México - Towering over Teotihuacán

June 27

Hello everyone!

México has significant pre-Hispanic history. Most people will have heard of the Aztecs and may be aware of their famous temples. One complex is found a short drive away from México City: Teotihuacán. Try saying that after a tequila or two.

Temple of the Sun at Teotihuacán

Mountains looming over theTeotihuacán complex

A very early start, leaving before 5am, took me northeast of the city. The rain, which I suspect will be a common feature of my month-long adventure, had relented by the time we reached a slightly muddy field. This was soon to be filled with balloons. Balloons of the hot air kind.

Ready to go!

Even with the overcast conditions, with rain the night
before, there were dozens of balloons in the sky 

You don’t have to wake up incredibly early to visit Teotihuacán. If you want the view, however, you have to spend a bit and wake up in the dark. And pretend you understand the safety instructions spouted at a million miles an hour in Spanish.

We had 7 people in our balloon

This was my second time in a balloon,
over 12 years after my first ride

The balloon ride happens before exploring the complex at ground level. However, the information to help understand what I was looking at was offered later in the day.

A slightly misty yet stunning view

The Avenue of the Dead

The Aztec name of Teotihuacán means "the place where gods were created". One idea of this is because the Aztecs, upon finding these incredible pyramids, could not believe that humans could have possibly built them, therefore believing that higher powers were involved.

Teotihuacán is one of 35 UNESCO Heritage Sites

The Aztecs, who later became known as the Mezica, found the valley of pyramids centuries after their construction. Archaeologists believe that the larger pyramid, called the Pyramid of the Sun, was created by 150 CE. My guide said that it took 139 years to construct.

Depending on how you measure it, the Pyramid of the
Sun is the third largest pyramid in the world

This pyramid was covered by grass for centuries,
meaning it wasn't ransacked by the Spanish

The guide, Ivan, also told me that it is more connected to the ancient god Tláloc, who controlled some elements of water. A misunderstanding is also said to be true of the other large pyramid, the Pyramid of the Moon. This apparently is a shrine to a goddess connected to the sea, though I can’t remember her name. However, both are known by their more common names of Sun and Moon.

The Sun Pyramid is symmetrical, with each side being 225 metres long

The Pyramid of the Moon actually has many temples
which were built over the top of one another

These pyramids were part of what was once a sprawling and important town, which possibly had 100,000 inhabitants in its day. You can only imagine how imposing these temples would have looked. Apparently sacrifices, which you may have heard about before, did happen, with bones being found as evidence.

The Moon Pyramid is smaller, but reaches the same height as the Sun Pyramid

The balloon ride takes you over the town of Otumba

Back in the day, only one person was allowed to scale these ancient skyscrapers: the priest for a particular god. Nowadays, only one person is allowed to go up to the top: a security guard. You used to be able to reach the peak, but this was stopped during the COVID times and not restarted. I’m quite happy about that, it will hopefully help to preserve the pyramids.

In the foreground is the plaza, where normal folk would come to worship the gods

Restorative work is still happening at the complex

The whole complex is joined by a long boulevard delightfully named ‘Avenue of the Dead’. More than 2 miles long, it also has multiple staircases which can get quite annoying when dragging an increasingly-tired body around a shadeless complex.

The military were at the non-pyramid end of the line - one theory
is that messages could be shouted up and down the avenue

Those steps can become annoying!

As you’d expect, the elite lived up the top end, near to the Moon pyramid. Some of their living and meeting complexes are visible, though a lot have been reconstructed. You can spot this from the studs within the brickwork.

The northern end of the avenue, with the Moon Pyramid

Remains of the Palace of Quetzalpapalotl

In spite of the talk of sacrifice and death roads, this may have been a pretty place to live. Many walls had stucco paintings and murals showcasing a variety of wildlife. An old man showed me how they used different ingredients, ranging from worm eggs (red) to marigolds (yellow) and a strange powder (blue).

The Aztec calendar, which shows four seasons and 20 months, each
of which had 18 days - the other 5 days were for the gods, apparently

This is a bad picture of a parrot, showing that
there was different wildlife back in the day

The abuelo painting me a flower

There is actually a third major pyramid which I hadn’t noticed when in the balloon. This structure is known as the Temple of Quetzalcoatl, and arguably has the most impressive feature: multiple heads of serpents (it’s also called the Temple of the Plumed Serpent as that is how the god is often depicted) and other gods such as Tláloc (who to me looks a bit like a robot).

Excavations beneath the temple have found
evidence of many human sacrifices 

Tláloc the robot!

Looking closely, you can see nuerous ornate heads on the temple

There is a lot more to learn about pre-Hispanic México. I feel like riding high above some of its famous pyramids at Teotihuacán has been a flying start. Sorry.

Up, up and away!

Love you all,

Matt