On Thursday I visited the Templo Mayor museum with Beatriz. This is in the very centre of the city, and the site of the ruins of the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan. It's hard to believe that these temples and artefacts went undiscovered for so long, underneath the busy Metropolis we know today as Mexico City. The museum also contains the history of Moctezuma, the leader of the Aztecs when the Spanish first arrived on the shores of the Aztec Empire. There are also hundreds of artefacts in the museum and within the ruins which have retained some of their original colourings, often as tributes to the gods. My knowledge of these areas was helped by the fact that I played Hernan Cortes in an Aztec play when I was aged 10, as well as being familiar with the Aztec god Coatlicue due to collecting Monster In My Pocket.
As much as I tried, it was very hard to imagine what the city must have been like. I wish I could have a few moments seeing it in all its glory. [Left] is a picture from my visit, and below it, what Tenochtitlan looked like during the Aztec period.
One thing that I did think was strange, is that the Aztec city and civilisation feels so ancient that it almost seems unreal. It is so difficult to imagine what life was like, yet Moctezuma reigned from 1502 to 1520, which is about 400 years later than my University was established, yet for three years I wandered round the streets of Oxford not really thinking much more than "bloody tourists...".
After the museum, we were joined by Beatriz's friend Whitney, from San Diego, and we went to Zocalo, the main square in Mexico City. There is a magnificent Cathedral, both inside and outside at the edge of the square. The Cathedral inside was very tranquil, but outside there was a Death Metal band playing, which was peculiar, especially as they weren't even very good.
Later we went for a coffee at a bar which overlooked the Galleria Belles Artes, before heading back to the hostel. In the evening, Beatriz, James and I were joined by two new arrivals at the hostel, Chloe and Donna (both from England) and another of Beatriz's friends called Whitney. This Whitney was from Atlanta, but she didn't support the Falcons... I thought I might be able to piggy-back on some of Neil's Georgia Tech knowledge, but alas she didn't like them either. We ate at a bookshop; there was a restaurant upstairs and it was really cool. I wasn't sure what to get to go with my Michelada, and then I saw it... Chicken Gyros. It was a no-brainer... but I was bursting with questions - would the wraps have chips inside, would I need to know the Spanish for 'No Tzatziki', and would I end up asking for an extra large portion only to be disappointed in my inability to finish it?
For those who aren't aware, every year when I and several other seriously cool dudes go to Greece, we always go to the same restaurant and order Gyros. Pretty much every night. On this occasion however, there were no such problems. The food was amazing, chips were served separately, and I manage to polish off the two wraps, albeit with very little to spare.
The next day I was going to Cocoyoc in the evening, a town 2-3 hours (we'll come to this later) outside Mexico City. Because I needed to meet up with Makocha and Alonso, I didn't have much time to do much, so I went to.... the Zoo again. I saw the Pandas, but they weren't doing much (probably why they're in such a crisis. Lazy). I thought the Panther was pretty cool:
I was, however, a little disappointed that it didn't look up, with this telling expression:
I set off from the Hostel at 4pm, because I needed to head back to Makocha's house to collect some things. In the end the traffic was pretty bad, so we turned back and I would just have to get by without whatever it was that I needed to get. The traffic in Mexico City is horrific though. I hate queueing (not sure if this is the correct spelling, but I like the fact it has 5 consecutive vowels), and hence I hate traffic. Like most people I expect. I know that in London it can be bad, but being here, as well as what I have witnessed in Russia and India makes me realise that I should try and be a bit more tolerable back in England, as it really isn't THAT bad. Anyway, we then had to pick up Pablo, Alonso´s friend, who lived just around the corner from my hostel. We got to him at 8pm. Very annoying, I could have spent four more hours singing 'the Bare Necessities' to the Panther if I had known. We finally arrived in Cocoyoc just after midnight. So that was about an 8 hour journey... like I said, the traffic here is infuriating to say the least.
I was feeling pretty tired by this point, and said to Makocha that even though I would have liked to have stayed up and meet her friends, I was too tired and planned to go straight to bed when I arrived. Yes, I know, I am lame. Alonso convinced me to stay up for 1 or 2 drinks, and someone decided to start a game of 'Kings'. I perked up a little, and later even managed to trick Sara and Alonso into 'riding the bus' (it's a card game, before anyone jumps to any frightful conclusions). I chatted to Azu quite a bit, mainly about music, and she told me that she wanted to go to Glastonbury next year. She didn't know Reading Festival, so I was unable to impress her with stories of being on the big screen during Andrew WK. I had a feeling it was time for bed, so checked the time... 7am. Jesus, I certainly hadn´t seen that one coming. Party Hard.
Woke up at Midday, and sat in the sun for about half an hour. We had to head back to Mexico City because Makocha was going to a family event. So a few more hours in the car ensued, and by now I really was struggling, as the roads are so bumpy, getting to sleep in the car is near impossible. I join Makocha (and Alonso) for the family event, because basically I have no choice. The main reasons why I was hesitant about going along initially were 1) it's a family thing, I'm not family, and everyone will be speaking Spanish. 2) I'm hardly dressed for the occasion, I´ve got shorts and T-Shirt on compared to everyone elses trousers & shirts, and 3) I am fucking knackered.
The family have booked a number of tables in a section of a hotel. It feels a bit like a wedding - round tables free flowing alcohol, 4 course meal, singers performing outside, with crowds of people making their way onto and off from the dancefloor with each new song. I did feel a little bit out of place at first, but Makocha´s family (all 60 of them) made me feel very welcome, and I thought how it is a shame that events like these are so uncommon back home. I quite wanted to join in the dancing at some point, but didn't want to make a fool of myself. In the end, Makocha's cousin Carolina was kind enough to teach me a little. She said I was good, but I took that more of a morale booster than fact, although in fairness, I think I managed to avoid being utterly malcoordinated. Perhaps it was the pressure of having the entire family watching us. Once again, I was pleased that I managed to overcome my tiredness, and had a really good time.
The following day (Sunday), I followed up on the football and NFL results (once again, good news, that's 4 wins out of 4 since I've been here!), and sat in the garden listening to Jack Dee's autobiography. Yes, I come to Mexico in hope of finding a 'new me' and I am listening to the story of someone who grew up in Winchester, then lived in London, and spends most of his life complaining about one thing or another. I'm not sure of the exact connection, but whilst I was listening to this, I thought about one of the oldest, most basic jokes about the chicken crossing the road, and realised that in my 26 years, I have only just 'got' it. Because no-one has ever really mentioned it before, I decided to look it up. According to Wikipedia, "this answer's obviousness and straight-forwardness becomes part of the humour". Oh. So my thoughts that "the otherside" referred to the chicken dying and going to heaven were totally fatuous... What do you think? Maybe I'm right and Wikipedia is wrong.
Anyway, sorry about that, the last thing this lengthy post needs is a digression about bloody birds. That evening Makocha and I are invited to her cousins house for some food, some tequila (which conveniently, nearly everyone else had an excuse for not drinking) and some games. These included a card game called 'Cambio', Uno-Stack and an interesting game involving a glass, a coin, kitchen roll and a cigarette. I will be bringing this idea home with me. Being both Mr Pessimist and Mr Competitive, with every turn I was convinced it would be the final straw, yet in the end managed not to lose any of them. It was a fun night, but most people have to work on Mondays, so we headed home before it got too late.
[Above, L to R]: Makocha, Nataly, Caro, JC, Martha & Octavia.
Monday was almost an exact replica of the previous Monday. I just hung about in the house relaxing and playing the piano. I bloody loved it. Today (Tuesday) I have returned to the hostel in Condesa. Beatriz is still here but the others have moved on. It's quite quiet, but at least I have had chance to hog the computer and update this.
Hasta la vista
Twig
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