San Cristóbal de las Casas (), also known by its native Tzotzil name, Jovel (), is a town and municipality located in the Central Highlands region of the Mexican state of Chiapas. It was the capital of the state until 1892, and is still considered the cultural capital of Chiapas.
The municipality is mostly made up of mountainous terrain, but the city sits in a small valley surrounded by hills. The city's center maintains its Spanish colonial layout and much of its architecture, with red tile roofs, cobblestone streets and wrought iron balconies often with flowers. Most of the city's economy is based on commerce, services and tourism.
Tourism is based on the city's history, culture and indigenous population, although the tourism itself has affected the city, giving it foreign elements. Major landmarks of the city include the cathedral, the Santo Domingo church with its large open air crafts market and the Casa Na Bolom museum. The municipality has suffered severe deforestation, but it has natural attractions such as caves and rivers.
The town and municipality
San Cristóbal de las Casas is a city and municipality located in the Central Highlands region of Chiapas. As a municipality, the city functions as the governmental authority for 83 other rural communities outside the city proper, which cover a territory of 484 km2. Of these communities, the most important include La Candelaria, San Antonio del Monte, Mitziton, San José Yashitinin, El Pinar, Buenavista, Pedernal, Corazon de Maria and Zacualpa Ecatepec. The municipality borders the municipalities of Chamula, Tenejapa, Huixtán, Teopisca, Totolapa, Chiapilla, San Lucas and Zinacantán.
The city, especially the historic center, has maintained its Spanish colonial layout, with narrow cobblestone streets, roofs covered in red clay tile and wrought iron balconies with flowers. The facades of the buildings vary from Baroque to Neoclassical and Moorish, painted in various colors. Milk delivery from local dairy farms still use canisters on donkeys, and farmers typically still use horses and donkeys for hauling wood and farmed goods within their own properties. The city subdivides into three sections but the majority of the population lives in the central section near the city center. Many of the surrounding hills have lost their native trees, in part due to cutting firewood and logging operations which feed the local manufacturing and construction industries.
Although the political capital of Chiapas was moved to Tuxtla at the end of the 19th century, San Cristóbal is considered to be the "cultural capital" of the state. Designated a "Pueblo Mágico" (Magical Village) in 2003, it was further recognized as "the most magical of the Pueblos Mágicos" by President Felipe Calderón in 2010. Much of this culture is associated with the city's and municipality's large indigenous population, which is mostly made up of Tzotzils and Tzeltals. One aspect of traditional culture associated with these indigenous groups is the making of textiles, especially weaving, with amber another important product. Ceramics, wrought iron and filigree jewelry can be found as well. The best known area for crafts is the tianguis at Santo Domingo. The city hosts an annual Amber Expo at the Centro de Convenciones Casa de Mazariegos. The event exhibits and sells amber and amber pieces from the area of the state. A more traditional Mexican market is located just north of the Santo Tomas Church. It is open each day except Sunday, when its vendors go to the surrounding communities in the municipality to sell at their markets. On the days that it is open, the large building, which mostly houses traditional butcher shops, is surrounded by stalls which crowd the nearby streets. There are very few tourists here, except for the occasional backpacker. Markets like this serve traditional dishes such as saffron tamales, sopa de pan, asado coleto, atole de granillo and a drink called posh made from sugar cane.
The city's attraction for tourists has also led to a number making San Cristobal their permanent home, which has had an effect of the local culture, especially in the historic center. Many foreign residents have opened up restaurants with Italian, French, Thai, Indian, Chinese and more options, such as vegetarian. An older foreign influence is the city's noted cured meat tradition, which can be traced back to both the Spanish and the Germans. These are featured in a number of dishes including chalupas. Foreign influence can also be seen in the city's nightlife which offers reggae, salsa, techno and more.
Fireworks are common as there are many religious festivals which use them. Important celebrations include those dedicated to the Dulce Niño de Jesús, the Señor de Esquipulas, Saint Anthony, Corpus Christi, San Cristóbal and the Holy Family. This is in addition to the various neighborhood saint celebrations in their respective churches around town. However, the most elaborate rituals are performed during Holy Week. Holy Week processions include both silent and chanting marchers. A number are dressed in pointed hoods and carry heavy platforms with religious figures. They go from house to house, stopping at those homes that have erected small shrines. There they say prayers and bless the house and its occupants before moving on. They finally come to rest in a gigantic open house where an inner shrine has been erected lit by thousands of candles, and where a large potluck supper takes place. All, even passersby, are welcome to partake. Passion plays depicting the crucifixion of Jesus are common events with one large one centered in the open plaza behind the municipal palace. After dark, there is the Burning of Judas. The figures burned are plentiful and include, as well as Judas, government bureaucrats, church officials, army officers, US political figures, Spanish conquistadors, and popular celebrities. They are lit by local firemen who try to keep people back at a safe distance, but fireworks occasionally fall among the crowds anyway.
The Feria de la Primavera y la Paz (Spring and Peace Fair) runs concurrent with Holy Week, especially on Holy Saturday with music and costumes. It terminates with the burning of Judas. A queen is elected to be crowned the next day. Bullfights are held.
The Festival Cervantino Barroco is held each year in the historic center featuring invited artists from various parts of Mexico and abroad. It is held in various forums in the city and includes concerts, plays, exhibitions and conferences.
The center of the city is its main plaza. This plaza's official name is Plaza 31 de marzo, but it is more often simply called the Zócalo. In the colonial era, the city's main market was here as well as the main water supply. Today, it is centered on a kiosk which was added in the early 20th century. The corners of this structure have inscriptions marking the major events of San Cristóbal's history. The rest of the plaza is filled with gardens and surrounded by the most important buildings and finest homes from the history of the city. Surrounding this plaza are the city's most important buildings such as the cathedral and the city hall.
The cathedral is to the north of the main plaza and it is the most emblematic symbol of the city. However, the main facade does not face the Zócalo, rather it faces its own atrium which is called the Cathedral Plaza. The cathedral began as a modest church dedicated to the Virgin of the Assumption built in 1528. When Chiapas became a diocese in the 17th century, with San Cristóbal as its seat, this church was torn down to build the current structure, dedicated to Saint Christopher, the patron of the city. The overall structure contains European Baroque, Moorish and indigenous influences. The main facade was finished in 1721 and some final touches were added in the 20th century. The main feature of the church is its main facade, which was finished in 1721. It is Baroque painted yellow with ornamental columns and niches in which are various saints. It is divided into three horizontal and three vertical levels marked off by pairs of Solomonic columns and meant to resemble an altarpiece. It is further decorated with intricate raised stucco work mostly in white which show Oaxacan and Guatemalan influences. The layout of the interior shows Moorish influence. The main altar is dedicated to both the Virgin of the Assumption and Saint Christopher. The wood pulpit is from the 16th century and gilded. The side walls have two Baroque altarpieces, one to the Virgin of the Assumption and the other to John of Nepomuk. There is also a small chapel dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe on the north side. The sacristy has a large colonial era paintings of Jesus in Gethsemane by Juan Correa as well as paintings by Miguel Cabrera and Eusebio de Aguilar. It is common to see older indigenous women in the cathedral, with some even traversing the entire nave on their knees to approach the large image of Jesus handing above the Baroque altar.
At the back of the cathedral, there is an affixed church called the San Nicolás Temple. It was constructed between 1613 and 1621 in Moorish design by Augustinian monks for use by the indigenous population. It is the only church in the city which has not been significantly altered since its construction. The roof is pitched and pyramid shaped built with wood and tile, and its facade is made of stone and brick with little ornamentation. Two of its images, the Señor de la Misericordia and the Virgen de los Dolores are both from Guatemala.
The city hall, often called the Palacio de Gobierno, is a Neoclassical construction which was built in the 19th century by architect Carlos Z. Flores. It contains a series of arches supported by Tuscan columns. In front of the city hall at night, young men and women promenade past each other in opposite directions around the gazebo. The city hall is scene to fairly frequent protests, some directly associated with the Zapatistas and others are held by student activists from UNAM in Mexico City. These protests are generally accompanied by lines of riot police.