Everyone is having a blast today, there is dancing, and so much music and laughter. I was having so much fun with the locals and everyone was showing me how beautiful the statues were. I really didn’t know what we were celebrating until they told me that it was Huitzilpochtli’s birthday! At first, I didn’t know who that was- then they explained to me that it was their god’s birthday! Another thing that I was told was when they had one of their best holidays, because everyone comes together out of respect for their god. They told me that they would make their god out of dough and dress it up in a costume and have this big parade for it around the city, then they would eat it a Templo Mayor. However, there was a long line that was filing up in front of the god. I didn’t know what they were doing until I got a closer look. All of the people were going before it and offering up sacrfices, gifts, and incense to their god. There were also dancers that would go before it as well and dance for it. They had pine sticks and they were dancing. Everyone was there, all of the great leaders, people in charge, everyone that was anyone was there during this festive time. Then after this they would eat it the dough. Honestly, it tasted lovely. At first, I didn’t know how I would feel eating a dough shaped god, but it tasted amazing and everyone was doing it, so I didn’t feel so uncomfortable. I was so tired after this was all over and I did feel such a sense of community with all of the people there. But everyone keeps on talking about Machu Picchu... I should really go visit.

Bernardino de Sahagún, F. (1905). Mexicas prepare to celebrate the festival of Toxcatl (to worship huitzilopochtli): AHA. Mexicas Prepare to Celebrate the Festival of Toxcatl (to Worship Huitzilopochtli) | AHA. https://www.historians.org/teaching-and-learning/teaching-resources-for-historians/teaching-and-learning-in-the-digital-age/the-history-of-the-americas/the-conquest-of-mexico/florentine-codex/mexicas-prepare-to-celebrate-the-festival-of-toxcatl e-festival-of-toxcatl

Syed Rafid Kabir, "Huitzilopochtli: The God of War and the Rising Sun of Aztec Mythology", History Cooperative, March 30, 2023, https://historycooperative.org/huitzilopochtli/. Accessed February 24, 2024