A haphazard chronicle of my inevitable misadventures during a year in Vietnam and points east.

p.s. I'll be pitifully grateful if you send me email during my exile: TravelerKaty@hotmail.com

October 2002 November 2002 December 2002 January 2003 February 2003 March 2003 April 2003 May 2003 June 2003 July 2003 August 2003 September 2003 October 2003 November 2003 February 2006 March 2006 May 2006

 
Day 5 - Part 2 - Cacaxtla & Xochitecatl Ruins
2/15/06

One of the reasons I was very enthused about traveling to this off-the-track corner of Mexico was that Dad assured me that in addition to learning to cook ,there were very interesting pre-Hispanic ruins in the area. Well, that was one reason -- actually any travel plan is like crack to me, I just can't get enough, but the ruins were a very nice bonus since I'm kind of a nut for ruins of all cultures. At any rate, Wednesday was our Day of Ruins.

There were two major sites near Tlaxcala, Cacaxtla and Xochitecatl, (referred to exclusively as "C" and "X" in our conversations, much to the amusement of our cabbie) located on adjacent hilltops about a half a mile from each other. Though some guide books report that the Archaeological Zone is 11 km from Tlaxcala, we either took the long route or that was a crow-flies kind of estimate. There were no crows flying along our route, that's for certain. A more accurate estimate of the distance is about 24 km, and they are slow, if interesting, kilometers through lots of little pueblos chock full of uniformed schoolkids, churches, burros, and muffler shops. Several looked to have had recent town celebrations, but the more likely scenario given the general love of festivals around here is that they leave the decorations up year around. Even in our countryside retreat at the MHCS we still heard firecrackers almost every day.

In addition to the natural delaying effect of three-legged dogs, people wandering into the road, tractors, and drunken bicyclists, Mexican roadbuilders have solved the crazy-speeding-driver syndrome that I had witnessed on previous trips to Mexico by installing very aggressive speed bumps at irregular intervals. And it's not just that they are enormous (indeed, our little overloaded taxi slowed to a crawl and approached some of them diagonally so as not to bottom out), they are also virtually invisible, many are unmarked either by warning signs or yellow paint. I can only imagine what it's like to drive these roads at night. Though it surely would have been an adventure, I was a bit relieved once again that we had decided not to rent a car. I could easily picture us inching along, craning our eyes for the next "tope", slamming the brakes for every three-legged dog and so afraid to pass that we ended up traveling behind a tractor for 10 miles while elderly men on rusty bicycles passed us by.

Our first stop, Cacaxtla, was only discovered by archaeologists during the 1970's. A government, trade and religious capital of the Cacaxtli (thought to be an Olmeca-Xicalanca people), about whom scholars and cab drivers seem to know little, the city served as a crossroads between civilizations all around Mexico. The temple and palace complex atop the hill offers impressive colorful murals with Teotihuacan, Maya and Nahuatl influences. Images include detailed battle scenes, complete with a "Find the Sacrificed Warrior!" game for the kids, and Teotihuacan-style animals and humanesque figures depicting Quetzalcoatl, the feathered snake god, and Xolotl, his twin the evening star god.

On a Wednesday afternoon we were the only ones around, apart from a friendly Mexican couple celebrating their 31st anniversary, though I learned from the gift shop ladies that Sundays are free admission and thus very crowded. It was definitely worth shelling out the $4 to have the place to ourselves. The museum was great too, with a collection of artifacts found on the site, including some very fine decorative wall carvings. I have only one caveat in recommending a visit to Cacaxtla -- if you get a drink in the little restaurant, just stick to Coke or OJ. D ended up with two different bottled fruit drinks that were undrinkable for one reason or another (weirdly smelly, for example).

After the semi-refreshing drink and a rather lengthy and productive trip to the gift shop, we packed ourselves Ringling-Brothers style back into our mini-taxi and headed to the next hill, a small extinct volcano called Xochitecatl upon which are perched three small ceremonial pyramids used for worship between 800 BCE to 900 AD. At this point I am reminded by Mom that she "climbed up two mountains" during our afternoon of ruins. Confidentially, we were most of the way up when the respective walks started, but there was indeed uphill hiking involved, as well as precarious stairs, and she kept up with us just fine. So here's to Mom, putting up with our activity plan without complaint and with and acceptable degree of (feigned?) enthusiasm.

Once we reached the top of the hill, however, her enthusiasm did wane somewhat, and as she spotted a cunningly placed bench under a shade tree that appeared to be calling out for a woman with a book. Thus the four of us climbed the smallest 'Snake Pyramid' together, and mom luxuriated in the shade while the three sisters climbed the others.

The Pyramid of Flowers, the largest of the three, was built with a grand staircase, two water altars and several tiers leading up to a lovely panoramic view of the three volcanoes. The Spiral Pyramid was to me the most interesting. . It was probably dedicated to Ehecatl, the god of the wind, and was built with no stairs in a unique spiral shape so that worshippers would climb around and around to reach the top. Naturally as this is Mexico, a large cross has been placed on top, which looked a bit anachronistic, but which wasn't completely unexpected.

All in all it was a great day -- we saw some interesting ruins, climbed things, and hopefully got enough of a suntan that our friends and coworkers would be envious when we returned to sub-zero temperatures.

More photos of Cacaxtla and Xochitecatl:






© 2006 Katy Warren
posted by Katy at 1:55 PM