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Published: January 12th 2014
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In the valley of the sun
I write this on our last night in Mexico City and our penultimate night in Mexico. I don’t even feel like we have scratched the surface, Mexico and its people are incredible. We are both agreed we would gladly return.
Today we visited Teoithuacan (teh-oh-tee-wah-kahn) which is about a 45 minutes bus ride out of the city. We chose to make our own way there by public bus and in doing so saved nearly 700 pesos. (Most arranged tours cost about 500 pesos per person) It took 20 minutes or so to get to the bus terminal via the metro but after this everything was very straightforward and needless to say much cheaper. The metro in Mexico City is very efficient with most trains running every three minutes or so and on the whole the trains are of a decent standard. Our journey involved a few connections and one I just want to mention was at La Raza station because of the great use of space (excuse the pun – you’ll see). The distance between platforms at this station is quite far but rather than drab tiled walls and advertising hoardings commuters are
treated to exhibitions of photographs and a fluorescent illustration of the solar system which I think most would agree is far more interesting. Anyway enough about the metro, I’m starting to sound like a train geek! (I’m not by the way. Not that there’s anything wrong with being a train geek)
We arrived at Teotihuacan at about 10am, having managed to avoid the crowds we sauntered through the turn styles and entered the ruins. The sky was clear and the sun was beating down which was quite appropriate as the main pyramid at these ruins is dedicated to the Sun.
The city of Teotihuacan is vast and was home to the Teotihuacan civilization that lived in the Mexican plateau as early as the first century AD until about 750 AD; they lived alongside the Mayans and evidence suggests the two civilizations traded with one another. Throughout the site are many signs describing various structures and the different areas of the city and fortunately for us most were in English (as well as Spanish); I might add I also got a lot of information about Teotihuacan from the impressive Museum of Anthropology we visited on Wednesday. However I won’t
bore you with too many historical facts but needless to say Teotihuacan is fascinating as it is impressive.
The city is the jewel in the crown of the Teotihuacan, at its height it was home to over 25,000 people and it is said that when the Aztecs first discovered it they could not believe that such an awe inspiring metropolis was built with human hands. Perhaps most impressive for the Aztecs was the Piramide del Sol, standing at 70 metres with 248 Steps to its summit the Piramide del Sol is the World’s third largest pyramid (Cholula, also in Mexico is first and Egypt’s Cheops is 2
nd – according to Lonely Planet)
The Pyramid was built with various volcanic rocks and is solid inside except for a cave which was recently excavated. Throughout Mesaomerica caves are symbolic of the underworld and a place where one could communicate with the gods. It is thought that the Teotihuacan believed it was from this cave that the Universe originated hence the reason for building the colossal Pyramid. It is also West-facing and like Stone-Henge in the UK attracts pagans and sun-worshippers alike, particularly during equinox. I imagine watching the sun climb
up behind the pyramid must be quite stunning.
Around the site are dozens of other Pyramids all of varying degrees of decay. It is notable that several appear to have been crudely repaired recently and perhaps what is more curious is that tourists can climb over nearly all of the them. The other two Pyramids of note are the Piramide de la Luna (Pyramid of the moon) which is adjacent to the Sun pyramid and the Templo de Quetzalcoatl (Temple of the feathered serpent) which according to a guide I overheard was the location for a famous photo of Jim Morrison from the Doors.
Teotihuacan is a real spectacle and was just as impressive if not more so than Palenque. Seeing the panorama from atop the piramide del Sol was awesome but I think walking down the Calzode de los Muertos (avenue of the dead) and climbing the Piramide de la Luna was our highlight as from here you can see the Piramide del sol in contrast with the rest of the city.
I don’t think a trip to Mexico City would be complete without a visit to Teotihuacan.
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