Mexico!

OK folks.... this is going to be a loooooong post. We packed a lot into a few days.



As I wrote about this past summer, Ilan and Patricia were married in August in a beautiful civil ceremony in New Jersey. A reception at Fran and Dov’s home followed, and we had a great time. But why have one party when you can have two…especially if most of your family and friends live in Mexico! So this weekend, we celebrated once again in Puebla with several of Ilan’s friends and many of Patricia’s family and friends.



Here comes the Bride!

Thursday

We left work a bit early and headed to BWI for our flight to Houston and then Mexico City. We got our luggage, cleared customs and boarded an Estrella Roja bus to Puebla. The ride was fantastic- with your ticket, you get a bottle of water and a bag of peanuts.

With our bus tickets!

Finally in Puebla.... David getting our luggage from the bus.

Two hours later, we pulled into the 4 Poniente station where Ilan and Patricia picked us up and drove us to Rocio’s house nearby. Once there, we were given a big room of our own with a private bathroom- it was very nice. We fell asleep in minutes.

Friday

In the morning, we were happy to see Rocio and meet her husband Jorge and their boys Emilio and Diego. It is Emilio’s birthday in a few days and he was going to have a party later that afternoon with all of his cousins. It was also good to see Adriana again and meet her husband Gaston and their boys Gaston and Emilio. We spent a little time chatting and getting to know everyone better. We also learned about what Gaston calls Vitamin T: Tacos, Tortas, Tamales and… Tequila!

We had a breakfast of fruit and quesadillas before taking a taxi to Patricia and Ilan who were staying at her mother’s home. We relaxed and caught up a bit with Dimpna, met up with Chiquis and met her husband Juan Carlos and their sons Rodrigo and Gerardo.

Chiquis and Juan Carlos took the boys to the birthday party and then returned to run errands and pick up several items from their favorite places around Puebla to bring back home to Durango. We joined them and got a great tour of the area and tried delicious dulces and tacos- but they were only tastes of what was to come. Our real lunch was an amazing two hour family extravaganza with Ilan & Patricia, Dimpna and Fran & Dov. Among the many dishes we had were an amazing mole poblano, huitlacoche, cactus soup, molotes, tequila (of course) and tons more!


Amazing mole poblano


tequila! (with traditional lemon and tomato juice accompaniments represents the Mexican flag)

Our late-afternoon lunch stretched into evening and we returned to Dimpna’s home for dessert and drinks with all of Patricia’s family before going out to yet another restaurant that evening to join all of the guests that had come from out of town for a festive gathering. Some ate diner, some (like us who had literally eaten all day long) just had cocktails- but good times were had by all. There were people from Paris, London and several from New York who had made the trip to celebrate with Ilan and Patricia. It was great to meet everyone.


dinner

enjoying our margaritas at the 'out of towner' dinner

Patrica and her mom

Saturday

I woke up early and joined Rocio and Adriana at the salon while David snoozed a bit at the house and then got some work done. I got a manicure while Rocio and Adriana had their hair done. Then we went home, got dressed, picked up Patricia’s bouquet and headed to Rancho El Pastor for the party!

Although it was a bit drizzly and chilly, everyone looked great and was in excellent spirits. We took family photos until the guests arrived at 1:30 PM for cocktail hour.


beautiful bride

Happy Bride and Groom


sisters and niece


catch that bouquet!


The Ehrlich men and their wives

The Groom and his family

surrounded by nephews and niece

Patricia with her sisters, sister in-law, mother and mother in-law

Ilan and his brother in-laws

with the moms

At around 3, the party really got started- Ilan and Patricia thanked everyone for coming and their mothers both spoke a few words as well. Then we ate, drank and danced the night away… the party went until midnight, it was a blast!


My excellent dance partner

David and Erin

Ruiz Family Photo

In our awesome luchador masks (we went to a real match later in this post)

He got the garter!

Smiley Fran and Dov

David and Paul and Tequila

Strike a pose!

the kids' table..... and David

Chiquis, Adriana, Ali and Fran

The tent where the wedding was held - beautiful

Dan and David ...not helping out Ilan at all

Fran and Dov glamour shot

Sunday

We went to Fran and Dov’s beautiful hotel, the Camino Real in the historic district of Puebla for a fantastic brunch. We were joined by Erin, Paul, Dan, Ilan and Patricia and we ate, toasted their happiness and laughed about the escapades of the night before.

After-wedding brunch with Dan, Ilan, Patricia, Paul, Erin and David

Family Photo: Ilan, Patricia, Ali and David with Fran and Dov

Ali in the Camino Real, Puebla

We all spent the afternoon together shopping and walking around Puebla, generally just enjoying the day. In the late afternoon, David and Dov watched a little football before we joined Fran and Dov at a restaurant adjacent to the zócalo, for yet another great dinner. We said farewell as they were leaving very early the next morning for New Jersey and we were heading to Mexico City.

hangin' in Puebla

touring a park in Puebla

Puebla market

Monday

We said goodbye and thank you to Jorge as he left for work and then goodbye to Adriana, Gaston and their boys as they left for Texas. Then Rocio took us to a fabulous place for breakfast. We had fresh squeezed orange juice, quesadilla of zucchini blossoms, mushrooms and cheese and delicious freshly made tortillas with salsa and onion- I can’t remember the name of the exact dish, but it was good!


delicioso!

Full and happy, Rocio then took us to see the Popocatépetl volcano and The Great Pyramid of Cholula, also known as Tlachihualtepetl (artificial mountain). It is the world's largest monument and largest Pre-Columbian pyramid by volume. Gradually covered by time, today the pyramid appears as natural hill with a church on top. The church was built by the Spanish in colonial times as it was easier to cover the pyramid than tear it down.


Pyramid of Cholula

Puebla's popo (in the distance behind me)

She then took us to the bus station. We said goodbye and another great big thank you and boarded our ride to Mexico City. David watched a movie with Nick Cage (and his awful toupee) called Bangkok Dangerous while I read and snoozed a bit.

We arrived in Mexico City, took a cab to our beautiful hotel, dropped off our bags (the room was not ready yet) and took a taxi to Mexico City’s zócalo, the Plaza de la Constitución. We took a tour of the nearby Palacio Nacional (National Palace) and learned a great deal about Mexican history and culture from Diego Rivera’s enormous murals along the main stairwell and the walls of the second floor. The largest mural depicts the history of Mexico from 1521 to 1930. They were all painted between 1929 and 1935, jointly titled “The Epic of the Mexican People.” We also toured the botanical garden which was more like an enormous cactus garden- but very cool.


Mexico City’s busy zócalo


Part of the enormous Diego Rivera mural

We also visited The Catedral Metropolitana de la Asunción de María (Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral )which is the largest and oldest cathedral in the Americas and seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico. There are several smaller chapels throughout the cathedral and the impressive and beautiful Altar of Forgiveness and The Altar of the Kings.

Altar at the Catedral Metropolitana de la Asunción de María

We returned back to our hotel, unpacked a bit, showered, relaxed for a while. Needing a break from the hot sauce- we decided to have a quiet dinner at China Grill Restaurant in our hotel. The meal was good and the drinks were spectacular- David had a Red Mojito and I had a French mojito.

Tuesday

We woke up early for our 7-hour guided tour to Teotihuacan, a pre-Columbian site about an hour outside of Mexico City. is the most visited of Mexico’s archaeological sites The name Teōtīhuacān was given by the Nahuatl-speaking Aztecs centuries after the fall of the city. To the Aztecs, Teotihuacan was a holy place, where the sun, moon and universe were created and it means “birthplace of the gods.”

On the way there, we visited an obsidian workshop and learned about the agave plant and the production of tequila, pulque and mezcal.

A mature agave plant

Then we got to Teotihuacan. The city's broad central avenue, the Calle de los Muertos (Avenue of the Dead) runs the length of the city North-South, and is surrounded by enormous ceremonial structures including the Temple of Quetzalcoatl (Temple of the Feathered Serpent) the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon. Along the Avenue of the Dead are many smaller platforms. Many believed they were tombs, inspiring the name of the avenue but today, scholars have established these were ceremonial platforms that were topped with temples.

We first toured The Temple of Quetzalcoatl. Located at the southern end of the Teotihuacan's Avenue of the Dead, it is a six-level pyramid whose outside edges are decorated with feathered serpent heads alternating with those of another snake-like creature, often identified as Tlaloc. More than two hundred sacrificial burials have been found at the pyramid, and are believed to be carried out as part of the dedication of the temple.

Heads of serpents and Tlaloc at the Temple of Quetzalcoatl

At an ancient Aztec dwelling- you can still see some original artwork

Pyramid of the Moon (left) Pyramid of the Sun (right)

We explored some ancient dwellings that had amazingly preserved artwork and got a better understanding for how the inhabitants lived in the 4th Century.

We climbed as high as they would let us go up on The Pyramid of the Moon and then we climbed to the very top of The Pyramid of the Sun which is the third largest Pyramid in the world (after the Great Pyramid of Cholula in Mexico and the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt). It was quite a hike and the views were spectacular!

David atop the Pyramid of the Sun overlooking the Pyramid of the Moon


At the top the Pyramid of the Moon overlooking the Calle de los Muertos and ceremonial platforms


Pyramid of the Moon

We ended our day-trip with a visit to the the Basilica of Guadalupe (Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe). According to tradition, an image of the Virgin Mary appeared miraculously on the cloak of an indigenous peasant named Juan Diego in 1531. Her icon is on display in the Basilica of Guadalupe which is the most visited Catholic shrine, and after Mecca and the Vatican, it is the 3rd most visited religions site in the world.


Virgin Mary of Guadalupe


The Basillica

That night, we met up with Patrick and Grace to see the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (Worldwide Wrestling Council). Among the fighters were the World Heavyweight Champion: Último Guerrero, World Super Lightweight Champion: Máscara Dorada and the Mexican National Trios Champions: Mascara Dorada, Stuka, Jr. and Metro. All of it is choreographed and planned-out but still very fun. Unfortunately we were not allowed to bring in our cameras.


Patrick and David's late night snack after wrestling


masks for sale


t-shirts for sale

Wednesday

In the morning we walked through Chapultepec Park and toured the Museo Nacional de Antropología (National Anthropological Museum). With its archaeological artifacts from the ancient cultures including Olmec, Mexica, Maya, Aztec and others, it was a very impressive place! We only had about three hours so we hit the highlights. We saw the Piedra del Sol (the Aztec Sun Stone) which is one of Mexico's most known and loved symbols as well as a famous obsidian vessel carved in the shape of a monkey which made David very happy.


National Anthropological Museum


Aztec Sun Stone (you don't get a sense for how big this thing is from the photo- it's huge!)


butterfly mask


obsidian monkey urn

On the way back to the hotel we stopped in for a quick bite at taco place MariCruz had recommended. We had high expectation coming from a local and Los Panchos did not disappoint. They were and excellent last meal in Mexico.


Adios Mexico!

We finished up, picked up our bags from the hotel and went to the airport. Two flights later we were back home in Maryland. Boy was jerry glad to see us walk in the door. We had such a great trip, I have a feeling we will be returning to Mexico soon!

As I said above.... this is a LONG post. If I left something or someone out- I apologize. We saw and did a lot of things…. all of them amazing. I do however, want to take a minute and thank Rocio and Jorge one more time. They not only welcomed us into their beautiful home, but treated us like family during our stay (which, I guess we are now). Their generosity, thoughtfulness, caring and genuine warmth made our trip feel like we had been family for years. It truly put us at ease and we are so grateful for their hospitality. Rocio and Jorge, we hope you and the boys come to DC soon, hopefully it won't be too long before we see you again.