The idea of Mexico City scared me. I had heard so many things about how dangerous, large and polluted it was. Dragging 21 students from one historic site to another in a crowded city full of potential pickpockets sounded like an insane headache.
Much to my surprise, therefore, I LOVED the trip. Granted, we stayed mostly in the historic center, which felt relatively safe, colonial, and almost European. There was also much better shopping than in Oaxaca; a Zara and Pull & Bear right near our hotel, as well as an amazing ice cream place, and the main archeological sites. But I found the city to be relatively clean, the pollution didn't bother me, and I never felt threatened or unsafe, although I was very careful with my things.
While the U of C had very restrictive rules stating that students were not allowed to go outside the hotel without me or T to accompany them, in reality we were given a few hours of free time per day, which we used to shop, wander, sleep, and eat, all on our own or in small groups.
Trip highlights include seeing the Templo Mayor where Moctezuma lived and crazy sacrifices took place; Tlatelolco where Sahagun worked with his informants to write the Florentine Codex; and going out to a bar called Guadalajara de Noche to see a folkloric dance performance with the two professors who accompanied us on the trip. Professor K bought his table drinks and got talkative, while Professor W howled like a wolf several times in accompaniment to the mariachi music, and danced salsa with several students. M tried to get Professor K to dance with her and he kind of freaked out and ducked away into his wife's lap. Turns out he doesn't know how to dance and refuses to do so until M, A or V give him and his wife some lessons.
I also found 5 books I need for my thesis. They are all hard-cover editions from reputable editorials, and the best part is that I bought them for a total of for about 400 pesos, or about $35. In the US I would pay $35 for ONE book. The only drawback is that I ended up with volume II of several authors, but still lack volume I for the sets. My plan is to go to the educational bookstore here in Oaxaca and ask if they can order them for me.
Silly side note: There was a chicken restaurant, kind of like a Mexican KFC, kitty corner from our hotel, called Gili Pollos (explanation: in Spanish from Spain, a gilipollAs is someone who's a real jerk, basically the biggest jerk on the planet. Pollos means chicken. Get it?).
More Mexico City pics here: Teotihuacan, Anthropology Museum, Castillo de Chapultepec, Templo Mayor and Tlatelolco).
Showing posts with label archeological ruins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label archeological ruins. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 3
Ethnobotanical Gardens
Attached to the Ex-Convent of Santo Domingo is a large ethnobotanical garden. Spanish tours are 3 times daily and cost 50 pesos. English tours are 3 times a week and cost 100 pesos. Of course I took the Spanish tour, and it was one of my favorite sites in Oaxaca so far. Pictures here.
The gardens surround the convent and are blocked off from the street by a high, green-tinted volcanic stone wall. 11 years ago, the space that now contains the gardens was in danger of becoming a huge parking lot for downtown Oaxaca, but when they discovered some ruins underneath, the government stepped in and began to rehabilitate the gardens. The guide, a 20-something guy wearing pumas, an adidas hoodie, jeans, and an intensely gelled faux-hawk, was amazingly well-informed, and told us many interesting things about the garden. The zig-zag paths, made of crushed green volcanic rock, are modeled after the patterns carved into the Zapotec temple at Mitla. Part of the garden is used to grow edible and medicinal plants such as chiles, herbs, and maguey. The rest is used to help bring back endangered plant species from extinction. The most interesting plants included a 1000-year-old cactus, the tree from which amate (paper used to make indigenous codexes) is made, and the gringa quemada, a tree that sheds its bark much like a sun-burned gringo sheds his skin.
The guide also explained the irrigation system for the garden. Throughout the site are small channels and large pools used to aerate and collect water. Spouts coming from the roof shoot rainwater into rock filters and from there the water trickles down into cisterns.
Several fountains were commissioned for the gardens, both modeled again after the geometric patterns found at Mitla. The most striking fountain is made from mica chips, and the water running through it is died red with cochineal, an insect used from pre-columbian times onward to die cloth red. At one time an ounce of cochineal was worth more than an ounce of gold. The red water runs down the face of the fountain like blood; the blood of the many indigenous slaughtered during the Spanish conquest (according to the fountain's designer).
My tour companions were from all over the globe; none of them were native Spanish speakers. I overheard some of them saying they had understood about 40% of the tour. The fact that I had understood 100% made me very smugly satisfied.
The gardens surround the convent and are blocked off from the street by a high, green-tinted volcanic stone wall. 11 years ago, the space that now contains the gardens was in danger of becoming a huge parking lot for downtown Oaxaca, but when they discovered some ruins underneath, the government stepped in and began to rehabilitate the gardens. The guide, a 20-something guy wearing pumas, an adidas hoodie, jeans, and an intensely gelled faux-hawk, was amazingly well-informed, and told us many interesting things about the garden. The zig-zag paths, made of crushed green volcanic rock, are modeled after the patterns carved into the Zapotec temple at Mitla. Part of the garden is used to grow edible and medicinal plants such as chiles, herbs, and maguey. The rest is used to help bring back endangered plant species from extinction. The most interesting plants included a 1000-year-old cactus, the tree from which amate (paper used to make indigenous codexes) is made, and the gringa quemada, a tree that sheds its bark much like a sun-burned gringo sheds his skin.
The guide also explained the irrigation system for the garden. Throughout the site are small channels and large pools used to aerate and collect water. Spouts coming from the roof shoot rainwater into rock filters and from there the water trickles down into cisterns.
Several fountains were commissioned for the gardens, both modeled again after the geometric patterns found at Mitla. The most striking fountain is made from mica chips, and the water running through it is died red with cochineal, an insect used from pre-columbian times onward to die cloth red. At one time an ounce of cochineal was worth more than an ounce of gold. The red water runs down the face of the fountain like blood; the blood of the many indigenous slaughtered during the Spanish conquest (according to the fountain's designer).
My tour companions were from all over the globe; none of them were native Spanish speakers. I overheard some of them saying they had understood about 40% of the tour. The fact that I had understood 100% made me very smugly satisfied.
Monday, January 19
Dainzú, Lambityeco, Mitla, Yagul
Last Tues we went on an excursion to four different Mixtec and Zapotec archeological sites around Oaxaca City: Dainzú, Lambityeco, Mitla and Yagul. It was a cool, almost chilly and windy day, but later the sun came out in time for a sweaty hike up to the fortaleza at Yagul. The professor is surprisingly spry and fast. He beat us all to the top of the rather steep hike, and barely seemed out of breath.
The sites were all pretty cool. Dainzú had carvings of ball players and danzantes similar to those at Monte Albán. Lambityeco was very small but had some neat face carvings of the rain god Cosijo. Mitla was huge, with temples and carvings intact, and a 16th century Spanish church built on top of the ruins. It even had some tombs we were allowed to crawl into. By the time we got Yagul, the fourth stop, it was 3 pm (we had left at 9) and everyone was tired. But it was probably the most interesting site, since enough walls remain for you to see the labyrinth-like structure. We also hiked up to the top of a hill and got an incredible panoramic view of the valley.
The 3 guys in our group decided to take an alternate overgrown path, in spite of the professor's warning that there were many plants that could cause allergic reactions. Of course one of them ended up with two cacti spines in his upper arm, and another with some sort of prickly thing in his hand. The third thoroughly enjoyed getting too close to the edge of huge drop-offs. That was the first day I lost my voice from so much shouting.
Professor W is a good tour guide. He has interesting anecdotes that start, "When I was excavating here in 1997..." He's also not afraid to say when he disagrees with one theory or another about what people did at said ruins. Makes for a more gossipy archeological history.
The sites were all pretty cool. Dainzú had carvings of ball players and danzantes similar to those at Monte Albán. Lambityeco was very small but had some neat face carvings of the rain god Cosijo. Mitla was huge, with temples and carvings intact, and a 16th century Spanish church built on top of the ruins. It even had some tombs we were allowed to crawl into. By the time we got Yagul, the fourth stop, it was 3 pm (we had left at 9) and everyone was tired. But it was probably the most interesting site, since enough walls remain for you to see the labyrinth-like structure. We also hiked up to the top of a hill and got an incredible panoramic view of the valley.
The 3 guys in our group decided to take an alternate overgrown path, in spite of the professor's warning that there were many plants that could cause allergic reactions. Of course one of them ended up with two cacti spines in his upper arm, and another with some sort of prickly thing in his hand. The third thoroughly enjoyed getting too close to the edge of huge drop-offs. That was the first day I lost my voice from so much shouting.
Professor W is a good tour guide. He has interesting anecdotes that start, "When I was excavating here in 1997..." He's also not afraid to say when he disagrees with one theory or another about what people did at said ruins. Makes for a more gossipy archeological history.
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