puebla

City of Puebla Shines as Mexican ‘Jewel’

By Gretchen R. Crowe
HERALD Staff Writer
(From the Issue of 12/14/06)

Puebla: the capital city in the state of Puebla in the country of Mexico that will give tourists countless reasons to visit and visit again. From its specialty dishes, to its hand-crafted tiles, to its unforgettable churches, Puebla holds tight to its colonial past while embracing the modern present.
Located about 85 miles southeast of Mexico City, the city of Puebla was founded in 1531 and is the fourth-biggest city in the United States of Mexico. Because Puebla is settled at approximately 7,000 feet, the city’s climate is considerably cooler than that of the country’s capital. An industrial town, Puebla is known for its textiles, ceramic pottery and manufacturing companies, as well as for being home to more than 20 universities, including the internationally known University of the Americas.
The 84 individually unique luxury rooms of the Camino Real Hotel make a good example of Puebla’s combination of old and new, with its 16th-century building that houses a hair salon, tobacco shop and rental car agency. The Centro Historico, or the historic center of the colonial city, consists of a well-preserved zocalo (center of town), with rows of tall trees and planted red poinsettias. mexico
Puebla, formerly known as the City of the Angels, is the site of numerous churches, each with a rich history and even richer decoration. Located at the center of town is Puebla’s cathedral, dedicated to the Immaculate Conception. Completed in 1649, the cathedral has the tallest bell towers in Mexico. The inside of the church goes on and on, with soaring ceilings, gated side chapels, a large organ, countless works of art, an octagonal altar and a magnificent Blessed Sacrament “chapel,” which spans most of the cathedral’s back wall.
Back outside and a few blocks north sits the Church of Santa Domingo, a rich red color with white trim and tall towers, built between 1571 and 1611. Situated in the center of the city, at the intersection of 5 de Mayo and 4 Poniente, the church is home to the Chapel of the Rosaries, what Mexican native and tour guide Raul Gonzalez Cadena calls “one of the jewels” in all of Mexico. The chapel glistens with gold leaf; every inch of every space is coated with the Mexican baroque-style ornate decoration. Added in 1690, the chapel was built by natives, but under the instruction of the Spaniards. In this space it feels like a direct conversation with the Blessed Mother is not only possible but almost unavoidable. The room is one huge celebration of the rosary, with mysteries depicted in Spanish-style paintings on the walls — serving as “one way of introducing the new religion (Catholicism) from the very beginning,” Cadena said. Scenes from the nativity, Mary’s coronation and Jesus’ presentation in the temple, among others, fill the small space with a feeling of familiarity and intimacy. The virtues of faith, hope and charity are reflected in statues on the chapel’s equally breathtaking ceiling. At the top of the towering altar, which is made of wood and gold leaf and surrounded by 12 marble columns symbolizing the Twelve Apostles, sits the Archangel Gabriel holding an “Ave Maria” banner.
Another short walk reveals Puebla’s open-air market, the Mercado El Parian. The market is a ceramic-lover’s dream, with stall after stall filled with religious artifacts, colorful glassware and tiles made out of painted ceramic Talavera pottery. It seems like each family in Puebla has a small shop, with both parents and children closing sales on textiles and jewelry.
In addition to its churches and markets, Puebla is also known for its cuisine, most notably its mole poblano, a rich, spicy sauce made out of chili peppers, chocolate, nuts and other ingredients, and spread on everything from chicken to rice to tortillas.
With 2 million people, both rich and poor, educated and non-, Puebla truly serves as a condensed version of the bigger Mexican country. From its Acura dealership to its oldest church, the city represents all that once was and all that soon could be. Resting high in the heart of Mexico, it is in Puebla where the past and present come together and find peace.

Gretchen R. Crowe can be reached at gcrowe@catholicherald.com.