Mexico’s colonial past is a white-washed blur of churches, silver mines, and unfair labor practices. To see everything from start to finish all in one place, head to Mexico City, where Hernán Cortés first established Spanish imperium by torturing Aztec emperor Cuauhtémoc. Then visit the Palacio Nacional, which once housed Spanish viceroys and now holds the Campaña de Dolores (Bell of Dolores) that summoned Mexicans to fight for independence in 1810. When the city starts to swelter, make your way to Cuernavaca, once the summer camp of the colonial elite, and now home to wealthy Mexicans and international jetsetters who swarm to the local language schools and lush gardens. Blinded by the bling? Stock up in nearby Taxco, a colonial silver town where the winding roads recall visions of Spain. To the south lie the faded limestone streets and lavish temples of Oaxaca, the birthplace of Mexico’s famous president, indígeno Benito Juárez, and its infamous dictator, Porfirio Díaz. Swing by Morelia, a state capital packed with cultural centers and rose-colored arcades, then frolic with university students or mummies in the museums of Guanajuato. Don’t miss artsy San Miguel de Allende before relaxing in the nation’s wealthy silver and gold capital San Luis Potosí. Head back through steamy Veracruz, the port of choice for the country’s many invaders (at last count, Spain, France, and the US, twice). Farther inland is Tlaxcala, the city-state that collaborated with Cortés to defeat the Aztecs. Neighboring Puebla epitomizes colonial Mexico, exhibiting Renaissance order in its perfectly gridded streets and cobblestone walkways.
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