Teotihuacan

It's definitely a bit of a tongue twister, but this place is AMAZING, and worth the $30 US in toll roads around Mexico City to get here. After a morning of catching up with a Bulgarian family we'd made friends with back in Etzatlan & one false start (as no pets allowed - even though there are stray dogs evereywhere) we made it into the site.

The city was established around 100 BC and lasted for about 8 centuries until its demise. At its zenith it was the largest city in North America & about 6th in the world at that time. There are two massive pyramids, the Temples of the Sun & Moon, although these were named by the Aztecs who discovered the abandoned citadel and they know almost nothing about the people who lived here or their culture.

We spent a good few hours exploring and climbing the pyramids in the hot afternoon sun, and a great deal of time trying to understand where to pick up our tickets for the evening show, which incredibly and infuriatingly was only available on TicketMaster (which has wasted days of my life in the past trying to get Glastonbury tickets!)

Eventually we figured it out and returned that evening to be issued with an iPod (remember those? Basically and iPhone without the phone). The 2km long Avenue of the Dead was lit up, and we wandered down to the Temple of the Moon listening to the interactive show. We then settled on the steps opposite the larger Temple of the Sun and were treated to an amazing light show which was projected onto the pyramid as the backdrop. Being high (~2,500m) the temperature dropped quickly but the light show was so incredible we barely noticed.Read more