The square itself is amazing, and the history is even more so. And while the square is a great…read moreplace to walk around and there is always something happing, it's great to go to the walking street and check out all the shops. But the people watching is the best. There are many souvenir shops around and it's worth going into the churches. One could easily spend a couple of hours here, more if you find a bar and have a nice, cool drink.

Plaza de la Constitución is the current official name of this central square located in Mexico…read moreCity's historic district, with centuries of history, and formerly known by many other names. It's evolved from a site for early Aztec rituals to a venue for modern independence celebrations, concerts, protests and parades, with varied uses in between. Today it's known as "El Zócalo", Spanish for "base" referring to the base of a monument to independence that was never finished in this square. Instead a single flagpole stands in the middle. Built over the ceremonial center of the Aztec city Tenochtitlan previously located in the same spot, you can visit the city's teocalli (sacred precinct) called Templo Mayor in today's vernacular. This is directly north east of the square. To the direct north is the Catedral Metropolitana de la Ciudad de México (Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral), to the east is the Palacio Nacional (National Palace), to the south are city government offices including the City Hall and Supreme Court close by. Over the centuries it's functioned as a public square, makeshift or formal market place, park, gathering place for political uprisings and other major historic events. Nowadays it's still a popular gathering place, there are buskers, organized performances, cultural and civic activities, including the Day of the Dead annual parade. When I was there a few weeks ago there was a city sponsored art exhibit of cactus statues, looked to be designed, and painted/embellished/decorated by local artists. There were around 100 different cacti spread out in the central section around the flagpole. Entrance was free though the exhibition area was fenced with police monitoring the entry points, I suppose to prevent any malicious activity toward the public art. So many designs stood out, I posted some pics of my faves--what talented artists!

This relatively compact souvenir market features a wide variety of crafts. If you're buying gifts…read morefor folks back home, you'll be satisfied. If you're looking for very high quality works by artisans, unfortunately, this is not the place.

A cool, souvenir market in Puebla! This market is across…read morethe street from the Barrio de Artistas, a few blocks from the Zocalo. It's a touristy market, with lots of the mass produced types of art that you'd expect to see in an outdoor mercado. Lots of pottery, textiles, jewelry and stuff to hang on your shelves when you get home. This isn't really a place where the locals hang out. But if you're from out of town, and are looking for something relatively inexpensive to take home with you, this is the place. There's scores of little shops that may or may not be independently run. They sell a lot of the same stuff, with some differences between them. There's some that specialize just in ceramics, some in just silver jewelry, and some in just textiles, but there's not a whole lot of differences between them. The prices are all pretty similar- since the shop keepers all seem to know each other, there's not a lot of room for haggling to try to tell them that the other shop keeper is selling it for cheaper. The market consists of a few rows of small shops, each one the size of a small garage, packed to the hilt with hand crafts that are made elsewhere in Puebla. The prices are cheap, but they are cheaper if you buy them from a street vendor. However, the selection here is the best you're going to find in Puebla- with so many options to shop at, they're sure to have what you're looking for. While here, be sure to check out the public works of art- a giant sun painted in the middle of the floor, a statue of who I believe to be San Francisco, and a big picture frame to stand in for a selfie. There's restrooms in the mercado, which are relatively clean. This place feels very safe, as it's one of the main tourist areas for Puebla, and there is a healthy police presence. There's also food vendors who hang out here and sell light snacks, which is quite appreciated.