Day 10 – 11/4/2019 – On the Road Again

This morning we packed up and said good-by to Kim and the boys. We were sorry to leave them. They had planned on spending the day with us but Spencer has come down with a pretty significant throat bug so they decided to turn us loose on our own (in the capable hands of Mr. Nicolas (our driver) and Ramon (our tour guide).

The next order of business was the 2 hour drive to Teotihuacan, a major site in the classical period of Mexican history (100 BC – 700 AD).

Along the way we were impressed by the change in vegetation as we passed thru several climate zones. Here we are passing a cactus farm.

Arriving at Teo we met our guide Ramon. Here he is lecturing about water issues in Mexico City. No, that’s not part of the tour but Cheryl asked a question and he was glad to share.

At its height Teoihuacan was the 4th largest city in the world but by the time the Spaniards arrived in the 16th century it had been abandoned. Archaeology continues on the site and at this point there are several large pyramids that attract hordes of visitors.

The largest pyramid is the so called Temple of the Sun

This is Cheryl and me looking fresh and eager before we started to climb.

Along the way we saw an example of the stucco that originally covered the whole pyramid

We also saw stones sticking up at intervals. There are two theories for this. One is that they were placed to stabilize the stucco. However they would have been taller than the depth of the covering so the second theory is that they also served to make the pyramid look more like the mountain it was imitating.

Finally we noted that in some places the mortar is set with small stones. This indicates areas of reconstruction. So if there are no small stones in the mortar the section is original. If the stones are present it’s not.

Enough information, it’s time to climb. There are five separate sections of stairs. They vary in width of steps, height of risers, steepness of attack, and length of run.

Sometimes climbing is a hand-over-hand venture.

Sometimes the steps are so short you attack them sideways.

Did I mention there were hordes of people?

Cheryl has one foot on the very highest point.

Then it was Time to go down. Arriving at the base we walked for a ways along “the way of the dead” – the main north-south road of the city.

We walked past the ruins of several houses and stopped to view one section of original wall that was covered for several hundred years.

It gives an example of the type of decoration that was used.

We also stopped to look at a reconstruction of a section of one of the houses.

Here again we see original wall decoration

Like houses in warmer climates in other parts of the world the structure was rooms around a central courtyard. Look closely at the columns and you can see carvings of butterflies and birds.

A home like this would have been used by an extended family. “Out back” we saw the foundations and partial walls of several more courtyards and their associated rooms.

At this point Cheryl And I decided to hyjack the itinerary and skip the climb up the Temple of the Moon. This smaller pyramid is still being heavily excavated and really its most striking feature is the way it so obviously mimics the shield volcano behind it.

Instead we asked to go directly to the “Pyramid of the Feathered Serpents”

Skip this paragraph if you don’t want an ancient history lesson. There were four main clans at Teo. One of them, the clan of the serpents built a magnificent pyramid complex (currently the third largest on the site). Sometime later something happened. The Serpent clan people show up farther to the south – apparently having been exiled from the main city. Subsequently another pyramid was built over top of the serpent pyramid – probably an attempt to erase their memory. Work has only recently been started to uncover and reconstruct the Serpent structure.

Here you an see rows with alligators alternating with god characters on top of rows of serpents alternating with god characters. Wednesday we will be at the anthropology museum in Mexico City. They have an extensive reconstruction of this pyramid. I’ll post a photo of that so you can get the whole picture.

For both of us this pyramid was the high point of the morning.

Then we went to lunch.

Following lunch we continued our trek into Mexico City, stopping first at the Basilica of the Virgin of Guadalupe. This is a large complex with multiple churches and is the major pilgrimage site for all of Mexico if not all of Central America. Ramon filled us in on the history of the virgin’s contact with a recently converted native and his attempts to get the attention of the local bishop.

This is the “old basilica” like so much of Mexico City, built on an old lake bed, the building is sinking – especially on the right in this picture.

This is a view of the chapel built on the hilltop where the young man encountered the virgin.

This is the inside of the “new basilica.” It’s a magnificent structure with the back of the sanctuary open to the plaza beyond.

The most important relic is the image of the virgin that miraculously appeared on the cloak of the young man – and convinced the bishop to take him seriously.

This monument was built by a group of sailors who, caught in a storm, prayed to the virgin that if they survived they would walk to her church. They carried pieces of their wrecked ship (they’re entombed inside) and built this monument).

The virgin greeting native converts. The waterfall on the left is a nice touch.

Archangels Gabriel and Uriel (along with Michael and Raphael) guarding the virgin’s chapel.

Rooflines of the old and new basilicas (with the city in the haze beyond.)

Following our tour of the site we headed to our hotel, said good-by to Ramon and Mr. Nicolas, checked in, wandered across the street to the mall where we picked up or ballet tickets from the ticketmaster shop, had a forgettable dinner, and returned to our room to work on the blog, read, and prepare for the morrow.

Tomorrow we tour Mexico City.

till then,

Traveling Light

Day 10 – 11/4/2019 – On the Road Again

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