Vacation in Mexico

August 10, 2010 Uncategorized 0

Sorry folks, I have been on a brief hiatus to take the first family vacation in years to Mexico, and what a wonderful trip it was. Reading the blogs it looks like a lot went on while I was gone, especially the Santa Ana City Council doing their best impression of the old ruling party of Mexico, the PRI, by blatantly silencing free speech. So while the City Council flipped the bird to the US Constitution and the most successful Latino blogger EVER continued to neglect his problems and focus on blogging, I was travelling around some of the most beautiful areas of Mexico with my family.  Here are some of the pics:

Teotihuacan

We began the vacation by visiting Teotihuacan, which let me mention one day is NOT enough to really take in this incredible place. Built nearly 2,000 it was one of the largest city’s on Earth at its heighth. Below are some of the most interesting sites of Teotihuacan:

Pyramid of the Sun
Temple of Queztalcoatl

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pyramid of the Moon
Palace of Quetzalpopolotl
Temple of the Jaguar

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pachuca and Tula

After Teotihuacan, we visited family I have in Pachuca, which is the capital of the State of Hidalgo. They are famous for the Pastes, which are similar to empenadas and are really good. We also visited Tula, which is the ancient capital of the Toltecs from the 9th to 11th centuries. Here are some pics from that visit:

Pachuca Clock Tower
Atlantean Statues
Serpent Relief
Pyramid C
Ball Court

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dolores Hidalgo

After leaving Pachuca, we made our way north to the state of Guanajuato, home to some of the most historic and beautiful cities in Mexico, including the city of Guanajuato, Penjamo, San Miguel de Allende and Dolores Hidalgo. It just so happens my father is from Dolores Hidalgo and we still have a lot of family who live there. Dolores Hidalgo is the city where the Mexican War of Independence against Spain began, in fact this year is the Bicentennial Anniversary. It was on September 15th, 1810 that Miguel Hidalgo, the local priest in the town, rang the bell of the main church and declared a revolution against Spain, a call for freedom for those of Mestizo and Indigenous descent and a call for the abolition of African slaves. Here are some pics from Dolores Hidalgo:

Church of the Grito de Independencia
Museum of Independence
Church of the Assumption

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Queretaro and Villa Progreso

Last place visited was the town where my wife is from, Villa Progreso. Villa Progreso is a small pueblo in the eastern end of the state of Queretaro. In the town is a historic colonial era church built in the mid 17th century, only 25 years after the pilgrims landed in Massachusetts. The church is dedicated to Saint Michael the Archangel. We also visited the Pyramid of El Pueblito, which is a recent discovery in the state of Queretaro. For years many people(except the locals) thought it was simply a hill. Turns out it was a pyramid likely built by the Toltecs. Although we were not able to go into the site, I did speak with an archeologist there who mentioned there is more buildings and structures being discovered. A testament to what a rich history Mexico truly has.

 

Church of San Miguel Arcangel

 

Pyramid of El Pueblito
Parque de Villa Progreso
So that was it for our trip to Mexico. I look forward to visiting again real soon, this vacation wasn’t long enough.