Teotihuacan

---

Carlos and I took a long weekend trip with his Uncle Richard and Aunt Claudia. Our first stop was to Teotihuacan, the archaeological zone 50 km outside of Mexico City.

We started our trip from Chilpancingo and drove through Mexico City before arriving in Teotihuacan. People that live in Mexico City are called Chilango(s) or Chilanga(s). Anytime you have to drive near, through or around Mexico, as it is called by the Mexicans, one must be prepared for an adventure. It can take hours to drive near, through or around Mexico. We were lucky this time as we started our trek early in the morning. In addition to the traffic, one has to be very cautious of the drivers in Mexico because there are no rules while driving. We escaped two potential accidents while through through Mexico to Teotihuacan.

We safely arrived well before the crowds, which is a good thing while trying to trek the pyramids. Piramide del Sol/Pyramid of the Sun is the third- largest pyramid in the world, surpassed in size only by Egypt's Cheops and the Pyramid of Cholula, outside of Puebla, Mexico. We spent the morning trekking both, Piramide del Sol/Pyramid of the Sun and Piramide de la Luna/Pyramid of the Moon.

The base of Piramide del Sol/Pyramid of the Sun of is 222m long on each side and it's now just over 70 m high. The pyramid was cobbled together around AD100, from three millions tons of stone, without the use of metal tools, pack animals or the wheel. After 248 steps later we reached the summit and the view from the top of the pyramid was breathtaking. The Aztec believed that the structure was dedicated to the sun god and was validated in 1971, when archaeologists uncovered a 100m-long underground tunnel leading from the the west of the pyramid to a cave directly beneath its center.

Piramide de la Luna/Pyramid of the Moon, completed around AD 300, is more gracefully proportioned. The summit is nearly the same height because it is built on higher ground. A portion of the pyramid was off limits, but the view was still incredible as our eyes could only focus on the impressive Piramide del Sol/Pyramid of the Sun and the mountains at its backdrop.

We continued our stroll though what is left of this ancient city, covering more that 20 sq. km. We ended our trek in the Museo del Sitio/ Site Museum, which displays an impressive large-scale model of the city. From an area in the museum the real Piramide del Sol/Pyramid of the Sun can be viewed through a wall-size window.

It was suggested that we eat at the Restaurant La Gruta prior to exiting. This is a gourmet Mexican restaurant situated in a huge and cool cavern. The photos only display a portion of its unique beauty. A very popular item on the menu in Mexican are Molcajetes filled with all different meats and vegetables almost like fajitas in a large molcajete. For those that do not know, a molcajete is a stone almost bowl like with four short legs. Oh, and be careful...they are HOT!!! We ordered one of these along with traditional Tortilla soup, sopes with are also called gorditas in other regions and tacos, of course. We thoroughly enjoyed a great meal along with Victoria, the beer of choice in Mexico.

---