Today we finally made it to Mexico City! We left Queretaro a bit later than we originally planned, driving for two and a half hours to get near the pyramids of Teotihuacan. I mostly read during the drive, but sometimes I’d look out the window and see sleepy towns or rolling countryside.
We had lunch before exploring the pyramids, and a mariachi band performed classic tunes while we ate. Many of us couldn’t resist singing along when the band started playing Besame Mucho. We were shocked with how large the pyramids looked as they appeared in the background, and we got fair warning about how much climbing we would be doing in the next few hours.
Once we got off the bus, we had a short guided tour explaining some of the history and art of Teotihuacan. Towards the end of the tour, we looked at the sun through obsidian and saw an artisan demonstrate how to get different kinds of colors from different plants for painting. The acoustics of the plaza center were extraordinary — if you whistled or clapped your hands, you could hear countless loud reverberations.
After the tour, we were on our own for a while. I chose to scale the Temple of the Moon first. The stairs were consistently steep, but the view at the top was amazing, and it provided an excellent location to take photos with the even taller Temple of the Sun in the background. Going back down the stairs was a difficult endeavor; I was very grateful that there was a railing to hold onto. The Temple of the Sun was even taller, but the stairs were generally less steep (except for one short bit where it felt like climbing a ladder). The lighting at the top of the temple was perfect for photos, and the near-constant wind added to the spectacle of the temple’s height. Right before leaving, everyone in Glee took a photo together at the base of the temple before we continued our journey to Mexico City.
The countryside quickly turned into sprawling cityscape as we approached our destination in the center of Mexico City. Due to rush hour traffic and the small size of the hotel lobby, we had to stagger the bus arrival times, so now I am contemplating dinner options for tonight from my hotel room while the other bus is still en route. Tonight is a free evening after a busy day of travel and climbing. I’m looking forward to hanging out with people and exploring the area of the city we’re staying in!
Theo Trevisan ‘21
Photos courtesy of Joanna Zhang ‘21 and Sloan Huebner ‘23.