Teotihuacan: Birthplace of the Gods

Four days in, we went on a guided tour of Teotihuacan - a miraculously well-preserved Mesoamerican citadel.

Once the biggest city in the pre-Columbian Americas, and thought to be home to around 125,000 indigenous peoples, Teotihuacan is a significant point of interest for historians and archaeologists.

The city - dubbed by the Aztecs as "The Birthplace of the Gods" is made up of three sacred pyramids all situated around the Avenue of the Dead: the Pyramid of the Sun, the Pyramid of the Moon and the Temple of Cetzalkokal. These fascinating focal points of the site are then surrounded by the ruins of former dwellings.

Ascending all three pyramids, we got to see where ancient sacrifices took place. As horrendous as it was listening to the gory details of the sacrifice - we learned that it was supposedly one of the most honorable ways to day as it assured the individual's place with the gods in the afterlife. Individuals chosen to be sacrificed were invariably children, virgins or warriors.

The site predates the Aztec civilisation, but when the Aztecs found the site they claimed it as spiritual ground and also claimed common ancestry with those who built it - possible candidates are the Nahua, Otomi or Totonac ethnic groups. Some academics even suggest Teotihuacan was a multi-ethnic state.

The most amazing aspect of the site was the symmetry, design and planning that went into its construction. The ancient city is made up of a number of optical allusions - a design feature that is particularly amazing considering the time that the site was first constructed. The site's largest pyramids also perfectly mirror the mountains seen behind them, making the mountains look like shadows.

The creators of Teotihuacan did this because they maintained the belief that pyramids and mountains serve the same purpose - to situate the individual closer to the gods.

We got up at the crack of dawn to get to the pyramids for around 8 o'clock, making our way through all of Mexico City's colourful hillside barrios along the way. We were accompanied by a number of eccentric characters including a pair of British scholars and a sexist Dutchman. After making our way up all three pyramids, we went to a local workshop where we got to do some much needed mezcal tasting. Taking advantage of the situation, our group had a few extra shots and then had a boozy lunch at a local restaurant... Which included more mezcal.

All I can say is I'm glad we didn't do the day in reverse order.