My eighth "Magic Town"

In previous posts, I have mentioned the "Pueblo Mágico" program of the Mexican tourism board.  Small towns throughout the country have been designated as "Magic Towns" for their cultural, historical and scenic qualities.  I had previously visited seven "Pueblos Mágicos", and on Saturday, Alejandro and I took an excursion to my eighth, the town of Tlayacapan.
Tlayacapan is located in the state of Morelos to the south of Mexico City, not far from another "Pueblo Mágico", Tepoztlán, which I described in earlier post.

        

Tlayacapan, like Tepoztlán, is located in a region of dramatic mountains.

 

Saturday is market day in Tlayacapan.  We parked the car on the edge of town, and walked toward the center along a street crowded with vendors' stalls.

 

At the center of town we came to the former Augustinian monastery of San Juan Bautista.
Construction on this religious complex began in the 1530s, little more than a decade after the Spanish conquest.  It has been declared a "World Heritage Site" by UNESCO.

 

It is noteworthy for the remains of fresco paintings on the walls and ceilings of the church and monastery.

A colonial building which was once a candle factory is now a cultural center and small museum with some displays of the local pottery.

 

Tlayacapan was an interesting town, and worth a visit, but it didn't seem as "magical" as most of the other "Pueblos Mágicos" that I have seen.