I traveled to Mexico City last month for business. I went with some trepidation since for years Mexico City didn’t get a lot of positive press. For a while Mexico City was known as an overcrowded and polluted city. I assure you those days are long gone. The Mexico City I saw was a vibrant and energized city with many 5-star hotels, terrific restaurants and new construction almost everywhere. It had a pulse much like New York, with just 600,000 more people. When I arrived in Mexico City, I learned it was just prior to the Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) holiday, a big deal in Mexico City. I was first introduced to the Day of the Dead custom when my turn-down service at my hotel, Las Alcobas, left a chocolate treat on my bed, with a card describing Día de los Muertos. I thought it was a nice touch introducing visitors like me to local customs. I found the Mexican people I encountered to be some of the most accommodating people I have met. They went out of their way to help you get to where you wanted and/or needed to be. While in Mexico City, I admired some unusual brightly colored creatures called alebrijes, Oaxacan-Mexican folk art sculptures of fantastical creatures. I asked at the front desk where I could purchase alebrijes to take home. A bellman knew of a store nearby; he offered to go to the store to see what time the store closed. Since it was late in the day, the bellman asked they keep the store open while he brought me back to the store. They stayed open so I could purchase alebrijes for my wife, showing me how terrific Mexican hospitality is. — Mike Donahue, interim sales manager