Settling Into Slow Travel Life in Puebla (Mexico)
We’ve been in Puebla, Mexico for over two weeks and settled into a nice groove. Life in Puebla is pretty easy to navigate, with many restaurant, shopping, and entertainment options that slow travelers like us appreciate.
And probably the most surprising thing to us is how strong the European architectural vibe is in the Centro Historico area. When wandering Centro Historico at night on a weekday when things are closing down, it is easy to forget you are in Mexico!
So what has our slow travel life in Puebla been like for the last two weeks?
Let’s take a look.
Our Daily Supply Needs
Although not quite as convenient as Oaxaca, our daily needs are well served in Puebla.
An easy 25-minute walk south of our Airbnb is a full-sized Walmart complete with a supermarket. It is about 15 minutes farther out from our residence than our favorite supermarket in Oaxaca. But the walk is easy, along wide, level sidewalks with minimal traffic.
Four blocks north of us is a FANTASTIC local market, Mercado Municipal La Acocota. The produce and home supply selection here is outstanding, with many local food stalls selling tasty local treats. It is a fun place to explore and the prices are quite good on produce, often beating Walmart by a large margin. That, and the quality of the produce is usually much better as well.
Volcanoes!
Puebla, Mexico is famous for having two large volcanoes nearby: Volcan Popocatépetl and Volcan La Malinche. These volcanoes dominate the landscape if you are in the right parts of the city, and make for some pretty spectacular views!
But there is a downside.
Although Volcan La Malinche has been dormant for the last 5000 years, not so with Volcan Popocatépetl.
Volcan Popocatépetl is one of the most active volcanoes in all of Mexico and erupted 13 times in 24 hours on February 27, 2024. This was only three weeks ago! Evacuations weren’t needed, but the ash spewed into the atmosphere caused the cancellation of dozens of flights, in both Puebla and nearby Mexico City.
And Volcan Popocatépetl continues to rumble.
Every day since we’ve arrived ash has been spewed into the atmosphere, covering surfaces and predictably affecting the air quality. It hasn’t affected daily life too much while we’ve been here, and locals simply adapt.
Every day workers sweep the sidewalks, and Poblanos just wear masks if the airborne ash is particularly bad. And locals keep the windows and doors closed to keep the ash out of their homes.
From our perspective, we notice the ash effect as well.
We sneeze more, sometimes get ash blown into our eyes, and our respiratory passages are a little more sensitive than usual. It’s manageable, and the majority of the time we don’t notice it too badly. But the ash effect probably disqualifies Puebla as a future place for us to stay in Mexico for an extended period.
Which is too bad because Puebla has a lot to offer!
Centro Historico and The Zocalo
It is no exaggeration to say that Centro Historico, along with the Zocalo central park, is the most impressive of its type we have seen in Mexico (so far). And as an UNESCO World Heritage site, this should probably come as no surprise.
The entire area oozes with European charm. From the cobblestone streets, the baroque architectural style, and the colors that surround you, you sometimes forget that this is Mexico.
The area in and around the Zocalo central park is particularly impressive.
Centro Historico is bustling with activity, and you are never far from a fun, cheap diversion. Whether it is exploring Toad Alley, walking the Artists Quarter, ogling the street mimes, admiring the architecture, hunting street art, or just people-watching, there is always something to see and do here.
And thankfully Centro Historico and the Zocalo are only a 15-minute walk from our Airbnb!
Great Local Food and Drink Options
Like Oaxaca, Puebla is a delight for gastronomy.
But unlike Oaxaca, we have had more success finding quality, affordable local food in more traditional sit-down restaurants. Here are a few of our success stories so far:
Antojitos Mello
If you are near Barrio Azcarate, Antojitos Mello (Google Maps) is a fantastic local restaurant! And we were lucky enough to stumble across it on our first day in Puebla.
Their standard menu is great for traditional Poblano cuisine.
But the real culinary gems come out on the weekend, which is when you can choose their guisado menu options. They are so good that we’ve made coming here a regular weekend pilgrimage.
In particular, their mole poblano and envueltos de mole to die for. And it is shockingly affordable considering you get a ceramic pail of mole the size of a cafeteria dinner tray!
Antojitos Acapulco
A little local food stand near Catedral de Puebla, Antojitos Acapulco (Google Maps) is a great place to grab a quick bite of some street-style Poblano delicacies.
Be prepared to eat standing up at the stall, unless you get your food to go to eat at the Zocalo.
Tacos Árabes Bagdad Centro
Arab-style tacos are a big thing in Puebla and many places serve them.
Although part of a local chain, we decided to try Tacos Árabes Bagdad Centro (Google Maps) for our first árabe taco experience. We were very pleased!
And we went big, ordering 1 kilogram of árabe-style meat with 10 pita-style tortillas and 10 corn tortillas. This ended up being enough food for two meals!
Although we probably could have gotten something similar for a little cheaper elsewhere, the range of available sauces at Tacos Árabes Bagdad Centro made for great eating. And based on the number of locals present, we think we did well on the bang-for-buck scale.
Fonda Tipica La Poblana
At the suggestion of our free walking tour guide, we ate at Fonda Tipica La Poblana (Google Maps) for lunch because they are one of the few restaurants that serve the seasonal Poblano dish, chiles en nogada, year-round.
Our food was excellent! And the quality of my cemita was surprisingly good for the money.
Street Food
Street food is everywhere in Puebla!
If you are in Historico Centro, most of the street food can be found concentrated in the tourist pedestrian alleys within a few blocks of the Zocalo, as well as the local parks (aside from the Zocalo, oddly). And as you make your way to more residential neighborhoods like ours, even more opportunities abound!
We have already become regular visitors at a couple of tamale and quesadilla vendors near our Airbnb, much to their surprise. We suspect that we might be on a very short list of non-Latinos they have ever done business with!
But that’s fine. At $90 MEX ($5.39 USD) for six huge mole poblano tamales, which is enough for two dinners, we don’t mind disrupting the status quo.
La Pasita
We also dropped by La Pasita (Google Maps), a locally famous bar known for its Pasita (raisin liquor).
They sell all sorts of liquors, as well as bottles of their raisin liquor made in-house.
We ordered a couple of cups, which come with goat cheese and an impaled raisin to compliment the taste.
We liked it so much we bought a bottle for the road!
Great Cathedrals
There are hundreds of Spanish colonial cathedrals in Puebla, and they are all impressive in their own right.
But we do have a couple of favorites so far!
Catedral de Puebla
Found directly next to the Zocalo, it is impossible not to be impressed with Catedral de Puebla. The religious center of the city, the building’s external and internal architecture exemplify its place in the cathedral hierarchy of Puebla.
Templo de Santo Domingo (+ Capilla del Rosario)
Smaller than Catedral de Puebla, Templo de Santo Domingo is no slouch. Smaller in size, but perhaps more opulent inside, it is hard not to wonder how parishioners feel when attending services here.
Attached to the church is the Chapel del Rosario, considered to be the height of the New Spanish Baroque architectural style. At the time it was built, it was called the eighth wonder of the world!
The level of detail and golden sheen inside the chapel is shocking!
But there was an added perk during our visit! We noticed a poster for a free concert here, featuring a performance of Mozart’s Requiem later in the week.
We couldn’t think of a better venue to hear this piece of music, so of course, we went!
We were so impressed! It was Rhonda’s first time hearing the piece in its entirety, and she really enjoyed it.
Great Museums
Puebla has a bunch of noteworthy museums, and we haven’t seen them all. But we have visited a few, and they surprised us with what they had to offer.
Museo Amparo
Probably the most impressive of all the museums in Puebla, Museo Amparo (Google Maps) displays a range of Mexican art across several periods – from prehispanic to Spanish colonial to modern art…and seemingly everything in between.
Admission tickets are well worth the $85 MEX ($5.03 USD) entrance fee, and it is a nice way to kill a few hours. The collection was really impressive.
Here is a brief sample!
And at the museum rooftop cafe, you can enjoy drinks with a view!
Museo Casa del Mendrugo
A smaller, quirky museum attached to a higher-end restaurant in Centro Historico, Museo Casa del Mendrugo (Google Maps) is a fun diversion for those with more macabre tastes.
Free to enter on Wednesdays (as well as for all restaurant patrons), Museo Casa del Mendrugo features engraved prehispanic Oaxacan skulls, bones, and conch shells in its collection.
The specimens on display are quite striking and beautiful in their own way.
The Oaxacan practice of engraving skulls after death was not common in Mexico. But it is said to reinforce ancestral links as part of their cultural religious practices, much like modern Day of the Dead celebrations.
Biblioteca Palafoxiana
Biblioteca Palafoxiana (Google Link) is truly a one-of-a-kind place.
Simply put, it is the first public library in all of Latin America (circa 17th century), and is another UNESCO World Heritage site in Puebla. Entrance is free on Sunday and Tuesday, and were lucky enough to stop by on one of the free days!
Although the area open to the public is small, the library oozes 17th-century character and sensibilities. You feel like you are on the set of a Harry Potter film while you are here!
And although the library itself is small, there are free art exhibits by local artists and cultural orientation areas in the same building that can help pass the time.
Overall Impressions of Puebla
Life in Puebla has been pretty easy so far! Aside from the ever-present volcanic ash, the city is fun to spend time in, has a comfortable climate, is architecturally and historically interesting, has wonderful cuisine, and the people have been great.
A lovely place to spend a month, or more, if you are so inclined.
Seriously, if it weren’t for the volcanic activity Puebla would probably rank just as highly as Oaxaca for us. But still, we really like it!
But there is much more we intend on doing here. We have planned day trips to the nearby towns of Cholula and Atlixco, made dermatology appointments, and will visit many more places in Puebla that we still haven’t seen.
And of course, we have to check out the local Lucha Libre Wrestling scene! 🙂
We’ll see what the next couple of weeks bring.
Until next time…
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