Moles, a Museum, and a Plan That Worked

 

Entrance to Amparo Museum

Architectural Models from the Show

Example of Timelines used in Exhibits

Relaxing after a Massage (kind of redundant)

Chicken Mole

Pork Mole

Dinner at Augurio

Last night’s dinner was the start of our re-evaluation of Puebla; today’s visit to the Amparo Museum confirmed that we had made the most of our time there.

We were looking for something that would make Puebla feel worthwhile, and after reading about the Amparo Museum, it felt like the right choice. From the street it looks entirely historic, but inside it’s been thoughtfully updated and easy to navigate. We wandered through the anthropology galleries at our own pace, and Cliff spent extra time with a temporary exhibition on Mexican architecture. The pre-Hispanic pieces come from an older private collection assembled long before today’s cultural-heritage laws, and the museum felt approachable and informative without being overwhelming. It was well worth the visit.

Back at the hotel, we moved on to the second part of our plan—a 90-minute massage—which turned out to be genuinely relaxing. Afterward we spent some quiet time by the rooftop pool, then returned to our room for a glass of wine before heading out to dinner.

Dinner was at Augurio, a neighborhood Puebla restaurant that felt refreshingly local. We started with tacos, a margarita for Cliff, and wine for Cathy. As expected, moles were the focus. We ordered a pork mole and a chicken mole, each quite different and both excellent. Neither was spicy, just rich and satisfying, and they gave us a better appreciation for why Puebla takes its moles so seriously.

After dinner we returned to the hotel for a final drink, packed up, and got ready for our return to Los Angeles tomorrow—glad we’d experienced Puebla, and equally glad to be heading home to our cats.