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Showing posts with label visitor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label visitor. Show all posts
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Friday we visited the UNAM campus -- and got to see more than we expected!
Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is an important celebration in Mexico. November 1st is for infants and children who have died and November 2nd is for adults who have died and it is believed that the souls return to earth on these days to spend time with the family. Unlike in the US, where the topic of death is more likely to be avoided, here the lives of the deceased are remembered and celebrated on these days. Families build ofrendas (altars) for the deceased, usually with food and drink that the person liked. Marigolds (cempasúchitl) are used to lead the souls to the altar.
Right now there is a "mega ofrenda" all throughout the "islands" (commons) at UNAM, with ofrendas built by the diferent facultades (departments/schools) as well as high schools associated with UNAM.
Tuesday I skipped history class to go see some history. We went to Teotihuacan, known mostly for its Piramide del Sol (Sun Pyramid -- 3rd largest in the world?) and Piramide de la Luna (Moon Pyramid). It was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.
Monday we wandered around the Zocalo and the Historic District. (Once again I messed up on days -- most museums are closed on Mondays!) I've already posted photos previously of most of what we saw. However, we did a tour of the Catedral Metropolitana in the Zocalo, so I'll share a few of those photos.
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| The Zocalo, like much of the city, is sinking (since Mexico City is built on a drained lake). They add/remove dirt to try to even out the buildings, but this measures the tilt of the floor. |
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| Statue of Pope John Paul II |
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| ...made out of keys |
Sunday we went to Tepoztlan, which is a small town in the state of Morelos, most famous for the temple on top of the Tepozteco mountain.
Tepoztlan has been named a "Pueblo magico" (magical town) by Mexico. (Apparently the title was revoked in 2009, but restored in 2010??).
The guidebooks said the hike is a challenge, but friends had said it was easy. Unfortunately, the altitude was killing us, making the hike a bit of a challenge.
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| cat chillin in the sun |
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| mural made of seeds |
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| mural made of seeds |
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| pitaya "nieve" -- yum! |
One of our main stops on the turibus (aka actually get off the bus) was to Chapultepec Castle in Chapultepec Park (Chapultepec means "hill of grasshoppers" in Nahuatl). It has been a military academy, imperial residence, Presidential home, observatory and (presently) the National Museum of History. In 1847 the United States took the castle by force during the Battle of Chapultepec of the Mexican-American War and many "Niños Héroes" (child heroes) died during the battle.
See the slideshow below for photos:
Jeff came to visit me for the week and it was so good to see him!
Saturday we did the Turibus (tourbus) to see an overview of the city. I didn't pick the best day, since a main road was closed for a parade and the Zocalo was closed for a concert, but we still saw a lot!
Among many things, we saw:
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| the Angel of Independence |
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| the Voladores (flyers) in Chapultepec Park |
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| lots of marigolds along the roads to lead the spirits home for Day of the Dead |
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| the man-made lake in Chapultepec Park |
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| Chapultepec Castle |
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| the feria of Chapultepec |
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| the Technology Museum |
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| multiple water god statues in Chapeltepec |
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| a man selling LOTS of cotton candy |
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| transportation safety at its finest (at least she was wearing a helmet) |
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| Palacio de Hiero shopping mall in Polanco |
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| don't remember what it's called, but more shops in Polanco |
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| large GM plant |
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| lots of people that waved at the bus |
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| bull fighting stadium |
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| Cruz Azul stadium |
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| UNAM |
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| UNAM Olympic Stadium |
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| Coyoacan |
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