Cholula--No Relation to the Hot Sauce!

I would have to say that Cholula is my new favorite place in Mexico. It is off the beaten road, about 20 minutes outside of Puebla. Perhaps that is why I found it so intriguing. We thought the bus driver dropped us up at the wrong stop cause we were in the middle of nowhere. But after walking for a few minutes, we were taken aback to see a yellow and white cathedral on distant hill. We walked towards the city. Behind the cathedral, we could barely make out the ancient Aztec ruins. The center of the city was bustling. People were eating and enjoying the breezy afternoon. It was exciting. It felt like Mexico...the real Mexico. We first went to the ruins. It is no coincidence that there is a Catholic church right above an ancient city. This was the Spanish conquestors M.O.A. They purposefully built over the Aztec cities. It proved the religious and political defeat of the indigenous people. And quite literally, it covered up their history.

After the pyramids, we climbed the hill to the cathedral. As we were walking, we stopped to talk to a woman who was selling fruits and nuts (see picture). She offered us to try one of her special treats. Grasshoppers! Of course, we couln't turn down the offer. To be honest, they tasted pretty good. I thought they tasted like salty peanuts. But then, since we liked the grasshoppers so much, she offered us a fly-looking thing. I am not sure what it was, but I could have lived without it!

The sun set as we were climing up the hill to the cathedral. The view from the top was breathtaking. It's a cheezy word (cursi, in spanish!), but I can explain it any other way. The color of the sky made the church look so beautiful. I took a ton of pictures, but I only posted a few of my favorites.

As we were walking down the hill, tons of families were walking up it. Then, we started to hear fireworks. We finally stopped to ask a family what the celebration was about. They told us that Cholula has 365 churches, one for each day of the year, so every night is a celebration. No wonder the atmosphere of the city is so exciting! We later learned, however, it is slight exaggeration. 365 churches would be a little over kill for the small city!!