Sub-Regions and History

 Map 1: Identifying the 4 Sub-Regions within Latin America and the Caribbean,  the Treaty of Tordesillas, and the path that Cortes took during his exploration of Mexico.

    In the map above, you will find 4 distinct sub-regions. These are the same sub-regions based on language identified in Exercise 2 . The sub-regions are the Spanish Sub-Region, Portuguese Sub-Region, English Sub-Region, and European Sub-Region. 

    Within the Portuguese Sub-Region, you will notice a pink path titled, "Line of Tordesillas." The line is drawn from 40° N, 46° W to 40° S, 46° W. This line represents the separation of land established in the Treaty of Tordesillas. The Treaty of Tordesillas was signed to separate the newly discovered land between the Portuguese and Spanish. 

    Within the Spanish Sub-Region, one will notice several pins in a close area connected by a pathway by zooming in to Mexico. These pins indicate towns that Cortes passed through on his journey. Cortes was a Spanish conquistador; he was known well for conquering Mexico for Spain in 1521. The pathway traces his journey throughout Mexico. His journey begins in Zempoala. He then passes through Jalapa, Tlaxcala, Cholula, Chalco, and Plaza de la Constitución. His journey ends at the Chapultepec Castle. Throughout his journey, he encountered many different terrains. 

 Image 1: Screenshot from Google Earth Pro displaying the elevation Levels throughout Cortes' journey

            Image 2: Screenshot from Google Earth Pro displaying where Cortes' path goes between two volcanoes, Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl.

    By looking at these two images, we have have a small idea of what kind of conditions and terrain Cortes encountered throughout his journey. In the elevation report, it is apparent that there were lots of  ups and downs. This indicates traveling through many mountains and valleys. The second photo shows where his path traveled in-between two volcanoes, Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl. 

    Now that we have details on his journey, we can focus more on his ending point, the Chapultepec Castle. 

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           Mural 1: Mural of Cortes' view from Castle.                                     Image 3: Screenshot from GEP, from the Castle.

    

    These two images show many differences, but they also display great similarity. The first image is a mural drawn based off of Cortes' description of the land  The second image is a present day photo of the same place. By looking at the images side by side, the similarities are very distinct. The city setup is very similar, the structure of the castle appears to be the same, and this exact spot still remains the center of the city.