With the advent of mind-blowing technology comes the advent of globalization. As a result it has become much easier to learn about and discover other countries and cultures. But no matter how cool your new iPhone is, nothing quite compares to the power of the written word to transport you to a new world. In Down and Delirious in Mexico City (Simon and Schuster; 273 pages; $16.00), Daniel Hernandez takes on the largest city in the Western hemisphere for an unsuspecting audience. To the insulated America, Mexico seems light-years away. This was true for Hernandez when he first arrived in 2002. But as Trinity’s own Francisco Goldman says, “The reader witnesses Hernandez’s transformation…from down-and-delirious gringo outsider into totally down-and-delirious chilango.” Through his instincts, passion, and earnest nature, Hernandez reveals an incredibly complex and chaotic city – an “Aztec Metropolis.” Hernandez chronicles the rituals, drug-powered parties, and intoxicating slums of a misunderstood Mexico with a refreshing poetic simplicity.

Perhaps the most fascinating insights are those of the “urban tribes” that control the youth subculture of Mexico. They govern the backstreets of the city, responsible for the balance of social stratification. While in Mexico, Hernandez witnesses a riot against the “emo” tribe. Like a seasoned anthropologist, he delves deep into the workings of these bandas to find a source for the attacks. “Emos are new,” he finds, “and anything new is a potential threat to…the equilibrium of the sub cultural landscape in Mexico.” Hernandez discovers the hidden yet indelible contradictions that retain Mexico, deciphering them for an American culture that might not immediately understand.

In every which way, Mexico City exists as a place that cannot be understood unless experienced. Hernandez writes with such ease that one comes very close to living not just vicariously through his text, but being turned inside out as well. “Backwards when it should be forward, upside down when it wishes to be right side up,” he writes, “It is a city in perpetual delirium.” There’s not an app to for that.