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Published: April 8th 2006
Mexico City
This is the flag that flies above the National Palace.Mexico City has the reputation of being one of the most dangerous cities in the world. It is also known as one of the largest and most polluted cities in the Americas. I was told by many Mexicans who have lived there that it was an unfriendly city where everyone just rushed about, not noticing the things going on around them, and I was told by many travelers that Mexico City was a jewel set in the crown of a golden country. All of these things were on my mind as I approached Mexico City on a night bus from Zihuatanejo and I wasn’t sure what I should think. I reached Mexico’s ‘Terminal Norte’ at four in the morning and, instead of sitting in the crowded terminal until the sun came up, I decided to go on a little adventure. I stored my bag at the baggage storage office and I purchased a ticket to Tula a small city about two hours north of Mexico City.
Tula was a pretty little town with a wonderful, fortress-like church and several parks and open spaces. As I walked through town I got the impression that the locals rarely saw tourists there and
Tula's Carvings
This is one of the jaguars that are carved in procession with other animals at the Tula sight. many of them gave me strange, but friendly looks. I was not there to see the modern town of Tula, however, but the Tula of antiquity that now sits in ruins on the top of a hill to the north of town. That Tula was once the capital of the mighty Toltec Empire, who’s influence can be seen through much of Central America and possibly as far north as the southern state of Tennessee in America. The site had two nice pyramids and two ball courts including Central Mexico’s largest. There were also several, now roofless, structures with a large number of columns and courtyards and many of the site’s impressive relief carvings were still present, many still showing strong hints of the original pigmentation. Despite the grandeur of all of the structures at Tula, what makes the place famous are the four gigantic ‘Atlantian’ Warriors that are standing guard on the smaller pyramid. The basalt warriors were once columns that supported the roof of what must have been a very impressive temple. I remember being amazed by the warriors when I first saw a picture of them in a textbook way back in middle school (the other picture from
Tula's Pyramids
The pyramids at tula are very basic, but still very cool. that same text book that was permanently etched into my mind was one of a piranha barring its teeth for the camera, so of course the Amazon will be part of my trip too!) They were much taller than I expected them to be and they were much more impressive to see in person, so I am glad that I that I made it up there! I was the first person through the gate that day and I pretty much had the place to myself for most of the morning, but by lunch time the tour buses had arrived and the peaceful setting I had enjoyed the ruins in was shattered, so I made my escape back to Mexico City.
Mexico City’s dangerous reputation was filling my mind with a plethora of scenes from big Hollywood movies that showed the city in a bad light, so when I got to the bus station I opted for the much more expensive taxi ride to the zocalo. The cab driver, which was an ‘authorized’ one, first told me that the hostel I wanted to go to didn’t exist. Next he told me that he didn’t know where the zocalo was and
Atlantean Warriors
I have loved these statues since I was a kid. They are on top of the smaller pyramid at Tula and they used to support the roof of a temple. finally he dropped me off on a corner and told me the hostel I was looking for was three blocks down the road. It was more like six blocks, but I finally found it - In hindsight it would have been more convenient to take the metro! I got a bed a the hostel and immediately started running into people I had met all over Mexico. The hostel ended up being a very social place and I had a lot of fun there in the evenings.
I spent my second day in the city strolling through the shady pathways beneath the ancient giants of Chapultepec Park. The park was an oasis of green in an otherwise urban landscape, its many fountains, lakes and sculptures added to the peaceful ambiance and the hilltop fortress that is Chapultepec Castle stood like a sentinel over its verdant domain. I was in the park with a group from the hostel and our main reason for being there was not the quiet, shady paths, as wonderful as they were, but the Fort Knox of Mexico’s anthropological identity, the world famous Anthropology Museum. The museum had a reputation of being one of the best in
Me and the Atlantean Warriors
Just to give you a since of scale. The carvings are huge! the world, on par with the Cairo Museum and what was the Baghdad Museum and it was another dream come true for me - When I was young I spent a lot of my time studying the ancient cultures of Mesoamerica and most of my favorite artifacts call the Anthropology Museum home. Our tour guide from the hostel was very knowledgeable. He started us off in the Teotihuacán sala (hall), which was one of the more important cultures in the Mexico City area, and then proceeded through the Mayan and Olmec salas and finally through the Aztec sala. He pointed out the most important artifacts, from King Pacal’s jade funerary mask and giant Olmec heads to the most famous of the museum’s artifacts, the Aztec Calender. We walked around the museum for nearly four hours before the tour ended in the Aztec sala. We had the choice of going back to the hostel with the guide or staying at the museum longer on our own - I, of course, opted to stay longer and I returned to the Mayan sala, which is the culture that most interests me. I spent another two hours working my way through all of the
Chapultepec Castle
My time in Chapultepec Park was great. It is the largest city park in Latin America. salas again, including a few that we didn’t see on the tour. Everywhere I looked I saw artifacts that I knew well from the pages of the National Geographic magazines that I have been reading since my fourth grade teacher introduced me to them in 1984. Towards the end of my time in the museum I started suffering from museum overdose and began moving quicker, only stopping when something truly magnificent presented itself. In the end I had gone through all of the ground floor salas, which contain most of the pre-Hispanic artifacts, and over half of the cultural exhibits on the second floor - It was a busy day! Back outside in the park I was still suffering a little from my preconceived image of Mexico City and as a result I didn’t linger in the park and only went where the crowds were on my way back to the hostel.
My third day in town brought about another adventure, one that I briefly mentioned in the last blog - A short journey to the suburbs of Mexico City and the largest (known) ancient city in Mexico, Teotihuacán. My adventure started with a bang - Rush hour on
The Golden Cow
The park was filled with various art including several strange cows. the Metro! 4.7 million people ride Mexico City’s metro system daily and at least half of them were on my train! I managed to get on the train with no problems, but we were packed so tightly that movement (like breathing in and out) was virtually impossible - We got to know our neighbors really well! The fun started when it came time for me to get off of the train, something seemingly easy to do! I managed to get through the door and on to the platform, but then I got caught in the riptide of boarding passengers and before I knew it I was back on the train! Realizing that if I didn’t move quickly I might be spending the rest of eternity trapped on the train, I put my politeness briefly aside, turned myself into a human bulldozer and forged a path through the oncoming wave of humanity. What I was doing seemed horribly rude to me at first, but I was told by several locals (including a few who had added their weight and pushing power to mine) that that was how it worked on the metro at rush hour! The rest of my journey to
Tortugas
These turtles liked to have their picture taken (they told me so). They live in the pond at the Anthropology Museum. Teotihuacán went much more smoothly and I walked through the gate at 8:30 in the morning. I virtually had the park to myself, so I decided to take advantage of the situation and I made my way straight for the Pyramid of the Moon (Luna) - There was already a group on the Pyramid of the Sun. I was immediately impressed by the massive site and its two mountain-sized pyramids, but it wasn’t until I put Luna’s last step behind me and turned around that I fully realized the spectacular nature of Teotihuacán! I was on top of the Pyramid of the Moon with a Japanese guy and two dogs and all four of us sat on the rough summit and stared in awe back down the ‘Avenue of the Dead’, which is the main road through the site, starting at the plaza of the Pyramid of the Moon and stretching all the way to the Citadel at the far end of the city - Several small pyramids and platforms lined the Avenue in seeming symmetry and the enormous summit of the Pyramid of the Sun obliterated most of the horizon on the east (left) side of the park. I
Aztec Art
It seems that all of the pictures I got are from the Aztec Sala where the museums most famous artifacts are. tried to see the city through ancient eyes, eyes that had never seen cities like New York or Mexico. I imagined for a moment that I was a Mayan merchant from one of their grand, but smaller cities to the south - It must have been amazing, maybe even a little scary to see the enormous stuccoed façades of the two mountainous pyramids rising out of the surrounding forest. My tour guide (the black dog from the Pyramid of the Moon) then showed me several nice murals in the Jaguar Palace and the impressively preserved sub-terranian façade of the Temple of the Plumed Conch Shells, but he deserted me when it came time for the formidable climb up the Pyramid of the Sun. I stepped on steep steps, tall steps, big steps and small steps before I made it to the top of the Pyramid of the Sun and with a growing group of groaning people I gazed at the grand vista surrounding us (sorry, I was thinking on a Dr. Seuse level when I wrote this!) As I mentioned in the last blog, I found a nice place on top of the pyramid and I sat there for a
Aztec Art (2)
It seems that all of the pictures I got are from the Aztec Sala where the museums most famous artifacts are. few hours writing and taking in the spectacular view, but my empty stomach started rumbling and I was forced to leave my perch on the summit of the worlds third largest pyramid and the giant groups of school kids keeping me company and I mounted an expedition to the ring of restaurants that surround the ruins. I had a wonderful meal of ‘Pollo con Mole’ and a refreshing lemonade, which is actually made with limes (in Mexico a lemon is what we call a lime in the USA and vise versa). After lunch I escaped the heat and the crowds for a while and toured the excellent ‘Museo de la Pintura Mural Teotihuacán’, which houses several well preserved sections of the murals found throughout the site, and then I went to the sight museum, which was also very good. My plans to re-climb both of the large pyramids were thwarted when, in one of the museums, I realized that I had missed one of the most important structures on site. I rushed from the museum, through the now desert-like landscape, all the way to the southern end of the site to the giant square structure called the Citadel, which is
Aztec Art (3)
When this one was found it was put on public display, but people started to sneak in and worship it so the Spanish officials hid it away again. believed to have served as the home for the ruling class at Teotihuacán. There were several small pyramids build in to the walls of the massive structure, but the structure that draws the most attention is the impressive and surprisingly well preserved façade of the Temple of Quetzalcóatl (the feathered serpent), with alternating carvings of the gods Quetzalcóatl and Tláloc, that was found by excavating a later pyramid that was built over it. The temple is currently going through a massive excavation/preservation and was off limits, but from an overlook on the adjacent structure of the later pyramid, in which the impressive façade was found, I was able to see the beautiful artistry in the carvings and watch the workers go about their tasks. I spent a half hour or so at the Citadel and then it was time to say good bye to the wonderful city of Teotihuacán and catch my bus back to Mexico City.
On my fourth day in town I decided that I should see the sights in Mexico City itself. My first stop was the Templo Mayor complex, the only remaining hint that the grand city that is now Mexico was once a powerful
Aztec Calander
Possibly the most famous artifact in the world. The calander is missing its nose because a man tried to shoot it once - The bullet bounced off and killed the man. island city that went by the name of Tenochtitlán. It’s not really all that remains of the once great Aztec capitol, but it is the only portion that has been excavated to any extent - The rest lies beneath the impressive historic center of Mexico City and would require the destruction of countless beautiful colonial buildings to see, which is what happened at the Templo Mayor site. From the plaza, the ruins didn’t look all that impressive, but thanks to the incessant sinking on the city back in Aztec times, which is still a problem today, several Templo Mayors were built, one over another. There was not much left of the last stage, which is the one that impressed Cortez’s men so much, but the earlier constructions were well preserved and mostly intact. As I toured the site I found myself getting mad at the Spanish colonial powers, not for their incessant cruelty, but for the destruction of Tenochtitlán, a city that many of the conquistadors described as the most beautiful city in the world. Of course, if the Spanish had not put their city there, Tenochtitlán still would not exist as it was - Unoccupied and left to natural
Pyramid of the Moon
Teotihuacán was a wonderful place filled with awe-inspiring structures. processes, it would, long ago, have fallen into ruin and sunk below the gentle waves of Lake Texcoco. As it stands now, the lake is gone and, with the exception of where the modern city’s utilities and subways pass through the ancient structures, Tenochtitlán’s earlier stages sit well preserved below the pavement of a colonial city center that is plagued with sinking problems itself and will likely go the way of its predecessor in the distant future, paving the way for more excavations, but that won’t likely happen in our lifetime! From Templo Mayor, I toured the National Palace and the Cathedral and then spent the rest of the day just walking around. To put a nice cap on the day of sight seeing, I had dinner at the House of Tiles, which is a beautiful colonial building that now houses a nice chain restaurant and a mural by Orozco - The place had a great atmosphere!
For my last day in Mexico City I went with a friend from the hostel to a small punk market called Chopo in a not-so-touristy part of town. It was not something that I would have searched out on my own, but
View from the Top
I shared this view down the Avenue of the Dead with a Japanese man and two dogs. we had a lot of fun and got to listen to some great music (and some really bad music) and we got to see some wonderful punk costumes that were so bizarre and outlandish that they ended up being a highlight of the day. We ate a wonderful lunch at a restaurant that likely never sees tourists and then we headed back to the hostel.
My views on Mexico City are now significantly changed. I spent five days and five nights in the city and I never had any uncomfortable situations arise. Like in any big city, the people do rush around a bit more than they should, but they never seemed to loose their friendly Mexican charm. The pollution in the city is definitely a problem that needs to be reckoned with - The twin volcanoes that used to be a symbol of the city have been blotted out by giant yellow clouds of toxicity and the resulting stench makes breathing difficult at times. Despite its problems, Mexico City was a true pleasure to travel in. The public transport was phenomenal, the food was great and the museums and sights were world class. The large police presence seems
Pyramid of the Sun
This is the third largest pyramid in the world and it was an impressive structure (and a fun climb). to have squelched the dangerous side of the city (in the tourist areas at least), so the worst that any traveler who is not out taking silly risks should have to deal with is petty theft, which is present in every tourist center in the world. I could have spent weeks exploring Mexico City’s treasures, but I will have to save that for another trip - The rainy season approaches and I would like to be through Honduras before it hits. I got one last look at the grandeur of Teotihuacán as I headed out of town to points unknown in the gulf coast state of Veracruz.
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good photos
typical views of the worlds's largest city. ! so much to experience see and do. no two people can describe mexico city exactly the same. good photos.