Dia Cuatro

Ahhhhhhhhhh.  After all that riding, a bunch of tired kittycats needed no herding, breakfast in the courtyard at the civilized hour of 9:00 ayem, then a leisurely walk over to and up on the Great Pyramid of Cholula, a massive structure with of course a church on top of it.  It was interesting, but because it's mostly covered with so many centuries of earth, it is underwhelming compared to other Mesoamerican monumental architecture, even though it is, literally, the largest monument anywhere in the world.

Afterwards I took Joe and Juanita and J. D. ambling across town (Cholula isn't very large) to the market, which Joe and Juanita fell in love with, and J. D. showed them some things to eat at the little cafe-like stalls.  I scuttled back to the Quinta Luna for a much-needed nap.

Then late yesterday we reconnected with Dave and Garin and all met at the Zocalo over in Puebla, having taxied over.  Wandered the 16th C. cathedral, the streets lined with buildings of the same era, listened to live symphonic music on the square, people-watched, had a wonderful dinner, as we let the evening overtake us. We sat in the hotel courtyard for awhile upon our return, and eventually repaired, happy, to our rooms. A lovely day.  The bikes gathered dust, literally, in the Quinta's parking area.

Oh!  And atop the Great Pyramid, looming much closer than expected, through the haze, the giant volcano Popocateptl, steam rising from the cone, snow here and there near the summit.  I have known the legend since 5th grade, and the old photos from geography class of that year fired my imagination then, just as did the hazy view today of the real thing.