(Post 31 of 193. Thanks again to those who participated in the Fundrazr!)
The archeological site of Mitla was my only disappointing stop in both of the Lani tours I took — first, because I had such a hard time following what the guide was saying and second, because we didn’t get quite enough time.
Mitla is the second most important archeological site in the state of Oaxaca in Mexico and the most important of the Zapotec culture. The most interesting fact I learned about Mitla is that about 90% of it is original and 10% reconstructed, while the opposite is true for Monte Albán.
Mitla is known for its mosaics, but not mosaics like I was expecting. They are made of tiny bits of stone that just fit together with no mortar and from a distance look like fancy brickwork.
Definitely not what I think of when I think of mosaic.
Monte Albán would have been this same colour, derived from mercury.
Entrance into a tomb…
The tomb was very claustrophobic and there was an unpleasant damp odour — but what a cool experience to crawl under what is basically a pyramid. Who needs to visit Egypt when they live in Mexico?!
The second tomb I visited had a little natural light.
I could have used an extra 20 to 30 minutes at Mitla — there were just so many people waiting to get into the tombs that it was do that or explore the rest of the site. But I still got to enjoy the mosaics and get a sense of what a complex built for habitation more than governance or worship was like.