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No. 6 Arciga, Michoacan, Patzcuaro, Michoacan, 61600, Mexico
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Fountain with Statue of Vasco de Quiroga
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Pátzcuaro street
view from Volcan del Estribo Grande
Once the center of Tarascan power, it's about 15 kilometers from Patzcuaro.The stone structures are called yacatas and have a panoramic view of the lake. In town, the Franciscan monestary is 16th century and the olive trees supposedly planted by Vasco de Quiroga. A nice afternoon excursion.
Another splendid colonial church of the city, it was built in the 17th century, and has a tower with a clock; according to the legend the clock was sent away from Spain because it tolled an unlucky hour for a Spanish King.
Visiting Patzcuaro was the first time I had the opportunity to get beyond the border towns of Mexico and the US. I could not have picked a grander destination. The immediate reason that I chose Patzcuaro was the opportunity to take part in an eye clinic that was sponsored by the local Lions club. The clinic was a great an introduction to volunteer service work as Patzcuaro was to Mexico.
Patzcuaro was the Tarascan capital in the 14th century. The Aztecs were over further to the east in the area that is Mexico City, today, while the Tarascans ranged through much of what is today's state of Michoacan. Upon the death of the king Tariacuri, the Tarascan state was split into three entities which still worked together to repulse Aztec incursions. Because of their antipathy towards the Aztecs, the Tarascans gave the Spanish a friendly welcom when they first appeared in 1522. Initial contact was followed by the infamously cruel conquistador, Nuno de Guzman, in 1529. His inhumanities led the Spanish government in Mexico City to bring in the respected churchman Vasco de Quiroga to calm the waters stirred up by Guzman. Quiroga first appeared in the area in 1536, setting up a bishopric in Patzcuaro in 1540. He established Indian co-operatives based upon the humanistic ideals of Thomas More's 'Utopia'. Education and self-sufficiency were the cornerstones by which the villages lived. He also developed the idea of different villages specializing in certain handicrafts. Through his efforts, the native Tarascans were spared much of the excesses that the Spanish brought Mexico with the encomienda and hacienda systems of economy. Times, of course, change though the handicraft tradition has survived.
Dias de Los Muertos and Santa Semana are very big events in Patzcuaro. This is a very conservative area - a stronghold for catolicos fighting the main government long after the Revolution had died down elsewhere. Another name very big in the history of this area from the 20th Century is that of Lazaro Cardenas and for more onPatzcuaro in general.
The city is very colonial in nature at its core. It is set 3 km above the Lago de Patzcuaro - which is some 50 km in circumference. It is a town boasting of grand squares: Plaza Vasco de Quiroga, Plaza Gertrudis Bocanegra; churches: Templo del Sagrario, La Compania, El Santuario, La Basilica; a superb handicraft museum: Museo de Artes Populares; wonderful handicraft opportunities: on the Plaza Vasco de Quiroga; the Casa de la Once Patios and on the road towards the dock for boats out onto the Lago. There is a lot more to see, so let's go!!
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Q: Day of the Dead in Patzcuaro, Mexico "Although the DOD celebration in Patzcuaro is no doubt much more commercial than in other locations, some friends and I are going..."
A: "I've been to Patzcuaro once for Dia de los Muertos - and I'd never return. It's shamefully commercial, IMO. However, I did go, just like you want to go. I don't like..."
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