Chronicles of Mexico 1962 Saturday, March 31

Chronicles of Mexico 1962 Saturday, March 31

Excerpts from a teenager’s diary/scrapbook

(The full names of locations have been added to the Transcript of the scrapbook for clarification.)

Saturday, March 31, 1962

When we were finished eating breakfast in the hotel, we got into our little groups  and left to see the shrine to the Virgin of Guadalupe  (associated with a venerated image enshrined within the Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe north of Mexico City.) On the inside , it was simply gorgeous, because everything was on such a large scale with minute detail, all in gold leaf. This cathedral is evidence that Mexico is sinking as one picture shows. The third picture shows the Bishop who built this cathedral.

Next, at the excavations of Teotihuacan, I marveled at the precision of the construction. Each corner pointed exactly North, East, South, or West. We asked Raphel how the Indians got the sacrificial platforms level. He explained that, before the rainy season began, they build the shells and, when the rain water had filled each shell, they simply marked the water level, which would be level all the way around.

West of Teotihuacan, there were pyramids of San Juan, which were the Pyramid of the Sun Moon. (photos) From on top of the Sun Pyramid, the equivalent of a five story building, you could see for miles around the country side, including the excavations and the road we came in on.

After lunch in the hotel, we went  to see the sights  in Mexico City itself. This included the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary into Heavens and the Monument to Independence (a victory column on a roundabout on the major thoroughfare of Paseo de la Reforma in downtown Mexico City). Everything about the Mexican Cathedrals have grandeur to them.

This cathedral has six altars on each side on the inside , dedicated to the twelve apostles and a smaller altar  at the fore-end on both sides of a larger altar. In the middle are two large altars. All three altars and each domed ceiling are fourteen carat gold leaf, which makes quite an impression. It’s well, so much.

I roomed with Marla in the Hotel Genevieve again.