Teotehuacan

Yesterday (Saturday) we took a 1 hour bus ride north of Mexico City to see the ruins of the Aztec city of Teotehuacan, which was likely the largest city in Mexico during pre-Hispanic time.

We climbed the pyramid of the sun (photo on right), the 3rd largest pyramid in the world, behind one in Egypt and another in Cholula, Mexico. This was a workout, 250 steps at elevation 7500 ft ASL. The photo of Luke and Emily was taken from the top of Pyramid of the Sun, with the Pyramid of the Moon in the background. The pyramids were supposedly made with only manpower and no use of wheels. The pyramid was developed by AD 150 and the rest of the city was developed between AD250 and 600. The city collapsed in the 8th century AD. We also were able to see some very well preserved murals in one of the many palaces.

This morning we hit one more museum in Mexico City (Belles Artes) becuase it was free on Sunday and then took the subway to the bus station to catch the bus to Puebla. We found a mid-range hotel and bargained them down to 340 pesos ($30) per night which includes breakfast. Most of the hotels seem kind of divey, according the guidebook, so we aimed for getting a discount at a better hotel. We spent the afternoon today working on the blog, catching up on email, looking at the colonial buildings covered in tile, and then grabbing a bite to eat. We tried mole poblano and chalupas, Puebla specialty food. We will probably stay here two nights because it is already almost 5pm and we didn't cover much ground today!