I was in Mexico City on assignment with Swarovski and luckily was able to add 2 free days to kick it and explore the city. 2 Days really isn't enough time to get a good feel for Mexico City or see enough of it but I tried to do as much as I can.

It's a really big city that is very populated and busy. Traffic is hell, specially if there is something going on in town, we were there during the Mexican Grad Prix, shitshow! Budget more time than less getting places, it takes forever. I was told not to hail a cab off the street as they will try to rip you off. They have Uber there, which was cheap and super convenient. Use that. Or goto a hotel lobby or designated taxi stand to get cabs. 

It probably one of the safer places in Mexico. I didn't feel threatened or unsafe anywhere we went no matter what time of day it was. The city is alive and lit till late - we did a lot of walking around at night and felt fine. But then again we really did stay in the main areas, didn't really venture too deep into the neighborhoods. 

Oh, and everything is pretty cheap.

I know its not much but here are some places I was able to check out and enjoyed : 

FOOD

• Tacotento : There are a few of these around town and had the best tacos I've had in a long time. The spot had a very local authentic vibe to it and was super cheap. Prolly not the best place for a full meal but a great spot for a quick taco. 
• Tostadas Coyoacan : Tucked away in the middle of a local bazar near the Frida Kahlo Museum this spot had all sorts of meat and toppings for tostadas on display for you to chose from. Turned out to be the best tostada I've ever had. Def make the trek out here, hit up the museum and then come here for food. Also, I had some of the most bomb elote en vaso at this bazar, def start with that. 
• Pujol : This is racked as one of the top 10 best restaurants in the world. Everyone I asked for recs told me to check it out. It was about $100 per person for a 6 course meal, which was very reasonable considering the food, ambiance and experience was pretty on point. 

SIGHTS AND MUSEUMS

• Museo Nacional de Antropología : There are so many museums in Mexico City, I'd say an overwhelming amount for someone who enjoys checking out museums while traveling. The Anthropology Museum was one of my favorites. All the early civilization exhibits are a bit boring but it gets pretty lit in the Aztec and Mayan sections. Make sure to check out the Stone of the Sun and the outdoor Mayan area. And the building is incredibly beautiful. 
• Museo de Arte Moderno : Not super impressive but worth a stop only because its right across the street from the Anthropology Museum and is $2 to get in. 
• Sumaya : Part of my shoot was in this building and it had to have been the most beautifully deigned building I've ever shot. Really incredible interior and exterior. 
• Museo Frida Kahlo : This is in the house Frida was born and died in. It really charming and colorful with most of the rooms still decorated and intact from when Diego Rivera and Frida lived there. Worth a stop.  
• Teotihuacan : The site of the Aztec pyramids. This is a must! It was about an hour and a half out of town but was a really amazing experience to see and climb the Pyramid of the Sun and Moon. We went early when it first opened (8am) and we were the only ones there for a while. Don't come back from Mexico City without a visit.

Mexico City Foursquare list with more reviews, photos and tips. 

I really have to get better about updating this blog. Truth is I don't really know if anyone if reading this or not. There no feedback loop, no 'like' button for you to hit letting me know that I'm not just speaking to an empty room. Either way, empty room or not, I have to keep telling the story. So once again I promise to make this a regular thing. Here we go...

I'm currently in Mexico City on an assignment for Swarovski. They have a pretty impressive installation at Art Basel Miami in December and the architect of that installation, Fernando Romero, is based in Mexico City. We are down here to document his process to tie into the final video that will tell the story of this piece. That is our primary purpose for being down here but my schedule allowed me to tack on a few days for me to just kick it and explore Mexico City. 

I've never been here before...actually, I did come to Acapulco for spring break in college but I feel like that doesn't count. Even if it did Mexico City is quite different, it's a really big, diverse, very populated city that has a lot going on. I intend to take full advantage of my free time here and check out as much of the city as I can but for now we got off the plane and straight to the taco spot. I am very committed to eating at the hole in the wall, local spot that provides the most authentic experience. So any time I'm in a new city the first thing I do is ask the cab driver where he loves to eat and tell him to just take me there. I've have yet to have a bad first meal. 

More to come, stay tuned.

I'm really excited about the release of this project. There really is no deep conceptual meaning behind this hat, I just really like the way these two words played with each other. PYAAR is the hindi word for love and YAAR is the urdu word for friendship. PYAAR is the most basic emotion and this project is about spreading PYAAR to your lovers and friends. #spreadPyaar

You can purchase that hats from my webshop. Cheers.

-A

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If you follow me on social media you already know this but I designed a new hat called 'Lovers & Friends'. It says the word PYAAR on it which is the hindi/sanskrit/urdu word for Love. Within the word PYAAR I've highlighted YAAR, which is an urdu term for Friend. There really is no deep explanation for this project, I just liked the way these two words played with each other. Simply put, this project is about spreading love and friendship within the brown community. 

This will be released on Friday October 16th. 

#spreadPyaar

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In today's episode, we split the episode between two topics. The first half of the episode looks at the tempo of our everyday lives, and how keeping up with news, trends, and music is becoming, essentially, a full-time job. Also, alcohol is haram, right? What about all y'all weed smokers?

Stay tuned for an update on Ali's dating corner.
Outro track // Future - Fuck Up Some Commas

Public School has got to be one of my favorite brands that show at NYFW. When I took this project on I was particularly excited to get in there and create this video. However, not all shows are the same and I did not have full access backstage or on the runway. Public School kept it pretty tight only allowing their in house photographers to shoot first looks backstage. It was kind of a security shit show but I managed to get a few shots backstage and then run to the runway and squeeze in between rows somewhere along the runway. Not the best spot in the house but I did what I could. 

Shot for NYFW, re-edited to Drake because I was bored and felt like it. 

I've always liked Naeem Khan's work but this collection was really impressive. I love the way he played with color and texture. This was definitely one of my favorite shows. 

Jeremy Scott of always fun to watch. His designs are fresh, completely out of the norm and always surprising. His show at NYFW was probably one of my favorite, so many great models decked out in dope hair and make up. Check it. 

Shot by Atif Ateeq and edited by Amna Ateeq for NYFW. 

In this episode we invite the talented musical artist Anik Khan to the show, but he's not here to talk about hip hop. He's here to talk about everything important in his upbringing that led him to who he has become today, and why hip hop was a necessary decision afterwards. We talk about Anik's purpose more than just his story. Also, anime.

Outro // Anik Khan - Mantra