Michoacan State Slideshow
This region is comprised of two quite distinct versions of colonial architecture: Pátzcuaro, a town of tile roofs and adobe walls painted in the traditional white with dark red borders; and Morelia, a city of stone mansions, broad plazas, and a monumental cathedral. Michoacán is considered by many to be the most beautiful state in the country. The eastern part of the state consists of high mountains with large tracts of pine and fir forests. Every year, millions of monarch butterflies make the long journey to congregate in a small part of the forest here. The central part of the state is a land of lakes and is the homeland of the Purepechan or Tarascan Indians. The villages throughout this area specialize in particular crafts for which the region is well known. Farther west lie the hotlands and the coast. Michoacán is largely neglected by tourists.
Founded in 1541 and laid out in 1570, Morelia retains much of it's archaic character and proportion, even as so many other Latin American historic centers have been erased by redevelopment, earthquakes and neglect.
The city spent its first 286 years as Valladolid, then in 1827 renamed itself Morelia after native son and revolutionary hero Jose Maria Morelos.
Morelia's historic district encompasses 120 blocks and spans more than four centuries, from the San Francisco church and monastery, begun in 1530, to the more modern Palace of Justice, built in the 1880s and the cathedral, one of Mexico's three largest.
