Puebla is an exceptional colonial city, probably the most beautiful in Mexico along with Guanajuato. I spent three days there in March 2019. The remarkable, heterogeneous and often flamboyant architecture made a particular impression on me.

Several outstanding buildings are scattered throughout the city centre. Among them, I began and ended my stay in Puebla at the Catedral de Puebla. A nice sound and light show was then projected on the façade of the cathedral every Friday and Saturday night, which I admired on my last night in town, under the first rain in over a month. The towers of the cathedral (the highest in Mexico) and its imposing façade are impressive, but it is not the most richly decorated. In this kind, you have to turn to the decadent Templo de Santo Domingo and its Capilla del Rosario.The ubiquitous gold and silver of this chapel are blinding and, as Els describes it, make taking impressive and representative photographs an impossible task. One block away from the Zócalo, the Templo de la Compañía de Jesús is magnificent. However, my favourite is the Templo de San Francisco, with its façade in a variety of styles (Churrigueresque, Plateresque), notably covered with azulejos (large photo accompanying the description of the site). I also visited the Biblioteca Palafoxiana, the oldest public library in the Americas. Its shelves are filled with historical books and antique accessories and furniture are on display.

However, the real charm of the city lies in the many colourful buildings, covered with richly decorated tiles and adorned with cornices and crowns of white mortar. Among the most beautiful are the Casa de Alfeñique, the Casa de la Cultura, the Museo Amparo and above all the Museo Universitario Casa de los Muñecos. However, it would be a mistake to confine ourselves to these. You have to take random streets in Puebla, each of which contains small pearls of colourful or carefully decorated houses. Among other areas worth mentioning, the Mercado el Parián is perfect for souvenirs. For its part, the Paseo San Francisco Park is a remarkable example of the revaluation and greening of an industrial urban space.

Logistically, I reached Puebla from Taxco via Mexico City and continued to Oaxaca. I made two day trips from Puebla with a private driver to Cholula and to the Zona Arqueológica de Cacaxtla. Cholula is also easy to reach by public transports. It would be a mistake not to enjoy the local gastronomy of Puebla, especially chiles en nogada and mole poblano. Popocatépetl was clearly visible on my last evening in Puebla and it had been erupting for a few weeks. I couldn't see the red glow of the lava, but an impressive ash cloud was rising above the volcano, adding to the extraordinary images I keep of this city.