I've been falling behind a bit so this will hopefully be very brief. Saturday we had orientation and got to know the campus, which is very pretty with lots of ornamental pools and the like. We then walked around El Zocalo which is the city center. We started at the Palacio Cortes, meandered by the main plaza where breakdancers were performing and a huge gaudy Christmas tree dominates the space. We went down the street to the city's cathedral, which was built like a fortress.We then took a walk through el mercado, the black market, which is huge. Profe refers to the lower levels as Dante's 4th circle of hell. You can buy pretty much anything here, from knock off electronics ($1 pirated DVDS for example), clothes, school supplies, folk art, produce, fresh meat (whole hog heads), and more.
We ate dinner at a restaurant called El Barco (the boat) where I had my first taste pozole, a type of soup. Let's just say me gusta pozole (I like it) and that I finished my Grande-sized bowl with gusto.The next day we met up with the January Term class (JanTerm) and took a 1.5 hour bus ride to Teotihuacan. We started by hearing a presentation about the agave plant, which the indigenous people of Mexico have always used in a variety of ways. The leaves can make paper, the fibers can make thread, the tips of the leaves (more like fronds) can be used as a sewing needle, and of course the juice is fermented to make pulque and tequila. We all got to try a small sample of pulque after the presentation.
After lunch we entered the archaeological site where we toured the pyramids of Quetzalcoatl, the Sun and the Moon. Whew those stairs could be tough! Parts were as steep as a Navy ship stair/ladder. They say if you touch the center stone of the Pyramid of the Sun you get good luck. Do I feel lucky now? Heck, I'm in Cuernavaca, I sure do feel lucky!
On that note I'll end this entry. You can check out more pictures at my Picasa web albums:
El Zocalo
Teotihuacan Pyramids
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