It's the hill where in 1531, a Mexican farmer supposedly saw several visions of Our Lady of Guadalupe (aka Virgin Mary). Millions of people come to this place every year and you can see the extremely devoted walk through the great plaza, towards the Basillica crawling on their knees. The area is teeming with chapels, churches and cathedrals all perched on the Tepeyac hill where the vision took place.
This is the artificial waterfall containing statues depicting the scene with Guadalupe and the indigenous converts. I also saw a long-tailed sheep wandering precariously on the edge of the grassy slope, just munching grass which perfectly completed the idyllic afternoon. Holy sheep!
This is the 'new' basillica built in the 70s and designed by an architect who also built Mexico's big sports stadium 'Estadio Azteca'. It seats 40 000 devotees and designed so the maximum number of people can see the icon of Guadalupe. There's also several slow-moving travellators behind the altar, beneath the icon, so one can get a good look and a nice snap. Intelligent design.
Perhaps you cannot see from this next picture, but this is the Old Basilica which is sinking into the ground and on a severe lean. The fact that it was bombed in the 20s didn't help the situation either. Inside it's all scaffolded for structural support and because the damage is still being repaired.
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