Behind a crenellated wall in the middle of Huejotzingo lies one of the earliest Christian buildings in the Americas: the Franciscan convent of San Miguel Arcángel, built in the decades after the Spanish conquest on the lower slopes of the volcanoes west of Puebla. The friars arrived here within a few years of the fall of Tenochtitlan, and the church, convent and walled atrium they raised are a textbook example of how the missionaries worked, with great open courtyards where crowds of indigenous converts could gather for teaching and mass. Huejotzingo is part of the UNESCO site of the Earliest Sixteenth-Century Monasteries on the Slopes of Popocatépetl, listed in 1994.
What makes the place special are the details. In each corner of the atrium stands a small chapel, a capilla posa, carved with angels, Franciscan cords and other symbols, among the finest of their kind in Mexico. The church facade mixes late Gothic, Renaissance and native craftsmanship, and inside the convent the walls still carry faded frescoes painted by indigenous artists under the friars' direction, in tones of black, grey and ochre. The cloister is quiet and cool, a relief after the bright square outside.
The town has a lively identity of its own. It is famous for its cider, made from the apples of the surrounding orchards and sold in shops around the plaza, and for its Carnival, when hundreds of men in elaborate costumes and masks re-enact historical battles with muskets that fill the streets with smoke and noise. If you are here in the days before Lent, expect crowds and closed roads.
On a clear morning, the view west is dominated by two volcanoes: Popocatépetl, active and often smoking, and Iztaccíhuatl, the sleeping woman, with snow on her long ridge. A road climbs from the area towards the Paso de Cortés, the high saddle between them, where Cortés is said to have first seen the Valley of Mexico. Access depends on the volcano's current alert level, so check before heading up. The road is steep, with hairpins, thin air and rough surfaces near the top.
Huejotzingo has fuel, shops and plenty of food: try mole poblano or a plate of chalupas. Puebla city is half an hour away. Avoid riding after dark, and watch for topes everywhere.