Puebla City

Puebla - Other Cities and Attractions

Capital of Puebla State, E central Mexico. Its official name is Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, in honor of Gen. Ignacio Zaragoza, who defeated the French forces there in 1862. Located in a highland valley, it is an important agricultural, commercial, and manufacturing center, as well as a popular tourist spot.

The site of Mexico's first textile-producing factory, Puebla has cotton mills, an automobile factory, onyx quarries, and pottery and food industries. The city is noted for the colored tiles that decorate its buildings and numerous churches, as well as those of nearby Cholula.
The cathedral, built between 1552 and 1649, is one of the finest in Mexico; the theater, constructed in 1790, is said to be the oldest on the continent. Founded 1535 as Puebla de Los Angeles, the city was historically a link between the coast and Mexico City. It was taken (1847) by U.S. Gen. Winfield Scott during the Mexican War.

French troops captured Puebla in 1863 but were ousted by Porfirio Díaz in 186. Puebla was the center of large earthquakes in 1973 and 1999 which have caused intense damage to the city and its surrounding region.

La Capilla Del Rosario

It was built in 1690 in honor of the Virgin of the Rosary. One of the most elaborately decorated chapels in Mexico; it is a Baroque masterpiece in gold leaf and plaster.

Along the walls, grotesque heads spew golden vines whose tendrils twist and twine to form the frames of six paintings depicting the mysteries of the rosary. The dome just as ornate and depict saints, cherubs, dancing angels, and a heavenly choir.

It is considered by many to be the most beautiful chapel in Mexico.

Amparo Museum

The Amparo Museum is one of Mexico's most famous museums. It is located in Puebla and has a large collection of Prehispanic, Colonial, Modern and Contemporary Mexican art. The Amparo museum was created by Mr.Manuel Espinoza Iglesias in memory of his dead wife Mrs. Amparo Rugarcia. It was opened on February 28th 1991.

African Safari Zoo

It is an unusual zoo with no cages or bars and with the animals roaming freely as if they were in their own habitats, and perhaps that is the main attraction of this park, one of the most important in Mexico.
This zoo with a 300-hectare extension housing 250 animal species, allows a thrilling approach to natural life through special cars that go across green loaded areas to fully appreciate furious tigers or lions, slender ostriches, and parsimonious hippopotamuses, amongst other specimens.