I’ve always been curious about México, as a place that is talked about so often… so I decided to take a trip to México City, or also DF (Distrito Federal) or more recently rebranded CDMX. My first stop was actually to go 2 hours out to the heroic city of Puebla, a not-so-small city with a history going back to 10,000 BCE. Its colonial history goes back to when it was founded in 1531 making one of the oldest colonial settlements in the Americas. Near it, in the village of Cholula (which is now kind of part of the city), is the largest pyramid in the world. It is the not the most ‘visible’ as over time the pyramid was covered up with vegetation. The site was sacred to a god called Chiconauhquiauhitl (Goddess of the Nine Rains). The Spanish built a church on top of the pyramid.

Puebla is also known for being the place where the Mexican army beat the French army on May 5th (Cinco de Mayo), lead by the General Zaragoza in an unlikely but very significant victory. The Mexicans were outnumbered 3 to 1 and not as well equipped. It was really David beating Goliath. The victory had significant geopolitical consequences on the whole continent as the French army was on its way to help the US Confederacy in the Civil War there.

Puebla

The Cathedral

The Artist quarter

The Great Pyramid of Cholula

A view of the pyramid from the town of Cholula.

Going inside the pyramid.

The Food

Puebla is a premier gastronomic destination and is well known for the Mole Poblano which is a sauce that can contain between 30 and 100 ingredients including for some of its version, Chocolate.