Mexico (1) – TRAVICARIOUS

Gate1 Travel – Mexico’s Ancient Civilizations December 1 – 9, 2023 Three flights to Mexico City through Atlanta (to meet Jane), then Monterrey, Mexico to Mexico City. Two flights home from Cancun to Atlanta to DAB With Tom, Joy, and Jane Tour Guide, CARLOS DANIEL RIVERA, lives in Mexico City, about 65, retiring after this tour

Not sure exactly why it took us 11-1/2 hours to get from home to Mexico City. But “BASIC” on my boarding pass reminded me that we decided to go cheap on airline costs and we flew Aero México. We went to Atlanta, Monterrey, Mexico to Mexico City.

It was crazy at the airport. We flew into Terminal Two, But Tom was coming in at Terminal One where our driver was picking us up. We got our first taste of trying to communicate with people who don’t speak English. Asking the same question over and over doesn’t help much. We got 4 different answers and by the time we figured out which bus, we had to wait for the next one. It was about a 20 minute bus ride to Terminal One, with all our suitcases and they wanted pesos. We didn’t have any; and paid $2 each — I think we were ripped off … but we got there. All four of us, individually, got pesos at the ATM and our driver was very patient. Traffic was almost as bad at it was in Katmandu!! This was traffic out my hotel window past 9 at night!

Out to see a little of Mexico City, the largest city in North America, followed by NYC and LA.

I’m always impressed with the brooms they use. …They must work!

This was what they call El Zocalo, which means ‘the base’. In this square, they made a base for a statue which was never placed. But people still met at this square and it became known for meeting at the base, or El Zocalo. Other cities started calling THEIR city squares zocalos also.

Their flag is green, white and red. In the center is an eagle and a snake. An Aztec legend that foretold the founding of Teotihuacan, capital of the Aztec Empire says that In ancient times, the gods told the Aztecs that they would find the perfect place to build their city when they saw an eagle on a cactus, eating a serpent.

I love the sound of ringing bells!

This was the inside of this Metropolitan Cathedral, built on the ancient ruins of Aztec Temples.

Yes, a Tequila Museum. We did not attend. Tequila, the booze made in and named after the Mexican state of Tequila, got very popular. Mezcal is just another word for Tequila. So the Mezcal manufacturers wanted to become just as popular as Tequila so they decided to put a worm in each bottle — which got a lot of people’s attention. Now they are both pretty well known and are no different.

These sky ride type pods are part of the city subway system, which is subsidized by Mexico and costs the average rider about 25 cents.

I tried to show the colorful city, but trying to get a decent photo on a bus flying down the highway is difficult. Some of the neighborhoods had various colors on their houses before street signs and numbering systems were used, to differentiate which was their house.

This man, Jack, bless his soul is 92 years old. He got on the bus in Mexico City and rode to Teotihuacan archaeological sites built by the Nahua Tribe. He gave us the description of the area, including the Pyramids of the Sun and Moon, the Avenue of the Dead and temples and palaces.

When we arrived, we asked in as many ways as we could figure, as to where the bathrooms were. He kept repeating the meeting times and place over and over.

When we were at the Museum later that day, the same thing happened. It was then we realized he was totally deaf and he just kept repeating his spiel over and over without hearing us at all. Scary!

What a motley crew!!

On Sundays, Mexico City sometimes shut down lanes of traffic for bikes. Here is a group of bikers following a van with a statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe. She’s big in this religion and country and many gatherings are in her name.

The traffic was a problem this day and we found out a huge parade was the culprit.

More parade.

We went to the world-famous National Museum of Anthropology.

I loved this huge fountain.

Just some of the artifacts in the museum. Everyone got a kick out of the boy with a very pointy unit. I named him Woody.

This was a book made by a tribe thousands of years ago about their journey to their final homeland. Each square represents one year and each drawing has meaning. The footsteps represent movement and what they found at each place and the Gods that they idolized. The time to the right is where they stayed 20 years.