A common issue when interpreting Latin American colonial cities is that there is frequently no accessible frame of reference that fully explains each urban ensemble's value. Neither the travel guide books nor the tourism departments try too hard to communicate each destination beyond the dubious hyperbole (the biggest / tallest / oldest in the Americas) and the cliché (the indigenous influence / the local adaptation). After reading the reviews of Querétaro, I think that this city has suffered a lot from these superficial approaches.

If Querétaro were to be compared with any other colonial city, this would have to be Puebla. Both cities were the main centers of artistic experimentation and the main nodes of dissemination of Baroque culture in New Spain. Puebla during the 17th century and Querétaro during the 18th. However, while Puebla's area of ​​influence included Oaxaca and Tlaxcala, the influence of Queretaro is evident in cities such as Guanajuato, San Luis Potosí and Salamanca. Although both traditions are encompassed within the term "baroque" they are completely different cultural expressions, produced by dissimilar societies. Puebla's Baroque is serious and devout, while Querétaro's is decadent and aristochratic.

Querétaro is characterized by the ingenuity of its architects in the construction of arches, of notable Islamic and Gothic heritage. During the Baroque period, there was no city in the Spanish Empire that experimented in such a way with polylobed arcades and mixtilineal doorways. The best examples are found in the Jesuit College and in the convents of Santa Rosa, San Francisco and San Agustín. We can also find some of these imaginative arches in various mansions. Among them, the houses "of the Marquise", "of the divine Sun", "of the tithe", "of Don Bartolo", "of the Marquis", "of the Count of Sierra Gorda", "of the dogs" and "of the five courtyards" stand out.

When it comes to ornamentation and sculpture, Querétaro adopted conventions from the most popular European styles of the 18th century. In particular, the churches of Santa Rosa and Santa Clara, with their altarpieces full of simulated curtains and lush plant motifs, are the two best examples of Rococo art in Mexico. However, the most spectacular sculptural ensemble in Querétaro (and one of the most original spaces in the Baroque world as a whole) is the Cloister of San Agustín. This work, a daring modern interpretation of classical forms, shows the degree of wealth and sophistication reached by Queretan "criollos" in the 18th century.

Compared to other Mexican historical centers, the protected area of ​​Querétaro is quite small. Instead, it is cleaner, better maintained, and kinder to pedestrians than more impressive places like Puebla and Mexico City. If you visit Querétaro on a route through the colonial cities of the Bajío region, one day is enough to see the highlights. However, two days are ideal to fully appreciate the details of its historic center. If you decide to spend a little more time on it, the surrounding region is also famous for its wine production and for the family oratories of the Otomi communities (on the intangible heritage list). It all makes for a good three days trip.