Bus To Morelia, Touring Morelia, Butterly Migration

Bus to Morelia, Touring Morelia
Updated June 21, 2013

     The bus pulled into the first class bus station several miles from the center of the city of Moralia with the sun not up yet.  The cab from the terminal to the historic center of the city costs 70 peso.          Once in the Centro Historico,  I wanted to see the downtown area of preserved colonial buildings that have been converted to museums. The city's artisan museum is in one of the old convents and several fine old hotels line the streets around the main plaza. Street-side restaurants look out on the plaza from beneath the preserved Portales.

   Breakfast of coffee and eggs at the outdoor restaurant felt like dining in Europe with all the old timers sipping their cappuccino and appraising the young women as they walked by on their way to work.
Just across from the portales, near a park where a kiosk dispenses maps for a small fee hunkers the huge Cathedral that gave the city a chance to show off its wealth. The church building was constructed in a baroque style called Tablerado.  Work started in 1660 and was completing in 1744. The stone is pink Cantera, a soft, easily-worked volcanic stone that gives the church its unique tone. The interior does impress.

     The rich towns lavished much cash on their churches during colonial days. The cathedral at San Luis Potosi, a silver mining town, ranks high on a list of elegant colonial churches as does the church in Moralia.

     The tourist kiosk dispenses information about butterfly trips. The monarchs winter in the mountains of Michoacan, not far from Moralia. Morelia makes a good base city for winter trips to see the Monarch Migration.  MMG Tours offers a nine-hour trip leaving Morelia at 8:30 am. The trip includes guide, modern van, and lunch. The cost is 500 Pesos, $40 USD Approx.

      The Monarchs start moving south from Canada and the US in September and complete the migration in November. They roost for the winter on the steep slopes of the southwestern sides of mountains near ten thousand feet in Michoacan State where it borders the State of Mexico. It wasn’t until 1975 that researchers discovered that the Monarch butterfly wintered in Michoacan.
     Morelia can also be a good base for tours of Patzcuaro its islands and the Archaeological Zone of Tzintzuntzan.  Morelia Michoacan Guides    www.mmg.com.mx runs tours to the ruin site of Tzintzuntzan.

     Morelia's Centro Historico is a walkable several blocks north and south and 20 blocks east and west. Sightseeing in the historic center of Morelia was made easier by the tourist kiosk that dispenses information and sells maps.  The Artisan Museum and the craft shops at Plaza Valodollid is a good visit. The Artisan Museum is located in Morelia's oldest building, the 1550 exconvento San Francisco. The space, located on two floors, provides great shopping and an enlightening look at the many arts and crafts produced in Michoacan.

Coffee shops and dining at the Park of Roses near the 

Archaeology Museum. 

     Later I caught a cab to the Anthropology museum. They display a great collection of pre-Hispanic art and archaeological artifacts, but for some odd reason they don’t allow photos.
Next to the Museum the park offers outdoor tables for coffee or ice cream in the Park of Roses.
        See links
 Morelia Monarch Butterfly Migration