Teotihuacan Pyramids

On the way to Mexico city with my parents this week, we stopped to see the Teotihuacan Pyramids.

Our trip there began with some Papantla Flyers - "Voladores de Papantla".  This is a group of 4 men dressed in traditional Indian costume gathering around the top of a tall pole.  They climb the pole and one plays a flute. Then they all "fly" down the pole, supported by a rope connected to their ankle.  The guy with the flute keeps playing all the while.

The origins of Teotihuacan are uncertain but it is thought that construction of the city started in the first two centuries BC.  The civilization reached its high point around 500 AD.  One of the great mysteries is that no one then knows where the huge population that lived there eventually ended up.

The original city was about 10 square miles but the ruins are now about one square mile.  There is citadel, the main avenue "Calzada de los Muertos", Templo de Quetzalcoatl and two large pyramids - Piramide del sol and Piramide de la luna. 

The citadel, city and avenue of the dead

The pyramid of the sun is the third largest pyramid in the world.  You can climb to the top of it - so both John and I did that. Mum started the climb but felt a little uneasy without handrails. And dad stayed at the bottom taking photos!  The climb wasn't too bad - easier than I had thought - and the views at the top - along with a nice breeze, were definitely worth it.

The sun pyramid

The moon pyramid

It was a great place to stop so if you are ever in Mexico city - make sure you take in the pyramids.
They are only 30 miles northeast of the city.....While that sounds like nothing, it wasn't quite our experience however, as it does help if your driver knows where he is going!    Hours later....we arrived at our hotel in the city - all with crooked necks from trying to peer out of the van to look for signs to at least the district we wanted! But that's another story.......