Xochicalco and Cacahuamilpa (say that 10 times fast!)

So today we finally took a trip southwest to check out a ruin site and a cave that we have been dying to see for months.  We set out bright and early (9:00 am...that is early in Mexico!), picked up a couple friends and hit the road.  After a lovely 2 hour drive through the mountains, we arrived at our first stop, the ruins at Xochicalco, located just southwest of the city of Cuernavaca, for those of you following along on a map.

Of course, the first thing I found was a giant cactus.  Que bonito!

Eric caught this great shot of a butterfly landing on a buganvilla (I think it is spelled differently in English...the internet could not come to a consensus, so I am going with the Spanish).  Mexico is famous for its incredible Monarch butterflies, but a lesser known fact is that there are many giant gorgeous species of butterfly soaring about.  I have no idea what kind this one is, but it is pretty nonetheless.

Some skele-humor!  Those silly skulls, always with their bad jokes!

We found this sign to be one of the most useful things we've found in a museum...not to mention an excellent checklist of pre-Hispanic sites to see.

I'd like to point out that this warning, much like an earlier warning we posted about pointing a coin-binocular directly at the sun, was only given in English.  Every Mexican obviously knows not to run or jump on the ruins!

Xochicalco...Cultural Patrimony of Humanity.

Us with our friends in front of the main temple at the site.  This picture took some doing...luckily a nice Mexican couple came over and helped us.

Say queso!

This ruin site was seriously awesome.  We didn't quite know what to expect, as the guidebooks basically say, "Yea, there's some ruins there," with no pictures or anything.  We were blown away by the size of the site, and the immensity of the structures.  Look at that!

One thing I love about visiting lesser known ruin sites is how alone you are with the ruins.  There were some other visitors, but nothing like a famous site has, like a visit to Teotihua-Disneylandia, where you can't get a single picture without at least 20 other tourists in it.  Here's Eric standing between two structures...he looks so small!

More views of the ruins...

Look, someone vandalized a tree in our honor! 

This structure was the crown jewel of the site.  It's an in-tact observatory/pre-Hispanic calendar, complete with many depictions of Quetzalcoatl and heavy Mayan influence.

Another shot of the observatory.  We all suspect there may have been some kind of sundial on top, but this is the only structure we were not allowed to climb on and confirm that suspicion.

This place had incredible views of the valley below from all sides.  The site was probably relatively easy to defend, since the inhabitants could see enemy armies arching long before they ever even got close to the city.

Self-portrait time!

Eat this Grecia!  We, too, have our very own Acropolis!

Usually the Ball Court (present at every pre-Hispanic ruin site I have ever been to) is off limits for walking around, but here you can walk right through the middle!  The Ball Game was a rather bloody affair, involving a stone ball and death, so actually walking on the court is really sort of creepy.

After the Ball Court, we followed a little deserted path around a corner, and stumbled on this huge structure.  It apparently is a different observatory, and once of year a magical light beam comes through the ceiling inside to provide some kind of mystical guidance or something.  The inside was closed today, but the structure was still amazing.

Here I am peeking out of the structure...I look like a local, right??

AAAHHHHH!!  I always knew there were ghosts at these places!!

After a couple hours wandering around the site in the hot sun, Mexico read our minds.  At first, when we saw this La Michoacana magic ice cream truck, we thought it was a mirage...then we chased it down the street until it stopped and sold us a refreshing treat. :)

After Xochicalco and our paletas, we piled back in our car to head to our next destination: The Caves at Cacahuamilpa.  We drove for about an hour down a long and winding road, through little tiny villages in the country.  This donkey was one of many livestock we had to dodge in the road.  This was definitely not the cuota!!

After a long, winding road through the mountains, and many near misses with the local cattle, we made it to the Caves at Cacahuamilpa!

We took a 90 minute guided tour of the cave, a national treasure.  Look at that cool cave stuff!

More cave stuff...

Ooohhh, spooky!

According to our guide/stand-up comedian, here we have a guy on the left bringing a mocha to his friend the lion on the right.....

....and this is a giant Corona, ready for the drinking.  We thought we would have an educational cave tour, but it was really all about finding shapes and faces in the cave formations. See Osama bin Laden's face on the wall?  Yea, me neither, but the guide swore it was there.

And finally, after almost 2 hours underground in a hot, sweaty cave, I got my reward.  A cold drink, mixed in front me inside of a coconut from a not-at-all sketchy street vendor.  So worth it.

From the caves we started home, but decided to take a detour to the cute little town of Tepoztlan, northeast of Cuernavaca, for dinner.  No pictures, but if you ever find yourself there El Ciruelo is a fantastic restaurant.  One of the best meals I have had in Mexico, and well worth the detour.  We finally arrived home at 1:00 am, having had a super fun day.  We are definitely back in the swing of Mexico again!