Cholula Pyramid - Day 6

Cathedral on the pyramid
After a great breakfast of atole, beans, tortillas, scrambled eggs, bread, papaya, and 3 kinds of tamales, we left for Puebla, the site of the largest pyramid in the world. Also the largest building of worship, Pyramid of Cholula.
We went to the pyramid in Cholula. They had dug tunnels into the mountain and found at least one temple deep under another temple. All around the hill in a 20 acre area there were ruins.

Exposed ruins

On the very top of the hill, probably 500 feet high, is an elaborate Catholic church. Edwin bought a bag of chapulines, fried grasshoppers. Then everyone but Grandpa and Virginia ate one, then Gusty caught some live ones, ate one, and induced Edwin to eat an alive one also. We saw lots of fields of Sempasuchiki, yellow “flowers for the dead” for November. We had an ice cream break.
- Grandpa

The tunnels were amazing. The walls and ceilings were shaped like this:

Augustus in the tunnel

We just got back from the mercado. We had quesadillas and soda – no root beer. I couldn’t quite taste the cheese in it, but they were all good. There were three types – mushroom, pork rind, and plain cheese and squash flowers. Dad had mole on chicken, and Grandpa had frijoles. Considering there were chapulins, some food is better than other. Now we are looking for a motel. We are in Puebla where quesadillas and mole are famous.
- Virginia

We went to the Pyramid at Cholula – the biggest pyramid in the world. Apparently the Mayans kept adding onto it – first a temple, and added a pyramid on top. It was flat on top, and they put houses on top. Now there is a hill on it, and a Spanish church on top of that. All you could rally see was the hill – the pyramid part was all underground. Like Brat Andrew used to say, “Where does the dirt come from and where does the money go? There must be a correlation.” They had unburied a lot of ruins around the hill, and restored it. It was so much, but supposedly they have only uncovered a small part. There was a mango stand – the guy peeled them, cut them up like a flower, smeared red stuff on it, and sprinkled it with chili. It looked like a red-yellow flower! We went to the market and a guy was selling smoked guave – the plant they make tequila out of. We chewed on some and got rid of it at the next trash can.
- Angela

We went to a restaurant. The food was hot. I got soup, Dad got chicken, and the rest of the family got beef. We saw thatched roofs. We went to a suspension bridge. We stopped for pineapple.
- Caleb

We went to Cholula. Cholula is the biggest pyramid in volume. We went to the museum and saw a model of the pyramid. We learned that the church is on the pyramid, and the pyramid was on another pyramid. We went through one of a lot of tunnels. The tunnels were dug by archaeologists. It was interesting looking at all of the other tunnels. Then we went and looked at the exterior. We saw a man. He was putting plaster on the steps to make it look like the plaster was original. Mom was disgusted.

Entrance to tunnels through the pyramid


After that we went to eat ice cream. After ice cream we went to the church. Dad stopped and bought some chapulin (grasshoppers). Angela, Ginger, Caleb, and I went up ahead to the church. We looked at the view. The rest of our group came up with a small bag of baked grasshoppers. Dad told us all to eat at least one grasshopper. Grandpa and Ginger refused to have any. Augustus told me that he ate a live one. We were astounded with the church. Once outside of the church we all looked at the view again. Dad and Augustus both ate live grasshoppers. I was grossed out. Dad bought a post card for remembrance. I bought a postcard to send.
- Elena

Dad and Augustus munching on fresh grasshopper

We passed grasshoppers. Dad got some. We found a hotel. We went to sleep. I threw up. I went to Mom. I told Mom that I threw up. I brushed my teeth. We went to sleep. I threw up again the last time. I went to Mom. Mom got up. I slept the night in Mom’s room.
- Augustus

Watching the grasshopper-eating!


Colondres Hotel – in my book, the most unique and enchanting hotel I’ve ever been in! Every surface is either concrete or tile – shiny 12” tile floors, stucco walls in different textures and colors, stucco-framed mirrors (3 – one over the stucco and tile vanity, and 2 beside the bed, making the spacious rooms appear even more open. The TV stand is stuccoed. The vanity and 2 end tables are topped by the same tile as the floor, and edged with the same finish as the mirrors and built-in headboard. And there’s even a concrete couch! To top it all off, this was the cheapest hotel of our entire trip – only 130 pesos per room!
- Naomi

Concrete hotel room


We left mid morning for Puebla, the toll road was good through cool well watered mountains with Popo and Ixta in view. Soon we were in Puebla with a new volcano. There were large grain fields, large flower fields (sempasuchiki) for the dead. Then we found the pyramid Cholula said by the Guinness book of records, to be the largest edifice in the world, a third larger than the great pyramid of Egypt. It was maybe 600 feet high, covered maybe 20 acres and had a large church on top but the entire pyramid was so large the church looked insignificant. They have excavated miles of tunnels into the hill finding other smaller pyramids concentrically located inside and covered over as at least three new rulers have wanted his name on the monument. It is sort of like the Chinese Emperor who ordered all books burned so the oldest book would date back to his dynasty. The town is said to have 365 Catholic churches.


Count the Churches!

Going up the pyramid a vendor sold Edwin some chapoline, baked grasshoppers. He shared with the family, only Virginia and I declined. Gusty liked them so well he caught a few live ones and ate them, he shared but only Edwin accepted, and only Gusty was ‘one with the volcanoes’ in the night, good thing he made it to the bath room in time.
We had a fine motel, all concrete, concrete night stand, concrete couch, concrete bed stand, concrete wash basins and Angela said ‘concrete mattress as well’. It was the first hot water we had since Texas. Puebla was said by Cortez to be the prettiest town outside of Spain. Nearby there is a dormant volcano, Malinche, with snow around the old cauldron extending half a mile or so down the side. Puebla is significant in the history of chocolate, it may have originated there.
- Grandpa

View from the top - Volcano Malinche in the distance