Cholula

Yesterday I met Bryce, Lily, and Megan on campus at 10 in the morning. From there, we took a bus to just outside Cholula. Cholula is a small city outside of the city of Puebla, and is home to la Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de los Remedios (Church of Our Lady of Remedies) and the largest pyramid by volume, Tlachihualtepetl. The church was built on a hill, more like a mountain, in 1594 and still has services today. After hiking up a very steep path and climbing too many stairs, we made it to the church. The views of the city from the top were absolutely stunning and made the hike worthwhile. Once you get to the top, it is entertaining to watch people make the trek up the mountain. Most people have to stop several times to catch their breath. Why people would choose to attend this church is beyond me, but more power to them. We were there around noon, so 12 mass was going on, and it was interesting to listen to and see. After taking pictures and catching our breath, we made our way down to the Aztec ruins and the massive pyramid. It was all beautiful and interesting to read about the history. I am excited to visit Tenochtitlan in a couple of weeks! Then, we walked through the streets and markets of Cholula for a couple of hours. I bought a Mexican blanket, which I knew I wanted to buy at some point, so decided to buy it now and get some use out of it before taking it home. We had lunch at a restaurant in a market, and I had delicious, but different, quesadilla with ham.

After exploring for a little bit longer, we took a bus back to el Centro in Puebla, where we spent some more time walking through churches, markets, and finally eating churros. J It had been a long day with a lot of walking and exploring, so around 5:30 we decided to make our way to the busstop and catch a bus back to campus. I got home around 6 and was looking forward to a relaxing night. I was able to Skype with so many people-Er Bear, Barbara, Erin, Keely/Olivia, and Hanna-, and do a little homework before calling it a night. Great end to a fun, but long day!