Day 8 - A Step Back in Time
Today we decided to explore the ancient city of Teotihuacan which was occupied between 100 AD and 700 BC before all the inhabitants deserted the city. It is believed that at one stage up to 80,000 people inhabited this ancient city. As this was in the time before Christianity, the Teotihuacan people worshipped the Gods of the Sun, Moon, Rain and Water. The site is made up of the following key areas of interest: Calzada des los Muertos (Causeway of the Dead); Templo de Quetzalcoatl (Home of Quetzalcoatl - the feathered serpent and Tlaloc - the rain God); Piramide del Sol (Pyramid of the Sun); Piramide de la Luna (Pyramid of the Moon); Palacio de Quetzalpapaloti (Palace of the Quetzal Butterfly) and Palacio de los Jaguares (Palace of the Jaguar). So far the archaeological digs have only uncovered what they believe to be 20% of the ancient city. Unfortunately finances and urban expansion inhibit the continuation of the discovery of the remainder of the city.
This was an amazing experience and took some stamina as it was at least 28 degrees Celcius with no shade and the total length of the Causeway of the Dead was approximately 3.5km long. In addition to this, the city is on a steady slope from North to South with the city divided by a multitude of rock retaining walls. All of these are deliberate as each of the retaining walls created clear residential areas all of which had their own areas for worship and city streets. As there were no vehicles during this period, the city streets were only wide enough for 1 - 2 people to walk through.
All along the Causeway of the Dead, varying residential areas had been excavated and you could see the original foundations and layouts for the various houses, the rooms and even the drainage system that carried water into the Causeway's aqueducts.
As we entered the site we were approached by 2 females who politely asked us if we spoke English. We then realised that we were all Australian and decided to share the cost of an English speaking guide. This was worth the $500 pesos ($50 AUD) as he was extremely informative and was able to tell us all about the history of the site.
After looking through the residential sites we then were only able to view the Palace of Quetzalpapaloti from the outside however were able to walk through the Palace of the Jaguars where all the original artwork still existed. It really puts things into perspective when you view art that is thousands of years old and the Australian culture is still forming and growing by the day with it's multiculturalism.
Our guide then left us and we were left with the challenge of climbing both the Pyramid of the Sun and the Moon. We started with the Pyramid of the Moon (the smaller one) and successfully made the climb. It certainly was not easy as the steps are extremely steep and all approximately 30 - 40cm in height so you had to take cautious, high steps. You can see from the photo's below how steep the climb was.
Having conquered the "moon" we then set off to climb the Pyramid of the Sun. Now this was a challenge. 244 steps in total all of which are on at least 30 - 40 cm high and you were climbing at least on a 60 degree angle. The additional challenge apart from the heat and the fact we had already walked a long time and climbed a previous pyramid was the altitude. Mexico is 7,500 feet above sea water so you do suffer from oxygen deprivation. Taking on this climb felt like running 10 x 100m races without a break. (sorry Dad, but certainly not for you). By the time we reached the top, the thighs and lungs were burning however the view from the top certainly was worth the distress. From the top you could see the outline of the excavated city and how vast it was.
The other thing that strikes you is the engineering genius that existed at that time. They used the lay of the land to design a flowing aqueduct system and all of the buildings were built perfectly straight and asymmetrical (even you would not be able to find a crooked wall Dad). It was also an extremely hierarchical society whereby the well off lived close to the Pyramids and the Causeway whereas the lower ranked citizens lived in the residential areas further away.
There are many theories as to why the Teotihuacan people left however the most common is that due to a long drought, famine set in and the people then lost faith on their Gods so dispersed to all ends of Mexico to begin new lives.
Although this is a must for anyone travelling to Mexico (if not these ruins then you need to visit at least of the many that still exist), the ruins are also full of hawkers who are keen to sell you everything from ancient rock artefacts to table cloths and silver jewellery. Patience is a must as the hawkers do not take heed of the first 3 No Gracias responses so continuing to walk on is the best approach.
The photo's below certainly do not do justice to the engineering ingenuity or the artistic talent of the Teotihuacan people however having been their and experienced the wonder that these ancient pyramids represent was certainly an experience that we will not forget for a long time.
This was an amazing experience and took some stamina as it was at least 28 degrees Celcius with no shade and the total length of the Causeway of the Dead was approximately 3.5km long. In addition to this, the city is on a steady slope from North to South with the city divided by a multitude of rock retaining walls. All of these are deliberate as each of the retaining walls created clear residential areas all of which had their own areas for worship and city streets. As there were no vehicles during this period, the city streets were only wide enough for 1 - 2 people to walk through.
All along the Causeway of the Dead, varying residential areas had been excavated and you could see the original foundations and layouts for the various houses, the rooms and even the drainage system that carried water into the Causeway's aqueducts.
As we entered the site we were approached by 2 females who politely asked us if we spoke English. We then realised that we were all Australian and decided to share the cost of an English speaking guide. This was worth the $500 pesos ($50 AUD) as he was extremely informative and was able to tell us all about the history of the site.
After looking through the residential sites we then were only able to view the Palace of Quetzalpapaloti from the outside however were able to walk through the Palace of the Jaguars where all the original artwork still existed. It really puts things into perspective when you view art that is thousands of years old and the Australian culture is still forming and growing by the day with it's multiculturalism.
Our guide then left us and we were left with the challenge of climbing both the Pyramid of the Sun and the Moon. We started with the Pyramid of the Moon (the smaller one) and successfully made the climb. It certainly was not easy as the steps are extremely steep and all approximately 30 - 40cm in height so you had to take cautious, high steps. You can see from the photo's below how steep the climb was.
Having conquered the "moon" we then set off to climb the Pyramid of the Sun. Now this was a challenge. 244 steps in total all of which are on at least 30 - 40 cm high and you were climbing at least on a 60 degree angle. The additional challenge apart from the heat and the fact we had already walked a long time and climbed a previous pyramid was the altitude. Mexico is 7,500 feet above sea water so you do suffer from oxygen deprivation. Taking on this climb felt like running 10 x 100m races without a break. (sorry Dad, but certainly not for you). By the time we reached the top, the thighs and lungs were burning however the view from the top certainly was worth the distress. From the top you could see the outline of the excavated city and how vast it was.
The other thing that strikes you is the engineering genius that existed at that time. They used the lay of the land to design a flowing aqueduct system and all of the buildings were built perfectly straight and asymmetrical (even you would not be able to find a crooked wall Dad). It was also an extremely hierarchical society whereby the well off lived close to the Pyramids and the Causeway whereas the lower ranked citizens lived in the residential areas further away.
There are many theories as to why the Teotihuacan people left however the most common is that due to a long drought, famine set in and the people then lost faith on their Gods so dispersed to all ends of Mexico to begin new lives.
Although this is a must for anyone travelling to Mexico (if not these ruins then you need to visit at least of the many that still exist), the ruins are also full of hawkers who are keen to sell you everything from ancient rock artefacts to table cloths and silver jewellery. Patience is a must as the hawkers do not take heed of the first 3 No Gracias responses so continuing to walk on is the best approach.
The photo's below certainly do not do justice to the engineering ingenuity or the artistic talent of the Teotihuacan people however having been their and experienced the wonder that these ancient pyramids represent was certainly an experience that we will not forget for a long time.
