Cuetzalan, Puebla

To kick off an Independence Day puente (long weekend), Kurt and I took a trip to Cuetzalan in the Sierra Norte (mountainous northern region of Puebla). After about a 2 hour drive through flat semi-desert, the rest of the trip was in the mountains and had some spectacular views of canyons and waterfalls in the tropical (almost cloud forestish) region. The Sierra Norte (also where some of my work is based) is known for its natural features like waterfalls and caves, as well as coffee and its large indigenous population (Nahua).
We camped at a hotel just on the edge of the city and wandered around town on Saturday afternoon, thinking we’d save some nearby ruins and waterfalls for the next day. Unfortunately, there was a huge rain storm practically the whole morning on Sunday. Luckily, with the good coffee selection from the area, spending some time in cafes sampling coffee was good, but it made for a very damp trip to the ruins of Yohualichan.

The streets during the rain.

About a 30 min combi ride outside of Cuetzalan, are the ruins of Yohualichan. These ruins are very similar in construction to those at El Tajin near Papantla, Veracruz, and are believed to have been build by the same Totonacas. One theory is that they first built the ruins in Puebla, and then moved east to Veracruz to construct El Tajin. Despite the constant rain, the trip to the ruins was fun and even a little more picturesque with the fog and clouds in the background. On the way back, we decided to walk most of the way out to the main road, getting soaked in the process, but finding some more amazing views of the foggy trees and some flowers (like the clumps of ginger lining the road). Then it was back to Puebla with a bunch of soaking wet camping gear to begin the Independence Day festivities.

Road to the ruins