The Best of Both Worlds

The rain in Mexico in the fall is every bit as bad as its made out to be.  It wouldnt bother me so much if it wasnt so grey during the day time.  But not only does it rain intensely hard in the evenings, but the whole day is usually dark, damp and cold as well.  This wasnt the ideal I had in mind before coming out here. People dont believe me, but it really is cold here!  I understand, I dont think I would have believed it a year ago either, but its the truth.  What I dont understand is how Denver, Coloraro, which is almost as high in elevation as the DF but at a much more northern latitude, can be 10 degrees warmer on a September day. 

But anyway, I went to visit the Plaza de las Tres Culturas on Sunday.  It is a plaza centered around the ruins of Tlateloco, the sister city of Tenochtilan at the time of the conquest.  Tlateloco was the marketplace of the metropolis; a bustling commercial center that left Cortes’ men in awe.  There were so much on offer, and at such a scale, that these Europeans were astounded. 

Unfortunately that is about all I know about the history of the site at the moment.  I got to get a copy of the book Hugh Thomas wrote on the conquest to get a better feel for everything that happened.  The conquest of Mexico by the Spaniards is without a doubt one of the most incredible events in the history of mankind.  It would have been as if aliens were to land on the earth tomorrow, and conquer the whole planet. For the Aztecs, the situation was hardly any different. Two different world colliding, and the history of an entire continent immediately turned completely around.  I always thought that this was the true beginning of the history of America, not when Colombus landed on tiny Hispaniola.