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Municipality and town in Puebla, Mexico
Photo: PetrohsW, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Calpan is a small town in the mountains of Puebla in Central Mexico. It is best known for its historic 16th century monastery, Convento San Andres Calpan, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It lays claim to being the cradle of Chiles en Nogada, an iconic dish of the state of Puebla.
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Calpan Monastery
Historic 16th century Franciscan monastery established in 1548. The church features four processional entries called capillas posas as well as a dizzying array of relief sculptures depicting biblical scenes. The main altar includes a portrayal of St. Andrew (San Andres) made from bird feathers. The two-story convent features arched walkways facing outwards. The complex is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Traffic roundabout with a bronze sculpture in the middle depicting the legendary love story of Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl with the two volcanoes visible in the background.
Virgin of Guadalupe Chapel
Small 17th-century chapel.
Horse stables offering riding lessons and guided rides on the trails near the Iztacchuatl and Popocateptl volcanoes. Guided hikes and mountain bike rides are also offered.
Environmentally friendly eco-retreat with a butterfly hatchery, forest trails, streams and woods. Homemade food available (including grasshopper quesadillas). Rustic campsites available including palapas and hammocks.
Upscale traditional restaurant serving regional Pueblan (Poblano) cuisine, particularly chiles en nogada, the house specialty.
Comfortably casual place to sit outside and enjoy chiles en nogales or other dishes. Meals are served with bread and spaghetti. Unusual ice cream flavors are available for dessert, including walnut ice cream and blue corn ice cream. Ample off-street parking available.
Like every restaurant in town, the specialty is chile en nogada. At this restaurant it's served with a soup and spaghetti. The fruit flavored aguas frescas are quite good. Off-street parking lot available.
Just for the sake of argument you wanted something to eat other than chile en nogada, is there any place in town you can go? Yes, Taqueria El Poblano. It's a typical Mexico City style taqueria with everything from tacos arabes, to suadero. It's also a great place for cheap eats on the go.
Small winery offering vineyard tours, wine tastings, and light food including fresh baked pizza from a brick oven and a variety of Spanish tapas.
Small traditional Mexican hotel with rooms on two levels set around an interior courtyard. Rooms are spacious, clean and well equipped with good WiFi and plenty of hot water. Off-street parking is available. The in-house restaurant serves an excellent homestyle breakfast as well as dinner. It's the only hotel in town, but fortunately, is well run and affordable.
The closest airport with commercial flights is Puebla International Airport (PBC), also known as Hermanos Serdan Airport.
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Puebla · International · PBC
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