Mexico City
Trip Start
Nov 29, 2007
1
103
115
Trip End
Jun 24, 2008
Mexico City,
Central Mexico and Gulf Coast,
Mexico
Thursday, May 15, 2008
I really do not feel like writing my blog right now, things are getting on top of me a bit, so I am going to copy Epi´s blog and paste it!!!
Epi -
We arrived to the city that boasts the 2nd or 3rd highest population in the world...depending on whom you ask. The city is definitely packed with people, over 24 million to be exact, and that is only in Mexico City itself, not in the surrounding areas that are "technically" considered part of the city. So yes, it is large. The longest road Insurgentes cuts the city in half and stretches for about 50km...almost 30 miles!!!! When we learned this little fact, it was kind of hard to comprehend, but after driving around in the tour bus we were in for about 30 minutes, and not in cirlces, just to get to one hotel, it became a little easier to grasp. The people here have been very kind and very helpful when we have needed assistance. It is a city that always seems to be moving and ALWAYS seems to be crowded, but there is soooo much to see.
Our first day was spent checking in and then heading off to the Museo de Antropologico which is definitely worth a visit if you ever have the chance. It is huge and should not be rushed, but since we had arrived so late, we only had about two hours to see a place that could be explored for so much more time than we took. Luckily, we were going specifically for a few exhibits (those focusing on the Mayan & Aztec-also known as Mexica cultures)and were glad that we did. We learned a lot and were very impressed with the layout of the place as well as the condition of so many of the artifacts...well, I guess it is a museum, huh? Anyway, the place was phenomenal and even had places outside that they had set up to make you feel as if you were walking among these ancient ruins in the forests and jungles where they were found. The only thing I did not like was that it costs an additional $35 pesos to bring in your camera. Now, I know it is only US$3.50, but when you are on a tight budget, you don`t want to admission prices for your friendly little camera as well as for yourself. So with that said, we didn`t get any pictures, so you will have to visit for yourself...and if you do, get some pics and email them to me!!!
The second day was actually one of the main reasons we came to Mexico City in the first place...the Pyramids of Teotihuacan. Actually, we learned that these were not pyramids, but rather temples as they were built with steps and the priests and leaders of the city. We were given this information from our tour guide, although the wikipedia website calls them pyramids. So, the entire complex was quite impressive and very large. We were able to climb to the top of the Pyramid/Temple of the Sun (3rd largest in the world) and almost to the top of the Pyramid/Temple of the Moon. Both were quite high and offered great views of the entire complex as well as the surrounding land. It was a great day of learning about the culture, the people and the ways of life during that period of time.
This is me again -
Before heading to the pyramids we stopped at the holiest shrine in Mexcio - Guadalupe where the cloak of Juan Diego hangs in a huge church, built especially in his memory - who is Juan Diego I hear you say? Well, the virgin Mary appeared to Juan Diego (cant remeber when, think it was 1500`s). He went straight to the Bishop to tell him, but the Bishop did not believe Juan (who would really?). Juan was very upset by this, but went about his daily chores. Then, sometime later on his way to mass, the Virgin Mary appeared to him again. Juan was an intelligent man and asked Mary to give him something so that he could show the Bishop he was tellnig the truth. Mary told Juan to go up the hill to a particular place where he would find flowers. He went to the place and found the flowers and picked them and wrapped them in his cloak to show the Bishop. When he arrived and told the Bishop he opened his cloak to show him the beautiful flowers and they have left an image on his cloak - the image of the Virgin Mary. This cloak still hangs in the church for all to see and millions of people go there every year to see it. Pope John Paul II went to Mexico 5 times and visited this holy place. It is quite amazing.
We also learnt more about piņatas on the way to the pyramids. They were in fact invented in a convent just outside of Mexico City, which we passsed. The Monks made the pinatas as a respresentation of the devil. They filled them with sweets, fruits or other sweet things and then the idea was to smash the devil until it broke. On smashing the piņata they believed that God would bring them food and look over them. The piņatas are traditionaly used here at Christmas as a symbol of smashing the devil and asking God to bring them food, but as I alreayd told you they are used at any time of the year elsewhere and mainly at kids parties!
