Architect Ricardo Legorreta has created a striking interface between the contemporary and the colonial
With its red-hot cinema, culinary culture and contemporary art scene, Mexico City is North America's capital of cool. But spare a thought for the colonial-era towns in the vicinity of the world's second largest metropolis. Chief among them is Puebla, two hours southeast of the capital. Set in a valley and ringed by a series of volcanoes — including the 14,636-ft (4,461-m) Malinche — Puebla was founded in 1531 along an important pre-Columbian trade route. This helped Puebla prosper during Spanish rule, resulting in one of the most elaborate and colorful town squares, or zócalo, in the New World, with High...