonists, you should definitely read this! 

What’s up this weekend? 

This weekend, Mayyen and Sheila are visiting from LA (and SF). I’m not too sure of our plans, but I think Saturday Yunji is finally getting her wish and we will be visiting Xochimilco Canals.

This is our last weekend in Mexico City, so I want to make sure to eat at as many remaining restaurants on my list as we can. 

Coming soon…

This past Wednesday I posted my third reader case / how far from FIRE are you analysis.

Next week, I’m not too sure what I’ll be writing, but as of now, I’ll be continuing with European long term visas by discussing Spain.

On the video front, last night I posted our second video of Marissa visiting us in Queretaro. We had an excellent smoked meat brunch and then went back to Cerveceria Hercules for more beers:  

This Saturday, I’ll be posting part of our tour of the Centro Historico neighborhood in Mexico City. 

Have a great weekend and see you next week!