TEOTIHUACAN: Ciudade de los Dioses

On the 29th of September Mom and I walked the Calle de los Muertos. We went with the other senior missionary couple, Elder and sister Andersen. Our fearless leaders were Ezra Flores, and David and Luci Perez, our wonderful neighbors. What an overwhelming experience. It is hard to describe the feeling one gets, after the fact, when you begin to realize that we were walking the very streets where Book of Mormon prophets walked more than 2000 years ago. And then the reality sets in, we were standing on the very ground where the resurrected Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, appeared to the people of the Book of Mormon in 33 AD.
What can we say except that it was a profound experience. We walked in, under, around and upon the ancient stones that were placed there to honor God, and later served to worship false gods of the fallen people who had rejected Him. I climbed up to the very top of the tallest pyramid in Mexico, the Pyramid of the Sun, and looked upon the Pyramid of the Moon. We set out together to climb what seemed like an insurmountable staircase to the top of this gynormous pile of neatly stacked, massive blocks of stone. Then at the first level, Mom said, “You go on without me. I know I can’t make it.” I decided that if she couldn’t continue, then I would just stay with her until the group returned for the decent. But she said, “This is a once in a lifetime chance to do something that you will remember all the days of your life. I want you to go for it.” So reluctantly I continued on for the remaining 100 stair steps, each at least 12 inches high. I almost gave up twice more, but her words, “Go for it.” Kept ringing in my ears, and I gathered strength, and courage and continued on to the top. The climb is very steep, and is not for the faint of heart or weak of limb. My legs were very rubbery when I finally reached my goal, and when I turned and looked back down the stairs I got dizzy. I was told that the people who came up to worship God would always descend backwards because it would be disrespectful to turn one’s back on God. I can see where this would also be easier, if not safer. I had to go back down forward though because there were so many people that if I went backward they would step on my hands. The view from the top was very impressive. I could see the entire Ciudad de los Dioses (City of the Gods). I will attempt to insert a picture of me at the top, with the Pyramid of the Moon in the background.
When I returned to her, Mom was happy that I had made it to the top, and she shared with me how interesting it had been to sit there and listen to all the different languages that were being spoken by the visitors that were constantly streaming up and down the stairs. Some stopping briefly to rest before continuing on. Then hand in hand we descended the last 50 stairs to the bottom of the Pyramid of the Sun.
All along the calle de los muertos there are ruins of homes, and markets and various other buildings used by these ancient people. We were able to go into some that still had roofs and the halls and rooms still had some colors left from the ancient décor. There were many fountains, baths, and pools (all dry of course). There was one room that had walls and appeared to be in its original condition. In the center of this room was a massive rectangular pool. We were told that it was used as a teaching tool for ancient students of astrology. The pool reflected the night sky and all the stars for the students to study. The walls and pillars were ornately decorated with ancient symbols that represented God’s creations and powers along with His eyes that overlooked all.
After the afternoon of exploration of the ruins, we visited the museum, where they had a complete diorama of the entire city, which also included markers for the archeological sites that were yet to be excavated. There were also numerous displays of ancient artifacts, tools, weapons, and carved stones that were used to decorate the buildings in the city.
At about 3 o’clock, after a long day of hiking and exploration, we returned to the cars, and had some lunch and some water, then we began our journey home. We were very tired, but grateful for the opportunity to taste of the ancient culture of this beautiful and mysterious city. We had been anticipating this adventure for three or four weeks, and we were discouraged when for two solid days, prior to the trip, it rained. There was a tropical storm and on those days it rained all day. During the normal rainy season it never rains for more than an hour or two. Then we heard that there was another tropical storm right behind this one. Well it didn’t rain a bit while we were there, and in fact it wasn’t really hot either. We had been told to wear hats for protection from the sun, but it was actually quite pleasant. No sooner than we got on the road, than it began to rain, very hard. Within a half hour we were driving through 2 to 3 inches of water, and in some places the water was up to our hubcaps. We could see it on other cars on the road.
Thanks to our very skillful and absolutely wonderful driver and leader of our expedition we arrived home safely. Ezra Flores will always be a special person in our lives. He came up to us one day as we walked through the mall. He introduced himself and told us he was a returned missionary. Shortly thereafter he invited us to come to his home and share a family home evening and meet his family. They are an amazing and wonderful family, and we have found out that he is a third generation member of the church. His parents were born into the church and so was he and his older brother and younger sister. He and his brother served missions in the states, and speak excellent English. The younger sister is thinking about going on a mission. She just finished her college degree in accounting. Their father is a chemical engineer, and the whole family serve as a support family for the church’s high school in the central district. We love all the people of Mexico, but this is one family, along with a few others we have come to know, who will always be special to us.