Cuetzalan Attractions

From Zacapoaxtla there is a magnificent mountain route leading northwards 35km/22mi to Cuetzalán (Náhuatl: "Place of the Quetzal"; 1200 m (3937 ft); fiestas: July 15th-18th, town festival; October 2nd-6th, San Francisco and Coffee Mass; December 12th, Guadalupe; Sunday market). This picturesque little town, in the middle of the Sierra Norte in the state of Puebla, is a centre for various Indians groups which enliven the scene on market and feast days with their attractive traditional costumes. The annual festivals, at which selected folk groups from the region (Quetzales, Negritos, Santiagos and Voladores) perform their characteristic dances, are especially famous. Cuetzalán's sights include the town hall (Palacio Municipal) with its European-style architecture, the Parroquia with its unusual Torre de los Jarritos and, some way out of the town, the church of Guadalupe with its beautifully decorated graves in front. The most important business in the town and its surroundings is the cultivation and processing of coffee.