Michoacán

Master artisans, an aqueduct, roving troubadours#&151;and Day-Glo marzipan.

by Suzy Banks

October 2002

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We'd missed so much—like the Purépecha market in the Plazuela de la Basílica and the Museo de Artes Populares and who knows what else—that we vowed to return to Pátzcuaro someday. But on this trip we decided we needed to spend a couple of days exploring Morelia itself. The next morning we waved good-bye to the tranquil Villa Montaña, with its terraced cottages and courtyards, where gardeners fuss over the lush landscaping and tend the stone frogs, fish, and saints that populate the grounds, and headed for the Hotel Virrey de Mendoza, a stately villa built in 1565, in the heart of the buzzing historic district. We had reserved an interior suite, but they were all taken. Would we like the exterior presidential suite for the same price? Despite the racket (the rule on the street, for vendors and vehicles alike, seems to be "Whoever makes the most noise wins"), how could we pass up the enormous private balcony—with a view of the inviting Plaza de Armas and the 258-year-old cathedral, with its two baroque towers and its blue-and-white-tiled domes—not to mention the suite's regally appointed bedroom and two baths? (Thank goodness we'd remembered to pack our secret urban weapon—earplugs.)

As we plotted our attack on the town over coffee at a sidewalk cafe across the street from the plaza, half the city's action seemed to pass right by: roving troubadours—students at the city's Conservatorio de las Rosas, one of the oldest in the Americas—decked out in elaborate black-velvet outfits, complete with tights; troops of street sweepers armed with enormous brooms; balloon salesmen galore; and a parade of honking vehicles carrying costumed characters to promote a traveling circus (Mickey and Minnie waved from the sunroof of a worn white limousine).

As determined as we were to set a leisurely pace, we realized that we would eventually have to roust ourselves if we wanted to see the spectacular sights, all within walking distance, that had earned the city its designation as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site. At the Casa de las Artesanías, a combination museum and shop housed in the sixteenth-century Convento de San Francisco, we found the sweeping overview of regional crafts we had sought the day before. Although the store's selection of carved wooden masks from Tocuaro was mundane and the maque of lesser quality than Mario's, the grand, deep-green-glazed pineapple-shaped jars from San José de Gracia ($8 to $120), their faceted surfaces reflecting light like jewels, made me want to ring up Miguel and head for the hills again. The higher prices here (my $14 tablecloth from Pátzcuaro was $43) are offset somewhat by the one-stop convenience. A few blocks away at the Museo del Estado de Michoacán, housed in an eighteenth-century mansion, the artifacts from ancient times—exquisite obsidian masks, elaborate amethyst jewelry, detailed clay sculptures of beasts—are indisputable evidence that a rich culture and skilled craftsmen existed here even thousands of years before Spain's conquest.

Two blocks west of the plaza, at the overwhelming Mercado de Dulces, a teeming market of narrow booths piled to the rafters with candies, we consumed the region's most ephemeral crafts: marzipan in Day-Glo colors, peanut and sesame brittle, a concentrated fruit paste called ate, logs of leche quemada (caramelized milk with ground almonds, cinnamon, and sherry), and candied limes stuffed with coconut so sweet it hurt my throat.

When it comes to more nutritious fare, Morelia, while not known for its haute regional cuisine, does celebrate its abundance of fruit. The spicy pineapple-lime-mango gazpacho is ubiquitous, and breakfast buffets are laden with fruit. At the Sunday brunch at the shabby-chic-meets-Frida Kahlo Casa del Portal, I ate so many figs, strawberries, and chunks of melon I didn't have room for a made-to-order crêpe. Our dinners at both Bizancio (tuna steak, rich mushroom ravioli) and Lugano (calamari, tomato-and-mozzarella salad) were fine, but it was their ambience that floored us. Cosmopolitan, candlelit Bizancio spilled out of the rooms of a seventeenth-century mansion into a courtyard ringed by stone archways and open to the skies; the soundtrack swung from Tosca to techno-pop. From our third-floor balcony at Lugano, the most vertical restaurant I've ever been in, we watched the lively waitstaff ambush one another in the dense vegetation of the courtyard below.

Of all the activities we squeezed into our ridiculously short trip (three full days—what idiots), our favorite was simply wandering the historic area of Morelia, with its old buildings of pale-rose stone, its shady plazas and glimpses of inviting courtyards through open doorways, its fountains, cobbled streets, and arches, arches everywhere. By nightfall we had walked ourselves silly, arriving finally at the dramatically illuminated eighteenth-century aqueduct, whose 253-arch run begins ten blocks east of the plaza, and the equally old Calzada de Fray Antonio de San Miguel, a pedestrian road near the aqueduct where young twosomes locked lips beneath the trees. The scene was so romantic, even an old married gringo couple couldn't help commemorating their whirlwind visit to Michoacán with a kiss.

Getting there: To get to Morelia, you must fly to Mexico City (nonstop flights from Dallas-Fort Worth on Aeromexico, American, and Delta; from Houston on Aeromexico, Continental, and Delta; and from San Antonio on Mexicana and United). From Mexico City you can fly to Morelia via Aeromexico or Mexicana (a 45-minute flight). The 45-minute taxi ride into the city costs about $20.

Where to stay: Hotel Virrey de Mendoza, Av. Madero Pte. 310, Morelia; 011-52-443-312-4940, fax 443-312-6719; hotelmex.com/hotelvirrey, hvirrey@prodigy.net.mx; from $100 for a standard room to $260 for a luxury suite. Villa Montaña, Patzimba 201, in the Colonia Vista Bella, Morelia; 011-52-443-314-0231, fax 443-315-1423; villamontana.com.mx, hotel@villamontana.com.mx; from $180 for a standard room to $470 for the palatial presidential suite; most rooms have a fireplace and many have a private patio.

Where to eat: Bizancio, Corregidora 432, Morelia; entrées $10-$20. La Casa del Portal, Guillermo Prieto 30, Morelia; entrées $5-$15. Lugano, Av. Rey Tanganxoan 565, in the Colonia Vista Bella, Morelia; entrées $7-$17; closed Monday.

What to do: Miguel Rubio Martínez, guide; Great Tour's, 011-52-443-322-8000, ext. 648; marm_68@hotmail.com; one-day Pátzcuaro tour $100. Casa de las Artesanías, Fray Juan San Miguel 129, Morelia. Casa Felícitas, Pino Suárez 88, Santa Clara del Cobre. Chocolate Casero Joaquinita, Enseñanza 38, Pátzcuaro; no credit cards. La Casa de los Once Patios, Madrigal de las Torres, Pátzcuaro; no credit cards. Museo del Estado de Michoacán, Guillermo Prieto 176, Morelia; free.

TRAVEL TIPS

Street smarts: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends avoiding food sold by street or market vendors, unpasteurized milk products, uncooked vegetables and shellfish, salads, and fruit that you haven't peeled yourself (we confess that we don't always follow this last bit of advice when breakfasting at our hotel).

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