Morelia and Pátzcuaro

We took advantage of Reed's 4-day weekend in March and headed for Morelia (pop. 593k), in the state of Michoacan.  Morelia was declared a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1991 because of it's many well-preserved colonial buildings.  It was one of the first Spanish cities in Nueva España (after the Spanish invaded México) and was named Valladolid after the Spanish city of the same name.  After México gained it's independence from Spain, it was renamed Morelia in honor of local hero José Maria Morelos y Pavón, a key figure in Mexico's independence movement.  It still looks very Spanish and has a city ordinance that requires all new construction in the city center be done in the colonial style.

While there, we visited the georgeous Catedral, the Zócalo, several churches, the Museo del Estado (state museum), the Museo Regional Michoacano (regional museum), the Palacio Clavijero/Mercado de Dulces (candy market) and the Casa de Las Artesanías (local artists).  We were able to see a concert on Friday night at the birth home of Morelos.  The group was Purépecha (direct descendants of the Tarascans (14th century) who were western Mexico's

most advanced pre-Hispanic civilization) and played beautiful traditional music and were dressed in traditional clothing.

While walking through the Zócalo at night we were able to see a drum group with dancers, Flamenco dancing, and the "Danza de Los Viejitos" (young people dressed like old people who dance a crazy kind of tap dance.  It is a dance to honor older people and is quite funny to watch). 

On Sunday, we took a bus to Pátzcuaro (pop. 49k), which is another colonial town in the heart of Purépecha country.  We walked to Lago de Pátzcuaro (Pátzcuaro Lake) which took us about 45 minutes along a pretty 2-lane road.  The lake is about 9 miles long and looks very polluted. There is an island in the middle that is inhabited and very popular because it has a huge statue of Morelos on the top of a hill in the middle of the island.  

After walking back to Pátzcuaro, we visited the 2 plazas in the town, the Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Salud (Our Lady of Health), the Museo de Artes Populares, the Casa de los Once Patios (the house of the 11 courtyards) and the Marcado de Artesanías.

For pictures, click on this link:

http://picasaweb.google.com/regnor11/MoreliaAndPatzcuaro#

Coming next:  La basura (the garbage)