09 · 07 · 23

Visit Morelia, The Home of The FICM

 

It is no surprise to anyone that Morelia, Michoacán, is considered one of the most beautiful cities in the Mexican territory. Morelia was founded and baptized as Valladolid on May 18, 1541. The city was recognized by UNESCO in 1991 as one of the most beautiful in the world. It was declared a "Cultural Heritage of Humanity" thanks to the fact that it preserves most of the architecture and historical monuments from the colonial era.

Such qualification is undeniable. Just walk through the cobbled streets of the centre and admire the most representative buildings of the "Morelian Baroque" style, the ornamentation in pink quarry stone, the elegant fountains such as "Las Tarascas", the planters and the particular light of its street lamps.

Majestic buildings, as the cathedral, are illuminated on Saturday nights to light up walking tours of legends and stories of the oldest buildings in the city. Likewise, Conservatorio de las Rosas; Palacio de Gobierno; Ex Convento de San Francisco, where the Artisan's Institute is located; the aqueduct built between 1728 and 1730; Bosque Cuauhtémoc, the lungs of Morelia, the largest park in the city, where Museo de Historia Naturaland Museo de Arte Contemporáneo are also located; El Templo de San Diego or Santuario de Guadalupe, a work that mixes indigenous tradition with European tradition through its gloomy facade, and its decoration of mud and plaster made by the local artisan Joaquín Orta, which complement the landscape of this beautiful city.

We find the love and admiration for Morelia in each of its details. Callejón del Romance, a path through several of the buildings that are classified as historical monuments, is also a meeting point for recreational events with musical, theatrical proposals, exhibitions of plastic and literary works.

Casa Natal de Morelos, where José María Morelos y Pavón was born in 1785, is a beautiful Baroque-style house with a neoclassical facade. It currently has an audiovisual room, it is home to a Cine-club that offers free functions on a weekly basis, and is one of the venues of the Morelia International Film Festival (FICM).

As if that were not enough, very close to Morelia there are equally wonderful places such as Pátzcuaro, the Michoacan coast, Uruapan, the Purépecha plateau region and the sanctuaries of the monarch butterfly in the oyamel forests of Michoacán, where it is estimated that there are between 7 million and 20 million butterflies, according to data from INEGI.

The history of Morelia can be relived through its buildings, which allow us to go back in time to key moments for the Mexican nation, such as the Valladolid Conspiracy in 1809, the first approach to the Independence and a precursor to the Querétaro Conspiracy in 1810. 

At the Colegio de San Nicolás, a former university founded by Don Vasco de Quiroga, personalities such as Agustín de Iturbide and José María Morelos y Pavón studied. In its classrooms were trained teachers and students who would become activists of the insurgency years later. 

The richness of Morelia is evident in its people, diversity and culture. Morelia promotes various artistic disciplines at events such as The International Festival of Fashion, Art and Culture (FIMAC), The International Guitar Festival of Morelia, The National Gastro Mezcalero Mezcalmanía Festival, The Ambulante Documentary Tour, The Jazztival Michoacán and, of course, the FICM, which this year will celebrate its 21st edition.