Colonial Mexico Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Let's Retire in MexicoLet's Retire in Mexico

As I mentioned on Friday (in my post about Tepoztlan,) last week I had the pleasure of visiting the beautiful city of Cuernavaca. The city is located about an hour south of Mexico City. I used to visit this city now and then back when I lived in Mexico City.

Cuernavaca has a small but beautiful colonial city center, and the entire city is defined by traditional Mexican architecture, fountains, parks and plenty of trees and green areas. With warm, sunny days (almost always!) and comfortably cool evenings, it really deserves the name of “city of eternal spring” as many Mexicans know it. The steep, hilly landscape marked with many buildings made of volcanic stone make the views of the city very picturesque!

The following are some pictures. Enjoy!

To start off, these two pictures are of the hotel where I stayed:

This is the main city square …

… and the main gazebo in the adjoining park:

Hernan Cortez, the famous Conquistador of central Mexico, built a palace in Cuernavaca, which still stands in the heart of the city and is now a museum:

These two are typical colonial streets in the old town:

This is one of the many beautiful old churches:

Fountains like this adorn many corners, parks and streets:

If you ever get a chance to do some sight-seeing in Cuernavaca, I suggest you do so!

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Living in Mexico Just yesterday, I arrived here in Cuernavaca (a beautiful colonial city about 1 hour south of Mexico City). While the trip is for the swearing-in ceremony for the 2013 board of directors of AMPI (the Mexican Association of Real Estate Professionals), being back here in central Mexico reminds me of some of my favorite places that I used to visit.

Living in Mexico One of those places is the village of Tepoztlan, about 30 minutes east of Cuernavaca, or about 45 minutes south of Mexico City. This village is nestled in the rugged hills that separate the capital from the state of Morelos, where both Cuernavaca and Tepoztlan are located.

The Mysterious Pyramid on the Hillside

Tepoztlan has been named one of Mexico’s official “Magic Towns” (I believe there are about 30-35 of them these days.)

living in Mexico

The people of the village really seem to feel there is something magic about the hill just at the edge of town with the ruins of an ancient pyramid on top of it;

UFO sightings abound, and many people who live at the base of the hill report hearing strange noises or even seeing unusual characters lurking about at night.

One friend said it is the place where “UFOs and witches live in happy harmony.”

Living in Mexico

Coming back to reality, there is something magical about climbing up the narrow stairs which wind their way up the hillside through a narrow gully to the old pyramid; from there the view of the village and surrounding hills is absolutely breathtaking!

The Convent

There also definitely is something magical (in another sense of the word) about visiting and walking through the streets of this village.

Living in Mexico

The town center is defined by a beautiful old convent which is now a museum; it is worth visiting both for the historical information about the village and area, and to see the grand stone architecture; in recent years, some original frescos on the walls have been uncovered that are also an interesting glimpse of the past.

Living in Mexico The church itself, which is attached to the convent, is a beautifully maintained colonial church, complete with original decoration, which has been named a UNESCO World Heritage Site.