Mexico Equinox 2 - Thousands visit ancient sites for Spring equinox
NAME: MEX EQUINOX 2 20080321I
TAPE: EF08/0310
IN_TIME: 10:35:20:20
DURATION: 00:02:43:22
SOURCES: AP TELEVISION
DATELINE: Teotihuacan, Chichen Itza - 21 March 2008
RESTRICTIONS:
SHOTLIST
Teotihuacan
1. Wide of sun dawning over Sun Pyramid
2. People climbing pyramid steps
3. People descending pyramid steps
4. Wide of sun just rising over Sun Pyramid
5. Man and boy sitting on pyramid steps
6. Mid of people dressed in white on pyramid platform
7. SOUNDBITE: (Spanish) Albino Ruiz, pilgrim:
"There's a lot of people who say we won't find anything here, but if we climb the pyramid, there's the cardinal point of the stars and the moon. That's why the energy comes down to us, and we can receive it until noon today."
8. Pan from Ruiz to woman standing next to him with pyramid in background
9. People standing on platform on the pyramid
10. SOUNDBITE: (Spanish) Virginia Zamora, pilgrim:
"Well yes, because it's when we ask our Father to illuminate us with his sun, for all humanity, for those who suffer, for those who are sick, which many times are the result of negative things that are caused by bad thinking transmitted by other people."
11. Wide of pyramid in silhouette against sun
12. Zoom out of Panda-head-shaped hot air balloon floating behind pyramids
13. People walking, with Pyramid of the Moon in background
14. Various of pilgrims dressed in white
Chichen Itza
15. Tourists sitting next to pyramid
16. Mid of head of Kulkulcan with tourists walking in foreground
17. Various of people settled near Chichen Itza, waiting to see the equinox phenomenon
18. People wearing typical Maya costumes
19. Close-up of Maya woman dressed in typical Maya costume called 'Huipil' with flowers in her hair
20. Mid of head of Kukulcan
21. Man painted in blue blowing on conch
22. Woman dressed like tree performing dance
23. Man painted in blue playing pre-hispanic instruments
STORYLINE
Thousands of pilgrims dressed in white climbed the towering Pyramid of the Sun in Mexico on Friday to celebrate the spring equinox in an annual ceremony which dates back to pre-hispanic times.
The pyramids are located in Teotihuacan, a sprawling pre-Hispanic ghost town 30 miles (50 kilometres) north of Mexico City.
People from across the country make an annual pilgrimage to the ruins to celebrate the first day of spring, climbing the tallest structure, the Pyramid of the Sun, and throwing their arms skyward.
Others stream to the Moon Pyramid, which is not as high but is older.
The pilgrims believe the pyramids hold a special energy on the equinox that can be transmitted to people, especially those who dress in white.
Pilgrim Virginia Zamora stressed that it is also a time when people can absorb the energy for the good of others, as well.
"It's when we ask our Father to illuminate us with His sun, for all humanity, for those who suffer, for those who are sick, which many times are negative things that are caused by bad thinking transmitted by other people," she said.
Teotihuacan emerged about two centuries before the birth of Christ and was home to as many as 200-thousand people at its peak.
The pyramids once formed part of a city the size of ancient Athens or Rome which served as the primary centre of learning in the Americas for over a millennium.
But the city began declining sharply around 650, and was almost completely abandoned by 750 for unknown reasons.
The equinox also is an important event at Chichen Itza, the Mayan ruins on the Yucatan Peninsula.
There, thousands turned out to watch a serpent-shaped shadow slither down the Temple of Kulkulkan (The Feathered Serpent God) at daybreak
The ruins are best known for the Temple of Kulkulkan, considered a Toltec-Maya architectural masterpiece.
Maya experts who have studied its structure believe it was connected with the worshiping of the sun.
During autumn and spring, the sunlight causes seven triangles to form a serpent-shaped shadow down the structure's main stairway which then meets a stone snake-head carved at the bottom.
The square-based, stepped pyramid is approximately 75 feet tall.
Researchers believe it was built for astronomical purposes.