Teotihuacán

Today we visited Teotihuacán. Less famous than Chichén Itza (by that I mean we'd never heard of it 😅) it is actually the most important and largest pre-Columbian city in Mexico. Founded around 100BC, it supported a population of 125,000 people from various cultures. It isn't a Mayan or Aztec city but a multicultural city that later influenced the Maya and was a direct precursor to the Aztec culture.
I would say it is by far the most impressive site we visited. All because of the (apparently) famous pyramids; the sun temple and the moon temple. The pyramid of the moon is situated at the end of a long stretch of buildings ominously known as "The Avenue of the Dead" 💀👻😵 It is a huge, imposing and dread-inducing structure. We find the archaeological sites fascinating but this was the first time we could really picture the essence of the city. It was easy to imagine the huge gatherings that happened there (I could almost hear the drums beating as we approached).
At the other side of the Avenue of the Dead is the colossal pyramid of the Sun. At just over 65m high it is the 3rd largest pyramid in the world! And it definitely felt like it on the way up 😳 It is unknown why it was originally built, or what it was called, but the Aztecs named it the pyramid of the Sun and used it to worship Quetzalcoatl (Pronounced "Ket-tha'-coat-love") the Serpent god of the second Sun. However it may have also been used to worship Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli (Pronounced "incorrectly") who represents venus... and who may or may not be the same person as Quetzalcoatl. Honestly the religious aspects of the structures are way too complicated for us 😂 but the engineering and sheer size of the structures is absolutely incredible! Well worth the journey.Read more