Making Our Way to Puebla

Monday, November 28, 2022

Making Our Way to Puebla

Dear Family and Friends,

Sorry folks, Chuck and I have had to take a leave of absence from telling you about our trip to Mexico because we have been very sick. We no sooner arrived back in Tucson when we came down with some sort of virus. Flu? Not sure what we had but fever, congestion, no energy. Audrey provided me with a Covid test kit and I tested negative. It has been a solid week now and we are no longer running fever, but the recovery is taking its time. We still do not have much energy.

I got up this morning and decided I have to finish sharing about our trip before you all forget we even went anywhere. So here I go...back to our Mexico adventure.

My last post was about our brief tour of Mexico City. The next morning we left Mexico City to drive to Puebla. The trip should only take about two and a half hours on the freeway. We took the whole day because we stopped and toured in Cuernavaca and Atlixco before arriving in Puebla.

On the way out of Mexico City, we passed the monument to the Revolution. The rising sun made for this great picture.

Here is another view of the historical part of the city as we were leaving.

It took about an hour and a half to get to Cuernavaca. Cuernavaca is known as the city of eternal spring. I had never heard of Cuernavaca before, and if it weren't for our tour, we would never had gone there. It turns out to be one of the oldest cities in Mexico. It was a thriving city before the Spaniards arrived.

This photo is of a temple, from the mid 1400s, dedicated to the god of the sun. Fortunately, it was overlooked by the Spaniards as they plundered Xochicalco, a much bigger sight. It is in pristine condition.

We toured the cathedral, which turned out to be a cathedral complex. Here are some photos of the vendors outside the wall of the complex.

Here is the main cathedral known as the Cathedral of Cuernavaca. Besides the mega cathedral it is surrounded by four chapels. The cathedral was founded by the first Friar Monks to ever come to Mexico. The cathedral was built between 1529 and 1552.

One of the chapels in the complex.

The grounds were covered by beautiful gardens. I was intrigued by this unusual plant.

These marigolds are probably replaced by now with poinsettias. We were there not too long after the day of the dead celebration and marigolds are a big part of this holiday.

Here is Chuck in front of the oldest parts of the cathedral.

After visiting the cathedral we walked to lunch at India Bonita. This is an old traditional restaurant that has been in the family since the mid 1930s.

The inside is gardens. Just beautiful.

Here are some of our travel companions.

Such a lovely town. So glad this stop was included in our tour of Mexico.

On our way to our next stop, Atlixco, we passed beautiful scenery.

Our second stop was Atlixco. This city is known for its production of flowers.

A travel companion posing in front of this beautifully decorated doorway.

The main square is surrounded by Colonial buildings and fun eye candy.

Can you find Chuck posing with the name of the city? It is also known as a magic city.

Right in the middle of the square is this yellow coffee house. We did not have time to partake, but the Italian Coffee Co. is a rival to Starbucks in Mexico.