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| History
Michoacán has produced many free thinkers, and one of the most famous was home-grown President Lázaro Cárdenas. Morelia has been a university town for centuries and the idealistic curiosity of the students has sustained the aura of advancement in the city. Morelia is frequently the scene of high powered dissent to the government. Industry and high-tech commerce is growing on the outskirts of the city by leaps and bounds.
For balance, Morelia is also known as a musical city, with
New Spain's first conservatory of music built here in 1743. The
city is also home to one of the largest organs in Mexico.
Students continue to study and musically perform here. Modern Morelia The Benito Juárez Zoo is a real change of pace from the intense historical walk through the inner city of Morelia. You'll find a variety of animals, a small lake with rowboats for rent, a nocturnal display, reptiles, a mini-train that cruises around the park, restaurants, shops, a children's playground, a picnic area, and a fine ecology program. A
modern, green complex that is adaptable to many different programs
in the city, Convention Center of Morelia houses a planetarium,
the orchid house (called the orchidarium), and the Morelos
Theater. |
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Morelia
(pop. 1,000,000, alt. 6,399 ft.), the capital of the state of Michoacán,
is a UNESCO World Heritage Artistic Site and is familiarly referred
to in Mexico as the "Aristocrat of Colonial Cities". The
titles are well earned; the delicate pink quarrystone structures
are just as majestic today as they were in the 16th century. 
Founded
in 1541 by the first viceroy of New Spain, Antonio de Mendoza,
the city was named Valladolid, after Mendoza's birthplace
in Spain (the name was changed after Independence, when all links
with Spain were severed). It was at that time that the seat of power
was moved from Pátzcuaro to Valladolid (Morelia). However, the entire
area of what is today Michoacán flourished under the fair
leadership of Vasco de Quiroga. He arrived in the New World
in 1531 and to Michoacán in 1533. Probably
the most Spain-like of all the colonial cities, Morelia has a certain
air of elegance.
The streets are lined with countless buildings from the past, all
still in use and adapted to modern-day living.
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