Last weekend we went to Tepotzlán, a town known for its sacred energy and a pyramid that has survived over 500 years. The town is beautiful. It's small, surrounded by oddly shaped mountains, and has the best tianguis (market) I've seen yet. It also is known for the wild variety of nieves, or sorbets, you can buy, although they were a bit too icy for my taste. However, the flavors are exotic - avocado, tequila with lime, burnt sugar, cactus, carrot, lettuce... It's quite a list. 
We hiked up to the pyramid the second day we were in town - us and a crowd of day trippers from Mexcio D.F., who flood Tepotzlán on the weekends, looking for respite from D.F.'s smog. The hike was a steep 2 km, and wound its way through thick forests and trickling streams to finally break through the trees, climb up a metal stairwa
y, climb some more stone steps, and reach the pyramid, where you have to pay 35 pesos to actually get on the pyramid. But it was worth it! The view is beautiful, and although the sacredness of the spot is a bit muddied by the young couples making out on the side of the
pyramid, the recent offerings left by believers made me feel like we were part of something bigger than ourselves. The trail we climbed was the part of the original path the priests and their devotees climbed in the 1500's. Wow.
Tepotzlán is also known for the elaborate entryway to the main church. The arch that forms
the entrance is redone every year with a seed mural. Seeds of all kind -rice, peas, black beans, lima beans, you name it - are used to
create a religious motif showing the conversion of Tepoztecatl, the leader of the native group converted by the Dominicans, Christ's ascension, the Holy Family, and other stories.
Although we did not get photos of our auras taken
or a massage, or a tarot reading, or a henna tattoo, we did met a lovely woman named Carmen from Oaxaca whose family owns a Tepoz business selling rugs - and we are now the happy owners of two beautifully made wool rugs. This is definitely a town I'd bring visitors to!
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2 comments:
Reed, I love your blog! The pictures are amazing and it always gives me travel ideas. I'm so far from everything that I wonder if I'll do much traveling before my attempt to sweep the country during our two week break in April, but you're helping me make my list! I may have an extended stay after the weekend we have our Comexus meeting, so I may pick your brain then for what I can/should do. Keep it up!
I went there! The view was lovely, albeit a little hazy. But I don't remember the seed mural. Mostly I just remember being in awe of the senoras who had done the whole walk up there in heels. (Hannah)
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