Reply To: Trip Report – Dublin, Mexico City, Puerto Vallarta

[NorthernLass]

We admired the exterior! I know what you mean about the churches but I’m fascinated by the psychology of religion and particularly the Roman Catholic preoccupation with miracles and relics. You can find some grisly remnants in a surprising number of places!

Day 2 was mainly taken up with our visit to Teotihuacan. This was a real bucket list item for me and it didn’t disappoint.

I booked with Viator but it looked like the tours were much of a muchness. You can also get there by bus but the organised tours aren’t very expensive and it’s always good to have a guide who’s an expert in the field.

The scale of the place is breathtaking – the only drawback with the tour is that it was a bit of a whirlwind and we didn’t have time to visit the museum. It wasn’t overly crowded either, so there were plenty of opportunities to get great photos.

I’d recommend reading up on the history of Teotihuacan and the Mexica civilisation in general before visiting; presumably because there were children there there was quite a lot of glossing over the subject of “offerings to the gods” and all that entailed!

Be aware it is very hot there and there’s virtually no shade. Even though it was the end of November we needed lots of sunscreen and water, I hate to think what it’s like in the height of summer. (At the start and end point of the tour there are places to buy water and ice lollies which you will definitely need!)

Although it’s now only permitted to climb one of the actual temples (the Temple of the Serpent), there was still a lot of climbing up and down very steep and poorly maintained steps with no handrails and no management of the flow of people in both directions!
The only wheelchair accessible point was near the Temple of the Moon, at the final stage of the tour.

If you’re a history/archaeology but like me this place is an absolute must, especially as excavations are ongoing and recent finds have shed a huge amount of light on the purpose and function of the site.