Teotihuacan

On July 9th we went with Paul and Ellen Garvin, our Center director and his wife, to Teotihuacan, an enormous archaeological site about 25 miles northeast of Mexico City. It took about 45 minutes on the toll road. Paul and Ellen said they went on the free access road the last time they went and it took about two hours. It was worth the extra pesos.

The archaeological site is probably the largest pre-Columbian city in the Americas and may have had 100,000 inhabitants. It is known for its large residential complexes, the "street of the dead," its colorful well preserved murals, and of course the Pyramids of the Sun and Moon.

The city's broad central avenue is called the "Avenue of the Dead." Along both sides are impressive ceremonial structures including the immense Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon. We hiked up the very steep steps of Pyramid of the Sun which must be about 300 feet. The view from the top is really worth the sore muscles. On the way down we saw three people carrying a handicapped fellow up in a wheel chair. What some people will do for the ultimate thrill!

We were hoping to visit a section with a lot of mural paintings but when we got there they were closed. Oh well, something to look forward to the next time.

On the way home we saw a young child standing beside the road with a menu in his hand, so we stopped and looked at it. All that climbing and walking in the hot sun had made us hungry, so we decided to give it a whirl. It was great sitting outside on the veranda. Beside Elsie, a young girl of 8 or 9 who worked there, entertained us with her witty conversation.