Often regarded as the quieter, more pious sibling of
Mexico City, Puebla, nestled in the heart of Mexico is undoubtedly the
country’s cultural stronghold with its wondrous churches, world-class museums
and a vibe that’s relaxed and easy-going.
By Raul Dias
“So, you want a ticket to Los Angeles?”, said the
petite lady at Mexico City’s TAPO bus station with a twinkle in her eyes. “No,
Puebla!”, I replied. Wondering firstly, how could I have said ‘Los Angeles’ in
place of ‘Puebla’? And secondly, a bus journey from Mexico City all the way to
LA! Seriously? But as I was soon to learn, the ticket lady was merely playing
her well-practised gringo (foreigner)
prank on me with a half-truth.
Technically called Puebla de los Angeles, most refer to this cultural stronghold of Mexico simply by the first word of its four-part name—Puebla. And a two-hour ride in a souped-up bus blaring Mexican pop music got me into this calm and collected city that was once the country’s second biggest after the capital Mexico City. It was only in the late 19th century that the more tourist-friendly, mariachi music capital of Guadalajara beat it to the chase.
Technically called Puebla de los Angeles, most refer to this cultural stronghold of Mexico simply by the first word of its four-part name—Puebla. And a two-hour ride in a souped-up bus blaring Mexican pop music got me into this calm and collected city that was once the country’s second biggest after the capital Mexico City. It was only in the late 19th century that the more tourist-friendly, mariachi music capital of Guadalajara beat it to the chase.
Lost
and Found!
Blame it on the beauty of Puebla that had me mesmerised, or simply on the language barrier, but neither my combi driver nor I had realised that we had driven past my intended stop, the town square called the zocalo. I had hopped into his fume-spewing vehicle a good half an hour ago, after my intercity bus had deposited me at Puebla’s strangely quiet CAPU bus station. And by now we were way out of the historic center.
To be more precise, I was very close to something I had heard about but had no intention of visiting—Africam Safari. This self-drive through faux safari park is on the road to Presa Valesquillo and is said to be home to a number of native and exotic wildlife. Quickly hailing a passing taxi, whose driver thankfully spoke a bit of English, I headed back down the road towards my intended stop.
Dotted with a cornucopia of cafés and restaurants, with canoodling couples, buskers and balloon sellers aplenty, the zocalo is akin to a circus on steroids and perhaps the only place where Puebla sheds its ‘calm cloak’. No wonder then that it was once the city’s main marketplace where everything from bullfights to public executions took place—often at the same time! Today, this tree-lined square is where the weekly Thursday changing of the flag ceremony takes place amidst great nationalistic fervour.
Blame it on the beauty of Puebla that had me mesmerised, or simply on the language barrier, but neither my combi driver nor I had realised that we had driven past my intended stop, the town square called the zocalo. I had hopped into his fume-spewing vehicle a good half an hour ago, after my intercity bus had deposited me at Puebla’s strangely quiet CAPU bus station. And by now we were way out of the historic center.
To be more precise, I was very close to something I had heard about but had no intention of visiting—Africam Safari. This self-drive through faux safari park is on the road to Presa Valesquillo and is said to be home to a number of native and exotic wildlife. Quickly hailing a passing taxi, whose driver thankfully spoke a bit of English, I headed back down the road towards my intended stop.
Dotted with a cornucopia of cafés and restaurants, with canoodling couples, buskers and balloon sellers aplenty, the zocalo is akin to a circus on steroids and perhaps the only place where Puebla sheds its ‘calm cloak’. No wonder then that it was once the city’s main marketplace where everything from bullfights to public executions took place—often at the same time! Today, this tree-lined square is where the weekly Thursday changing of the flag ceremony takes place amidst great nationalistic fervour.
City
of Churches
There simply is no denying the fact that Puebla truly is Mexico’s most pious city with its denizens, the criollo poblanos often being accused of having a holier-than-thou attitude, both literally and metaphorically. In fact, there is a famous (if a tad exaggerated!) saying that Peubla has 365 churches, with one for every day of the year. But in reality, it’s a more conservative number of 70 that dot the Centro Historico or historic center.
And this fact was reiterated to me time and again as I sauntered through its cobblestoned alleys and lanes dotted with buildings clad in the colourful azulejo-style tiles. I made my first obeisance-worthy stop at the mother of all Puebla’s ecclesiastical wonders—the Cathedral. As one of the largest in Mexico, this baroque cathedral is just south of the zocalo. Here, it occupies an entire city block and its gargantuan proportions were certainly not lost on me. Its 69 meters-tall twin towers soar above a nave that’s decorated with frescos and flanked on either side by 14 chapels. Dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, the cathedral even finds a place for itself on the face of a $500 Mexican dollar bill.
There simply is no denying the fact that Puebla truly is Mexico’s most pious city with its denizens, the criollo poblanos often being accused of having a holier-than-thou attitude, both literally and metaphorically. In fact, there is a famous (if a tad exaggerated!) saying that Peubla has 365 churches, with one for every day of the year. But in reality, it’s a more conservative number of 70 that dot the Centro Historico or historic center.
And this fact was reiterated to me time and again as I sauntered through its cobblestoned alleys and lanes dotted with buildings clad in the colourful azulejo-style tiles. I made my first obeisance-worthy stop at the mother of all Puebla’s ecclesiastical wonders—the Cathedral. As one of the largest in Mexico, this baroque cathedral is just south of the zocalo. Here, it occupies an entire city block and its gargantuan proportions were certainly not lost on me. Its 69 meters-tall twin towers soar above a nave that’s decorated with frescos and flanked on either side by 14 chapels. Dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, the cathedral even finds a place for itself on the face of a $500 Mexican dollar bill.
Of
Museums and Then Some More…
Rivalling its church-prowess is the sheer number of museums one can find here. Ever the train geek, thanks to a grandfather who spent all his working life with the Indian Railways, I decided to make the Museo Nacional del Ferrocarril my first museum stop. Once again, located in Puebla’s Centro Historico, at the city’s former train station to be more specific, this railway museum has a superb range of exhibits, from a well-preserved steam engine to pictures of derailments and other locomotive disasters. The latter, strictly for those with a predilection for morbidity!
Housed in two adjoining historic buildings, the Museo Amparo is a private museum and a treasure-trove of both Hispanic artefacts and pre-Hispanic religious iconography, including a couple of highly decorated human skulls. Another deeply-rooted passion of mine—food—led me to the Museo de Arte Popular Poblano. Set in a former 17th century convent in who’s kitchen the city’s most famous dish Mole Poblano (see box) is said to have originated, the museum today has on display cooking utensils and implements along with a staggering collection of pottery and indigenous costumes.
Rivalling its church-prowess is the sheer number of museums one can find here. Ever the train geek, thanks to a grandfather who spent all his working life with the Indian Railways, I decided to make the Museo Nacional del Ferrocarril my first museum stop. Once again, located in Puebla’s Centro Historico, at the city’s former train station to be more specific, this railway museum has a superb range of exhibits, from a well-preserved steam engine to pictures of derailments and other locomotive disasters. The latter, strictly for those with a predilection for morbidity!
Housed in two adjoining historic buildings, the Museo Amparo is a private museum and a treasure-trove of both Hispanic artefacts and pre-Hispanic religious iconography, including a couple of highly decorated human skulls. Another deeply-rooted passion of mine—food—led me to the Museo de Arte Popular Poblano. Set in a former 17th century convent in who’s kitchen the city’s most famous dish Mole Poblano (see box) is said to have originated, the museum today has on display cooking utensils and implements along with a staggering collection of pottery and indigenous costumes.
The
Indian Connection
Having heard a lot about it from Lucio, my friend and host in Mexico City, I simply had to make the Templo de la Compañia de Jesus, a Jesuit church my final stop for the day. Located on the corner of the intersection of the Avenue Palafox y Mendoza and Calle 4 Sur, the church has an interesting Indian connection to it.
Legend has it that a lady called Catarina de San Juan, and better known as ‘China Poblana’, was an Indian princess from Cochin who was kidnapped and enslaved by Portuguese pirates in the mid-17th century and later sold to a Pueblan man called Miguel de Sosa. When Sosa died a few years later, she was freed and took refuge in the church’s attached convent where she lived till her death in 1688. Today, the church is famous for La Tumba de la China Poblana which is what her grave is called lying in the church’s sacristy.
Having heard a lot about it from Lucio, my friend and host in Mexico City, I simply had to make the Templo de la Compañia de Jesus, a Jesuit church my final stop for the day. Located on the corner of the intersection of the Avenue Palafox y Mendoza and Calle 4 Sur, the church has an interesting Indian connection to it.
Legend has it that a lady called Catarina de San Juan, and better known as ‘China Poblana’, was an Indian princess from Cochin who was kidnapped and enslaved by Portuguese pirates in the mid-17th century and later sold to a Pueblan man called Miguel de Sosa. When Sosa died a few years later, she was freed and took refuge in the church’s attached convent where she lived till her death in 1688. Today, the church is famous for La Tumba de la China Poblana which is what her grave is called lying in the church’s sacristy.
Puebla on a Platter
There’s very little doubt that compact little Puebla is the place where some of Mexico’s most iconic and popular dishes originated. Be they of the ubiquitous street food variety or highly sophisticated, complex creations, the Poblanos sure know how to put on a spectacular show with their preparations.
Here’s a serving of some of Puebla’s most famous contributions to Mexican gastronomy.
* Mole Poblano: This spicy, dark-hued sauce that’s ladled over everything from boiled turkey to rice is a laboriously prepared dish with over 30 ingredients, ranging from chocolate to cinnamon and get this…cracker biscuits!
* Tacos Arabes: Inspired by the Lebanese immigrant community in Puebla, here meat and cheese are wrapped in pita bread instead of corn tortillas.
* Escamoles: Not for the faint of heart, these rice-like ant larvae are first sautéed in butter and then eaten ensconced in a soft tortilla.
* Chiles en Nogada: Large green chilies are stuffed with dried fruit and meat and are covered with a creamy walnut sauce and garnished with red pomegranate seeds. Depicting the colours of the Mexican flag, this delicacy is generally served during Mexico’s September 16 Independence Day celebrations.
* Camotes: One of Puebla’s most beloved sweet treats, these cigar-shaped rolls of colourful coconut wrapped in wax paper can be found peddled from every street corner.
There’s very little doubt that compact little Puebla is the place where some of Mexico’s most iconic and popular dishes originated. Be they of the ubiquitous street food variety or highly sophisticated, complex creations, the Poblanos sure know how to put on a spectacular show with their preparations.
Here’s a serving of some of Puebla’s most famous contributions to Mexican gastronomy.
* Mole Poblano: This spicy, dark-hued sauce that’s ladled over everything from boiled turkey to rice is a laboriously prepared dish with over 30 ingredients, ranging from chocolate to cinnamon and get this…cracker biscuits!
* Tacos Arabes: Inspired by the Lebanese immigrant community in Puebla, here meat and cheese are wrapped in pita bread instead of corn tortillas.
* Escamoles: Not for the faint of heart, these rice-like ant larvae are first sautéed in butter and then eaten ensconced in a soft tortilla.
* Chiles en Nogada: Large green chilies are stuffed with dried fruit and meat and are covered with a creamy walnut sauce and garnished with red pomegranate seeds. Depicting the colours of the Mexican flag, this delicacy is generally served during Mexico’s September 16 Independence Day celebrations.
* Camotes: One of Puebla’s most beloved sweet treats, these cigar-shaped rolls of colourful coconut wrapped in wax paper can be found peddled from every street corner.
(An edited version of this article first appeared in the July 2018 issue of Jetwings International in-flight magazine of Jet Airways http://www.jetairways.com/EN/IN/jetexperience/magazines.aspx)
