What you should know about buses in Querétaro

When you first get here having to figure out a bus route is going to be more difficult than flying to Mexico. Back in Switzerland I was used to perfectly timed buses, tables with routes and bus stops and screens that project the remaining waiting time until the bus or tram arrival. Well, in Querétaro none of this exists; waiting at the bus stop you won’t find any tables showing you the bus routes. If you want to take the bus and arrive at the desired arrival point you will have to prepare and study the routes first.

With the following tips you will make your way through Querétaro faster than you’ll know it.

• There are fixed routes but the bus stops are not 100% fixed or named. if they see someone along the route stopping the bus, they will pick the person up, even if they are not waiting at a bus stop. You can’t find the names of the bus stops online, you will have to orientate yourself according to Colonias and learn the names of places little by little by asking, chatting and exploring. 

• On the window of the buses the main stops that it passes by are listed i.e. the big plazas and streets. 

• I would not just stand on the side of the rode hoping that the bus will stop for me, because very often they don’t, even if you are stading at the bus stop. To stop the bus you need to lift up your arm and signal clearly to the driver that you need to get on the bus. It’s happened a few times that I stood at the bus stop pulling out my arm and the bus just kept driving. Coversely, I’ve also stopped a bus once or twice from the road where there wasn’t an actual stop. But as a rule of thumb, always wait at the bus stop and if you need to be somewhere take 2 buses earlier. 

• Most buses come every 10 minutes. 

• QRutas: On that webpage or, if you have an android, with the app, you can choose your point of origin and your point of arrival and the system will generate the nearest stations and all buses that pass the route that you need. You can see the whole route of the bus and how much time it will take. 

• Sometimes you’ll see people counting the time between bus routes called checadores. If the bus drivers are running late they tell them to hurry up. Checadores stand at the bus stops and know all the bus routes and numbers, so you can ask them if you need to know which bus to take to get to a certain place.

Places to go in Querétaro

 Filulas Juz en Reto Rock  

Queretaro has a lot of cool local bands and bars with ive music.

Last Thursday the 28^th of May I went to Reto Rock a club situated on the street Universidad. The band I listened to was called Filulas Juz, a Jazz band with rock and fusion elements. The band was really great, playing material off of their first album “Astralopithecus”. You can find the album on itunes or have a listen on youtube. The concert lasted for about an hour and the club had arranged great stage lights. Another concert followed, but unfirtunately I wasn’t able to stay for the second one.

The club is a big and open place with low or high tables and chairs as well as sofa sections that are more comfortable. There are also two pool tables. Every Friday a band called Venus plays at around 11 pm Spanish songs by different groups. Every Saturday another group called Karma covers English songs from different rock bands. Spanish and English rock are the bar’s main theme. The entrance for the concerts on Thursday cost 50 pesos and Fridays and Saturdays the entrance cover varies from 20-30 pesos. In summary, Reto Rock is worth checking out for its atmosphere and rock music. You should also folow Filulas Juz on social media and check out their album if you are into Jazz. They are a real breath of fresh air between all the electronic, pop and indie that is currently ruling my music world. 

How to stay hydrated in dusty dry Querétaro

I love Querétaro and I love the sun, but the semi-desertic climate really dries out my eyes as well as the rest of the body. Here are some tips on how you can stay hydrated all day long for your whole body.

Body:

Drink twice the amount of water that you drank in your hometown. If 1 liter a day felt like enough to keep me hydrated in Europe, I need at least 2 liters here in Querétaro.

Drink cucumber juice: provided I have cucumbers in my fridge, every morning I blend half a cucumber with half a glass of water and maybe some chia seeds. Cucumber consists of 96% water and contains lots vitamins and minerals.

If some days you feel like you are sweating a great deal walking outside or working out, you can buy alkaline water that has a PH of 9.5. It is going to give you that extra hydration that you need.

Eyes:

If you have dry eyes, use some hydrating eye drops. You can get eye drops for 30 pesos in the pharmacy. Be careful though, there are some patented ones that will cost you 10x more; I made the mistake and bought an expensive bottle, because my ophthalmologist recommended them to me, but the generic ones work just as well.

Face:

For my face, I use Aloe Vera. Aloe Vera is being used in plenty of cosmetics, because of its great hydrating and healing properties, but as this plant is endemic to Querétaro I don’t need to spend a lot of money on a hydrating cream (with chemicals that I might not want to put on my face). Just buy a pant, cut of a little piece and spread the juice all over your face. You can feel the cooling effect right away. In addition, if you have a sunburn it works miracles to take away

the inflammation.