Otumba

What Makes it Magical

Otumba has inherited a rich legacy dating back to when it was home to the Acolhuacan estate, or the backdrop to the event of the Noche Triste (The Night of Sorrows), when Cuitláhuac defeated Hernán Cortés. During the era of the viceroyalty, this Magical Town, in the State of Mexico, was a holiday resort for the Earl of la Coruña, Lorenzo Suárez de Mendoza, who arrived in 1580. This is where power was symbolically transferred to the new viceroys. More recently it was the home of the great painter Gonzalo Carrasco, a student of the celebrated landscape artist José María Velasco.

At the Very Least

Franciscan monks in the 16th century built another convent here, this time on top of an old pre-Hispanic platform. Today you can see the Parroquia de la Purísima Concepción, built later, which still conserves the monastery’s gatehouse. A staircase separates this church from the Plaza de la Constitución, a square with its typical pavilion and archwork. Next to the garden is the Palacio Municipal, with an arcade, and the Casa de Cultura Museo Regional Gonzalo Carrasco, a regional museum and cultural center which contains a collection of furniture and paintings that belonged to the artist that gave this place its name. Nearby is the Museo del Ferrocarril; the Railway Museum is located within an old railway station from the Porfirio Díaz era, when the trains transported the pulque produced by the region’s haciendas.

The handicrafts here are characterized by fine woodwork pieces and carvings made from high-quality wood, as well as objects made from obsidian, onyx, and drawn glass.

Don’t Miss

1. Pirámide del Sol (Pyramid of the Sun).
2. Pirámide de la Luna (Pyramid of the Moon).
3. Museo del Ferrocarril.
4. Burrolandia.
5. Casa de Cultura Museo Regional Gonzalo Carrasco.
6. In May, don’t miss the Feria Nacional del Burro (National Donkey Fair) where apart from organized events, you can enjoy typical food from the region: escamoles (ant eggs), barbacoa de carnero (slow-cooked mutton), mole, grilled quail and ostrich meat, accompanied by a delicious tomato or pineapple drink called curado. Otumba is known as the “cradle of the donkey” in Mexico; since 2006 it has been home to Burrolandia, a sanctuary where this equine creature in danger of extinction is looked after.