Known
XALAPA
Just 2 hours 15 minutes (173 km) from the city of Puebla and 4 hours from Mexico City (285 km), Xalapa Veracruz, the state capital, is located. This city of hot humid climate and heavy rains during the summer, finds its name in the Nahuatl Xallapan and means "Sand Spring".
The city is known for being a promoter of culture and this is largely due to the presence of the Universidad Veracruzana, so it is common to see the squares and streets flooded with student life that give a fresh air and fill the center with energy. .
The city is surrounded by rivers, springs and streams, a natural lake and some artificial ones, as well as a green area reserved for recreation, known as Cerro Macuiltépetl, where oak, eucalyptus, jacaranda and even avocado trees abound.
So feeling surrounded by nature and having beautiful landscapes will be a constant during your tour of Xalapa, without a doubt, it is an excellent reason to do so.
Anthropology Museum
The Museum of Anthropology Xalapa , also known by its acronym, MAX, is the second museum enclosure most important of Mexico after the National Museum of Anthropology in Chapultepec .
In all these spaces is the second largest collection in the world of art prehispanic Mesoamerica around 2,500 pieces, fundamentally from the cultures Olmec , totonac Y Huasteca , among other peoples of the Gulf of Mexico , as well as an extensive exhibition on the ethnography of the current indigenous peoples of the State of Veracruz .
Xalapeno Stadium
The emblematic Xalapeño Stadium was built by Engineer Modesto Rolland, a revolutionary thinker of his time who erected the “Heriberto Jara Corona” Xalapeño Stadium in 1925, with a low budget from the State Government. Its construction was carried out in record time: 2 months and 16 days, and 94 years later its structure is still intact; time does not pass by this state banner that has witnessed innumerable sporting, political and social events of Veracruzana Athens.
It was built in a natural swamp where some sporting events and concentrations that the Xalapa society had in the 1920s were already held; its innovative architecture surprised Latin America, but above all the way it was built with a cantilevered roof of more than 3 thousand square meters.
Xalapa Cathedral
The Metropolitan Cathedral of Xalapa, dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, is the seat of the Archdiocese of Xalapa, and one of the oldest buildings in the city, it is located on the corner of Enríquez and Revolución streets in the historic center of Xalapa . It has undergone numerous modifications, resulting in the current appearance of the building.
The parish church of the city, also known as the Metropolitan Cathedral of Xalapa, which was consecrated to the Immaculate Conception, religious patron of Xalapa, began to be built in 1641, in wood, but it collapsed.
The current cathedral was built around the year 1641, resulting in a temple of simple proportions; Modifications were made to the building until the 18th century, which gave it its first baroque appearance. You can still see some details in some parts of the building, such as the bell tower (the only one that this temple has had) or the dome. one of the chapels has Solomonic style columns.
Walk of the Lakes
This set of three lakes is surrounded by gardens and walking paths in a wooded area. It is located in the Dique neighborhood, just 10 minutes from downtown Xalapa. It was formerly a dam that belonged to a textile company.
The place is frequented by families, groups of friends and people who come as a couple or alone to exercise. But you will also see other travelers who take the opportunity to explore it and spend an afternoon at ease.
During the week you will see a calmer atmosphere, since most of the visitors are runners or young people who take the opportunity to walk while they enjoy an ice cream, buy a snack or sit on their benches to talk about their day to day.
Weekends are when families decide to visit, so you'll see bikes, workshops and shows designed for children.
But if you come with teenagers, don't worry, there are also other options like ziplining and boat rentals, so there's no way someone won't have fun.
Former Hacienda of Santa Anna
Founded by Juan Lencero, a soldier of Hernán Cortés, to serve as an inn on the way from Veracruz to Mexico City, it is a magnificent hacienda now a museum, a true romantic evocation that summarizes almost five centuries of history of Xalapa and Mexico. In 1842 it was acquired by General Antonio López de Santa Ana, and in 1875 it was one of the most important sugar estates in the region. The construction stands on a natural terrace from which an extensive landscape is dominated. The main house houses the museum that wonderfully preserves furniture, ceramics, musical instruments, weapons and carriages. It has a colonial chapel, an artificial lake and huge gardens in which its monumental fig tree stands out.
Francisco Javier Clavijero Botanical Garden
This garden and sanctuary is located just 15 minutes from the city of Xalapa and on tropical mountain lands where the smell of coffee is felt.
In it you will find an extensive collection of plants and vegetation, made up of regional specimens and others brought from other parts of the world. You will also see the National of Cycads, which refers to the oldest plants in Mexico and another ethnobotanical collection, which has more uses than you could imagine.
On the other hand, the Fog Forest Sanctuary is an area where you will find plants from the northern to the southern hemisphere, which live in an extraordinary coexistence that you will hardly see anywhere else. It should be added that this ecosystem currently represents a small part of the national territory as a result of overexploitation, so we assure you, you will not regret knowing.
