I just got back from Teotihuacan where I climbed a couple of Aztec pyramids. It is literally a breathtaking experience. It was on these pyramids that the Aztecs sacrificed people. There are two main pyramids, the Sun and the Moon, and a few other smaller ones. One of them I believe is for Quetzalcoatl, who was a Toltec priest who became a god. Wikipedia has an article on Quetzalcoatl, although it differs from what I have heard from villagers living in what used to be the seat of the Toltec civilization.
Sanborns is a major Mexican institution, and is not something you should miss if you come here (I believe they exist all over the country). Sanborns is a strange sort of department store with a cafe. Definitely go for coffee to get a glimpse of the local culture. The food isn’t bad either.
This is the most interesting Sanborns of all, located inside the Blue Tile House which was built in 1596 I believe. Don’t miss it if you’re in Mexico City. Much intrigue took place here, including a murder on the staircase.
I didn’t get the chance to go in this time but I was able to snap this pic as I drove by.
I’ve booked some tickets to Mexico for Saturday. In a village close to Tula, not too far outside of Mexico City, it is possible to buy some very nice artesania. The prices are quite good and I plan on filling my suitcase and flying back to Europe where I can probably sell them for a bit more. The other benefit is that the village is close to some pyramids so I will see those too.
I haven’t lived in Mexico in a long time so it will be very nice to finally go back for a visit. If I can find an internet cafe or get broadband at the hotel I will post some pictures during the week!
I was able to get a complete refund from Lufthansa since my flight to BIA (Beirut Rafik Hariri International Airport) has of course been canceled. Normally airlines just give you travel vouchers when this kind of thing happens. Last time I flew with Alitalia they canceled my flight because of a general transportation strike, but the airline laughed at me when I asked about a refund. Instead they offered me a flight the next day, but refused to pay for a hotel room since the strike was not their fault. Frankfurt has reclined seats in a dark quiet area where people can sleep fairly comfortably, but unfortunately London Heathrow is not so accommodating.
Last month we ordered a ton of resin from the United States. The shipping went smoothly and it arrived a little over a week ago. I hired a freight forwarding company to deal with the customs entry and deliver the goods. Since we’ve never used that particular forwarding company before they did not extend any credit to us and insisted on receiving the payment in their bank account before delivery. That is fair enough of course since they paid all of the customs fees on our behalf. So we wired money to their account last week from an account in Korea. Too bad the wire transfer did not arrive yet so the shipping company is holding our goods.
I don’t know very much about banking but I do not understand how it can take more than a week for a bank to send an electronic transfer to another bank. I suspect banks would claim the delays are due to money laundering safegaurds, but considering they make interest on your borrowed money they certainly have no incentive to expedite the process. And then they charge you a fee for the service!
I could also complain about trying to exchange currencies, but I’ll save that for later, since I don’t want to irritate myself by thinking of it any longer.
recent comments