Mexico City and Teotihuacan

La famille française, Michel, Ridette, Simone et Yves, took a rest day in Querétaro before we headed off to Mexico City (known in Mexico as the D.F. or Distrito Federal), by bus this time. It took us over an hour to get through the D.F. on our way back from Oaxaca, and I was not going to chance getting stopped by a D.F. policeman and having to pay an exorbitant mordida. I also admit that I cannot find my way around Mexico City by car any more. I do much better by metro or taxi; or the occasional Mexican friend.

C and I spent three days and two nights in the D.F. and left la famille française on their own to get to the airport the last day. After a double decker tourist bus trip around the D.F. we visited Teotihuacan the next day by taxi, which is not too bad for six people. La famille were pretty good sports about visiting yet another archaeological site during the hottest April in 100 years. We also visited my favorite museums, the Templo Major where the main Aztec temples were when Cortes arrived, and the National Museum of Anthropology which has the most complete and fascinating collection of prehispanic artifacts in Mexico, and the New World. Peru has some really cool museums, but they just cannot compare. The voladores from the gulf coast were performing in the park in front of the musuem. We also visited Xochimilco and the Dolores Olmeido museum where we saw Diego Rivera’s paintings and his collection of illegally stolen prehispanic artifacts that rival those of Tamayo in Oaxaca. I like Diego’s and Tamayo’s mural work, but it makes me sick to my stomach what they did to Mexican heritage.

While the girls and Michel visited the photographic exhibit in the Zocalo, and Yves finally took advantage of the siesta, I went to Calle Doncellas to look for used books on mining and the old mining town of Pozos. The street was mostly blocked by federales because of a planned demonstration threatened by people opposed to the privatization of the oil industry. I got past the barriers (I no longer look like a hippie drug runner, I guess), and there was not another customer in sight. I visited the Libreria Madero and asked the owner for books on mining. He is apparently a well-known character and raconteur. I did not find any books this time, but it turns out we have friends in common (Marco and Belem in Pachuca), and he gave me some leads that I will follow up on. Despite the security around the Senate, it was a productive little visit.

BTW, Michel bailed out of the Zocalo photo tour about halfway through. Only Yves believed me when I told them about having seen the video with Laura in Jurica and that it was really not worth the long lines and heat. Oh well. They pretended to listen to me, but I suspect they do not remember anything about Mexican archaeology except that the rain god Tlaloc (Chac in Yucatan, Cocijo in Oaxaca) had big eyes and a big mouth, like me.

I have uploaded some pictures of Xochimilco to Flickr with an explanation of what Xochimilco is. I will add some other pictures of Oaxaca, Mitla, Cholula and Teotihuacan soon.