World Heritage Archives - Page 2 of 2

The drive from Xochimilco/Mexico City is scenic with colorful houses up the hills, wide view of the Volcanoes, and clear blue skies up above. The new toll roads make the drive through the hills fairly easy. On our way to Puebla, we hit the Cholula ruins first in the afternoon, followed by a short trip to Puebla City.

Cholula

A city of Churches, Pyramids and Volcanoes, the area boasts a wide array of visual treats. The entry into the ruins cost about MXN $65 for non-Mexicans, and typically there is a line to enter. The entrance to the pyramids/ruins from the main road is through a tunnel that is part of a huge network of tunnels. ~10 kilometers of tunnels have been identified and restored for tourists’ use so far. The tunnel, although is marked well, is dimly lit, really narrow, and when crowded can be extremely claustrophobic.
Through the tunnels, you will be taken to the other side of the pyramids where a steep set of stairs will lead you up to the top of the pyramid to the Church. From the top of the Church, amazing views of the city with colorful houses and churches, and the volcanoes (if the sky is clear) can be cherished.

The other part of the ruins, the pyramids can be viewed from the bottom of the stairs, and also can be accessed easily. These pyramids were also built in four stages similar to the Templo Mayor in Mexico City. But these pyramids are not as grand as the ones in Teotihuacan, or Chichen-Itza (Mayan), but it’s cultural importance is astounding as it was at the helm of the civilization and was one of the most importance centers at that time.

Location Tips –

GPS Address: Av. 8 Norte #2, Centro, 72760 San Andrés Cholula, Pue., Mexico

Parking situation near the ruins area can be tricky. But there are public parking spots available at nominal charge (~MXN $25) in the by lanes parallel to the main street.

Puebla

After exploring the little city of Cholula, we ventured out to the much larger and more vibrant, Puebla. We headed straight to the Zocalo area, and parked in one of the public parking lots at MXN $14 per hour. The main street of Ave. Reforma, during the holidays, was swarming with tourists (mostly Mexicans) and was adorned with lighting fixtures everywhere. The festivities were apparent in each direction, and it grew as we walked closer to the main square of Zocalo. The historic center of the city is surrounded by hotels, restaurants and shops, along with historical sites. We visited the two most interesting ones –
a. Cathedral de Puebla – Embelished with artwork on metal, chandeliers and murals, this was another masterpiece of a church. During the holidays, thousands of visitors come in for casual viewing or prayers.
b. Palacio Municipal de Puebla – The grand structure right next to the park/square, is the main office of the city. A guide will escort a group of tourists upstairs and explaining the history of the palace along with the city in great detail. The guide only speaks Spanish so prepare yourselves.

For dinner, the little street side shops on Ave 2 Sur (between Calle 3 and Ave Reforma) are really good options. Tip – to be slightly away from the crowd, and away from the beggars, choose a seat near the restaurant walls. Most places here will also offer some live music by local artists.

Location Tips –
GPS Address: Juan de Palafox y Mendoza, Centro, 72000 Puebla, PUE, Mexico
Parking – Look out for sign “E” (short for Estacionemente/Parking) along the way to the Zocalo square along Ave Reforma (or any parallel street)

World Heritage

Xochimilco

December 31, 2016 roamngrow Leave a comment

Back to Mexico
Back to Around Mexico City

Xochimilco, one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites, located only 30-40 minutes south of Mexico City, has a network of canals. A lazy boat ride will take you through the canals which may remind you of Venice. The Mexican touch comes in when you spot vibrantly colored boats, Mariachi singers and vendors on boats selling tacos and corn.

We got an entire boat to ourselves so we could stop and do what we please. Our guide tried explaining everything in Spanish and we understood only 50%. With that in mind, anything written below might be half correct. 😉

The painted trajinera (boat) took us around the floating town at a leisurely pace. The city Tenochtitlan (now Mexico DF) was apparently fed by agriculture from this area in pre-historic times. The charm of pre-hispanic culture still remains buried underneath the shallow waters but the modernization of the canals through engineering feats like lock-gates, etc. have kept it alive. The lazy river ride brought forth several encounters with the street vendors with whom you’d be better off not buying anything lest you be ripped severely. Some of the bridges and houses will remind the ignorant of European architecture, before being told that Europeans stole these from here.

Enjoy the ride as much as you can, before you get back to the mundane city life. This is the one hour that you’d have believed that the real pace of life can actually be this slow. To me that 1 hour seemed like an eternity, but when the tour ended, it reminded me of the times we should actually put everything else to bed and stay awake giving the brain some time back to relax.

Location Tips –
GPS Address: Blvd Adolfo Ruíz Cortinez (Periférico Sur) N/A, Xochimilco, Unidad habitacional aztlán, 16034 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Once in the city, you will find multiple places offering Boat Rides. But go to the above address, and find parking. Parking rates range from MXN $40 to MXN $50 for the entire stay. Official rates for boat rides are MXN $350 per person. But the folks in the Embarcadero will offer different tours at random prices. Bargain shamelessly until you get them at $350 per person per hour or lower.

Check out our Photo Gallery Here

Teotihuacan, Mexico

December 31, 2016 roamngrow Leave a comment

Back to Mexico
Back to Around Mexico City

GPS Address: Pyramid of the Sun, San Juan Teotihuacán, 55800 Teotihuacán de Arista, State of Mexico, Mexico

Teotihuacan was a pre-hispanic mesoamerican city, with the pyramids, and a plethora of ancient ruins assembled in an area of ~12 square miles. It is designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1987) and attracts a heavy number of tourists both from within Mexico and outside. The city was home to Nahuatl speaking Aztecs and predates the Mayan civilization.

There are two main pyramids (Pyramid of the Moon and Pyramid of the Sun), avenue of the dead, pre-historic murals, and residential complexes. Walk around the ancient city along the avenue of the dead will surely stimulate your senses, especially if you can read Spanish. Most of the signs and the descriptions are written in Spanish, so it will help to have an offline dictionary handy if you cannot read Spanish.

If you enter through the parking lot #1 and walk towards the Pyramid of the Moon on the other side of the city, you will do so via the Avenue of the Dead. Along the road, there will be ruins of temples, residential complexes and marketplaces along with the places to worship.

Pyramids – The larger one (75m high) is the Piramide del Sol, has multiple levels (around 100 steps of various shape and sizes). The first two stages are easier than the last one with narrower steps. But once atop, it is a vista you’d not want to miss. There is always a line to climb, and it gets pretty crowded up in the levels so be careful. The smaller one (Piramide del Luna) is probably half the height that of the Piramide del Sol, but the steps are steeper. You can only climb halfway, but the view is amazing regardless.

In the avenue of the dead, near the Moon Pyramid, there are two things that you should not miss –
1. Mural of a Puma – due to great restoration work, the paint and the sketch is still visible. Many such murals were there in the city, but are not yet restored.
2. Chalchiuhticre – Apparently a random piece of stone, that was actually a sculpture from the past of the Goddess of Water. This is probably one of the very few stones that are preserved from the past. Rest of the stone, building walls, and monuments are all restored to somewhat extent.

Other places for good photo ops and historical importance are the Citadel (the first site near the entrance 1), El palacio de Quetzalpapalotl, remains of a smaller pyramid showing somewhat the plan, and Plaza de la Luna, etc.

Along the avenue of the dead, there are street vendors selling stuff like the Mayan Calendar (which is fake as it is actually called Sun Stone; Mayan calendar looks more like a Gregorian Calendar with different counting of days and months), Statues made with Obsidian (most of them are probably fake too as some of the texture was not of any igneous rock), Jaguares (small airpipe that makes an annoying noise), etc. Be careful buying anything from here, likely you will be ripped off unless you are fluent in Spanish to aid in heavy bargaining process. If you like something, just quote a low price that you are comfortable with and walk away.

Once out of the area, walk to the car and drive out to have food in the nearby restaurants or visit the Teotihuacan museum. We ate at one of the local restaurants that served homemade food, one of the family members sang a song for us, and had a couple of mezcals for free. Yelp review here.

Check out the Gallery for Teotihuacan (UNESCO World Heritage Site)

World Heritage

Chichen Itza and the Cenotes

February 2, 2016 roamngrow Leave a comment

Chichen Itza

Pyramid of Kukulcan (El Castillo)

May 2014

Day two took us to the much awaited visit to the Mayan civilization nested inland, 200km from Cancun. A $79 per person bus tour was organized from the Hotel Concierge, that picked us up by 7:30am. Breakfast, drinks, and lunch was included, along with narratives on the history and backgrounds of the Mayan people. If required, we also gathered a nice map for the site, which is regarded as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Until a few years back, tourists could climb up the stairs of the mesoamerican pyramids, but due to vandalism and to protect the ancient wonder, tourists are no longer permitted to climb.

Facts:

In Mayan, Cancun (Kaan Kun) means ‘Nest of the Serpent’. Watch out for the Iguanas in all parts of the area.
Chichen means the mouth of the well. Itz is the high priest.
About 800,000 people still speak the Mayan language, albeit the written language is not practiced anymore, possibly due to the large number of characters and complexity of the structures.
Apart from the Cusco area in Mexico, Mayans still reside in Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala.
Mayans followed the Venus cycle for the famous (or infamous) Mayan Calendar. The calendar counts number of days from the start of the cycle, which is when the Earth, the Sun, and the Venus align. This is the creation date.
Mayan Calendar: Two wheels rotating in opposite directions measure the number of days. The best way to display the LC (long count) day is: Baktun.Katun.Tun.Uinal.Kin. Details of the format can be found here.

In the entire tour, taking 3 hours, we came to know several interesting things about the area. That the area is covered with limestone, made the rivers to run underwater, and therefore provided unlimited filtered water to the inhabitants of the village. The Chichens were smart people, and had placed great values on family, GOD, and the tribe they belonged to. Multiple wars were fought in the days to gain power. They were engineers too. Built straight roads to the ocean, used zero, erected hollow pyramids, and created scientifically designed structures that marked the four seasons based on the Earth’s orbital cycles. By far the most important structure in the area is the Pyramid of Kukulcan (deity of serpent). The pyramid has staircases, designed in a way to make it look like two snakes winding up to the top, with their heads in the ground level. During the equinoxes, the shadows create the visual effect of the deity whirling down the staircase. Interesting: The four staircases have 91 steps, and the final step on the top adds up to the number of days in a solar calendar, 365 days.

El Caracol

Great Ball Court

Other structures we visited were the Great ball court (where the game of Pok ta Pok was played during specific events), the Sacred Wall, El Caracol (the observatory of the Mayans), Chac Mool (the lying human statue), and El Mercado (the market). The structures were all painted in different colors, and over the years, the colors have faded but the rocks still managed to exist even after 1000 years of existence. In essence the Mayans somehow reminded us of the Egyptian and Indus civilizations, albeit without any chance of communication among them. Similarities in the pyramid structure, reliance on the high priests on horoscopes and decisions, and worshiping of deities for food and income would run a shiver if thought carefully.

El Mercado

The Sacred Wall

Chac Mool

After the tour, we were taken to a so called ‘Co-Operative’ for Mayan people where we had a delicious Mexican and Yucatan style lunch buffet accessorized with local music and dancers. But the store up front, had mass produced items at an exceedingly steep price. Therefore, we took the less beaten path, and crossed the street to find a little mom-and-pop shop that had equally good souvenirs. A little bit of haggling for price, with the Calcutta trained shopper, yielded great results. 🙂

Ik Kil Cenote

Cenotes

The tour stopped for a little bit at one of the largest Cenotes (Sink Hole). The Ik Kil Cenote was a good place to be in a hot summer day. With a depth of about 140 feet, one can jump from different heights into the crystal clear water. There are underground tunnels underneath the surface of the water which is about 80 feet from the ground level. For the less adventurous ones, life vests are available for $3, and for the far less adventurous ones, the 80 step staircase would take you to the water level, where you can feel the water and soak the toes. The return phase of the trip was fun with unlimited supply of cerveza, and tequilla shots. Interesting way of getting people to slumber.

Quebec City, QC

July 1, 2015 roamngrow Leave a comment

Back to Canada

A mere 2.5 hours east of Montreal, this capital town of Quebec City province offers a plethora of options to be entertained and mesmerized. An utterly French speaking town, where nas parle Francais may cause overwhelm, at least in the local shops and food stalls. But before even entering the city, we went to visit the beautiful Montmorency Falls, about 15 minutes north of the city.

Montmorency Falls:

To enter the Parc de la chute Montmorency, we paid CAD12.00 and was greeted nicely by a French speaking lady. The grandeur of the falls do not surpass that of Niagara falls, but the height and the sheer volume of water pouring down dizzy heights make the view worthwhile. We were unprepared for the chill and the possibility of getting wet, but nevertheless walked along the wooden footbridge and went closer to the falls. The ~250 feet drop that is about 50 feet higher than the mighty Niagara falls was breathtaking and the power of the water cannot be explained unless experienced from 30-40 feet away.

After getting wet, we decided to take a closer look at the falls and took the cable car ride up to the falls and hiked along the paved trail to encounter the fall from closer than you’d dare to believe.

The suspension bridge above the falls is an amazing addition and probably an engineering feat. The entire volume of water, although controlled slightly, drops in two stages and flows into the Saint Laurant river which merges into the bay near by. The operating hours are sunrise to sunset, but the park partially closes during winter. I am sure the view of the falls in the winter will be fascinating.

Upper Town and Lower Town – Quebec City, QC
It was a nice warm summer afternoon when we drove back to the cute little French town of Quebec chemins of the old town would surely bring out the poet in you. The cozy sunset glow and the aroma of fuming french roast makes you dip in the romance of the moment makes time come to a stand still. But being the time bound tourists on a mission to explore the landmarks and capture them in the handheld cameras, we made our way to the visitor center through hustling streets of upper town.
The capital city of the Quebec City province is home to multiple historic sites, museums, and most importantly the nicest people around. A leisurely stroll around the upper and lower towns while listening to French chatter, street-side musicians playing melodies in their Saxophones and Grand Pianos, and clicking of hooves in the cobblestone
With the detailed map picked up from the visitor center, and our scratchy French, we navigated the maze-like streets to multiple attractions. This city is a paradise for the avid history lover. With French written all over, it boasts a 400 year old history which by no means compares to any European city. But nevertheless it is one of the oldest of the North American cities. Although the charm of the city may distract you to enjoy music and french ice-cream time and again, we recommend the following as a must visit:

Fairmont Le Chateau du Frontiac: Built by the Canadian-Pacific railroads in the late 1800’s, this chain of hotels were on major stops on the rail tracks to the western coastline. This specific hotel is one of the biggest landmarks of the city and can be seen from afar as it is situated on a hill next to the Saint Laurant river. It is where arguably the most historic meeting of World War II between Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt was held in 1944.
2. La Citadelle de Quebec: Also called the Citadel, it housed the active military regimen of the monarch of Canada and the Governor General. With stunning views of the city and historic landmarks, a walk along the two city gates is a must for the history enthusiasts and casual tourists alike.
3. Plains of Abraham: This is where the historic seven years’ battle between the French and the British army and navy took place in 1700’s.
4. Hotel du Parlement: The current parliament house houses major artifacts from the 400 year history. The free 30 minute tour is a worthwhile investment to learn about the intricate details of the history of the city.
5. Musee de la Civilization: After taking in all the history you can find in the city, top off with the well articulated displays in the museum to relate the historical events that built the city. Starting from the French invasion to replace the aboriginals in 1500’s to the modern establishment of the Quebec City in 1869, the visitor will be well versed with the city history.
6. Battlefields Park and fortifications: Fortifications and canons everywhere in the city sings the songs of the numerous battles fought here. A walk along the edges of the upper town while dwelling on imaginary war visuals boggled my mind.
7. Old Town: Winding alleys of old town, exquisite local artwork, and cobblestones streets are going to make you believe that you are in the other side of Atlantic. Be sure to click pictures, but do not forget to experience the charm of the area by visiting local shops and sink in the culture.

Food Scene and Nightlife:
No points for guessing how rich offerings in terms of restaurants a classic French town would have. Being the foodies we are, we managed to find some of the exquisite food options in town for all meals. Here are some key places we tried out and were mesmerized by each:
1. Chez Boulay – bistro Boreal: Has to be one of the best Nordic meals we have had. Confit Goose and Duck, and the Arctic Char were amazing. Be sure to get a reservation or get in before 7pm to avoid wait. Check Yelp reviews here.
2. Cochon Dingue – French breakfast/brunch place in lower town near the Ferry terminal. We had the french toast, and Salmon Confit benedict from the Dejeuner menu and enjoyed every bite of them. Yelp has reviews and recommendations for your aid, but if you can afford to spend some time to have brunch or breakfast check it out.

We are always up for exploring local pubs and bars to feel the local culture and experience the nightlife. So we walked a mile away from the touristy places and found a nice Karaoke bar in the city center. La Ninaksi du Faubourg did have a fantastic atmosphere with locals coming in and singing away. Beer list was exhaustive with local breweries featured in the draft. We enjoyed some melodious French songs and sang along while sipping some old school Canadian Whiskey. I am still humming some of the songs I learned there, and do recommend paying a visit if you are in town.

Accommodation:
We ended up staying in Levis, QC on the other side of the river. It is an easy ferry ride from the Quebec City ferry terminal and it costs about CAD 14 round trip for two. Our hotel in Levis – Four Points Sheraton was located close to the Levis ferry terminal too, and had ample parking space and upgraded interiors.

Additional Tips and Info:
Wi-fi: Every tourist’s worst nightmare these days is lack of data in their smartphones. QC definitely solves the problem, and along with other amenities displays how welcoming the city is to tourists. Every pub, restaurant has free wi-fi, and on the streets one can get into the city wi-fi network easily.
Restrooms: Many clean and safe public restrooms are located in the nooks and crannies of the city.
Language: It helps if you parlez Francais but no one frowned at us if we said je ne pas parle Francais. We were astonished by the locals’ ability to switch between French and English so swiftly and needless to say how courteous people are in this city.
Driving: Everyone drives in the right lane, and moves to the left lane only for passing. To an American driver, it is a sight from another planet. What a place!

Gallery: