Mexico: Pyramids at Teotihuacán, 1979

One of the biggest attractions of a visit to Mexico City is a trip to the pyramids that are located outside of the city at a place known as Teotihuacán. This location was not an Aztec site; the people in this area had abandoned the area centuries before the Spaniards arrived.

This was one of the trips that the school sponsored. As was explained to us, the pyramids, the ballcourts and other buildings in the area had religious significance, and those living in this area were of the priestly class. The two main structures are the Pyramid of the Sun and the Moon. Both are in the distance in the picture, the Pyramid of the Moon being farthest away. The Pyramid of the Sun is larger, though not as steep as the Pyramid of the Moon, and was a favorite spot for tourists and vendors.

I was familiar with the custom of negotiating a price for an item. I was shown a piece carved out of the black stone called obsidian, and as I was halfhearted about buying it, I was more successful in bringing the price down than if I had expressed a lot of interest.

After we were directed around most of the site and I saw that time was short, I practically sprinted to the Pyramid of the Moon to climb it as well before the bus was scheduled to leave.

Visit my webpage on Mexico at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/mexico.html


Other websites:

Caribbean Folk Arts Network (Caribfolk) - Caribbean cultural network: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caribfolk/

Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots) - a nonprofit organization I founded in 1991 that presents Latin American cultural shows, exhibits, and workshops: http://www.raicesculturales.org/

Raicesnews - Latin cultural events in the Philadelphia area: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/raicesnews