Mexico City Tourist Traps

Long distance phone calls from Mexico City to the USA or to Europe cost an arm and a leg, especially if calling from a hotel. If you don't want to make Telmex any richer, you need to find an alternative.

I suggest trying out Kallback, the original call-back service. Their rates oscillate between US$0.21 and US$0.88 per minute from Mexico to the USA. This is significantly cheaper than Telmex.

The problem with call back services in general is that they are no good if you stay in a hotel and don't have a direct phone line. In this case, your options are quite limited. Getting an international calling card from AT&T, MCI or your local telecom company might be the only choice.

If you get shaken down by the traffic cops, they will offer to write you a ticket that you have to pay tomorrow at the police station. Or, you can pay off the policeman on the spot. Generally, they shake down the locals for 100 pesos, but gouge the gringos for 500 - 800 pesos. The best tactic to use is to say that you don't have enough cash and will just take the ticket and pay at the station tomorrow. The policeman obviously wants you to pay him, not the government, so will often reduce the amount he is asking so he can get some money from you. This can all take quite a while and he may call other officers to help him persuade you, so you may just want to pay him off, but if you feel like trying to bargain your way out of it, that's the scoop. Good luck