5 Dec

Got up at 3.30 am

Caught an uber out to Pat and Chris' friend Javier's place. He drove us out to his balloon company. We went up in a balloon with about 21 other people, plus 2 pilots - Javier and another guy. Unfortunately, the wind was going in the wrong direction. We waited for a while to see if it would change direction. Javier showed us around his family's house there where they were preparing breakfast. There was a beautiful pool (empty), and a little chapel that had paintings and effigies that his mother and grandmother had made. Eventually, they called it, even though the wind hadn't changed much so our balloons didn't go over the pyramids of Teotihuacan, which would have been seriously spectacular, but the balloon ride itself was very beautiful. We went up through the low clouds and floated over the sea of them, then landed in a field - near a field of cactuses. They were very organised with a team of guys in a van loading us and our basket into a trailer, then folding up the balloon. They cracked open some sweet pink bubbly and we toasted. One of the balloon team caught the cork and another folded it up into a balloon with a basket and little burner.

Breakfast was served in the garden (chilaquiles, been tacos, huevos revueltos, slices of melon) and a mariachi band sang a few songs.

Javier drove us to the Teotihuacan site and left us to explore. We paid $200 for a guide, which I thought was a bit excessive, and I'm not really fond of guides... she kept saying everything was famous, like everything, and also everything was 'the highest'... she also seemed to have a deal with some of the sellers of shit on the avenue. Some of the stuff she told us was kind of bs too, but she carried our coats (it was hot, and the balloon ride in the morning was cold).

We went to the Temple of the Feathered Serpent first which had a beautiful wall of carvings with shells inlaid, heads of snakes, crocodiles, water gods. Apparently the Teotihuacans were big on water, and a lot of the open spaces were used for storing rainwater (collecting and transporting), and reflecting the heavens and stars that they also place a lot of significance upon. 

We walked up the avenue of the dead to the temple of the moon - a massive pyramid (65m tall), then at the top end of the avenue the temple of the sun (45m pyramid).

We also walked round the ruins of some of the stone buildings that lined the edges of the avenue. Dwellings that included a shower, columns etc.. It must have been absolutely beautiful at its peak, all covered in red, green and blue stucco, murals and decorations. 

Apparently there are caves under the pyramids too (which are solid) where the first ritual sites of the early settlements were. Quartz sand was used to polish walls and pyrite was used in the ceilings of the caves to emulate the stars.

It was hot and I got a little sunburnt, despite my sunscreen. People selling shit everywhere, including annoying whistle things.

We met up with Javier again and had lunch at La Gruta which is a restaurant, basically in a cave. It was pretty cool. We had some guacamole and some escamoles (ant eggs which we put into a tortilla), then soups which came as a tin bowl with corn, cactus etc, then they poured the soup part over the top from jugs. Afterwards, they gave us a candle each to leave on one wall of the grotto as a fire ritual of rebirth.

Javier drove us home and we had some cheese and biscuits and did a crossword then all fell into bed.

15,514 steps

10.43 km