In the colonial era, it was described as being as luxurious as the church of San Juan de los Reyes in Toledo and one of the most beautiful in Mexico.

[5] The basic elements of the complex are the atrium with its corner chapels called "capillas posas," cloister, and main church.

The thick walls, merlons and narrow windows made the complex a fortress, not only to protect the monks from hostile native populations initially, but also to provide the local community later with a shelter in case of attack.

[4] The architecture of the large church and monastery area is a mix of medieval and Renaissance styles,[3] with Plateresque and Moorish elements standing out.

[1] The entrance to the church is flanked by tall classical columns, whose capitals support a narrow cornice to form an alfiz.

[4] The interior of the cloister retains all of its original architectural elements, and includes the courtyard, fountain, monks’ cells, refectory, kitchen, gardens, and a meditation/prayer room called the sala de profundis.

[2] This room contains the best preserved mural work in the complex, including a depiction of the first twelve Franciscans to arrive in Mexico, headed by Martin de Valencia.

[7] It contains a modest collection of artworks and other artifacts from the colonial period such as baptismal fonts and religious paraphernalia as well as displays explaining the evangelization work done by the Franciscans after the Conquest.

[9] For the next four days, people listen and dance to music, set off fireworks and more, but what makes the Huejotzingo carnival different is the reenactment of three elements of the area's history and lore, which occur repeatedly over the course of the event.

The second commemorates the Battle of Puebla, and the last depicts the first marriage of Indians by Catholic rite in Latin America.

At the beginning of this reenactment, the woman who plays the daughter arrives at the municipal palace to climb up to the balcony to be kidnapped.

[10] The most extensive event is based on the Battle of Puebla, which occurred in the 19th century between French and Mexican troops in this region.

Over all four days, these battalions, totaling about 2,000 people, participate in mock battles, firing their wooden muskets at each other, which fills the air with gunpowder smoke.

[4][12] The traje serrano consists of a black cotton shirt and pants, with an animal skin around the shoulders, a hat made of palm fronds, and huarache sandals.

A zapador is an outfit with a shirt, a short blue jacket, and red baggy pants and an embroidered apron-like garment.

[4] "Turco" (Turkish) dress consists of a white shirt and pants, with a small blue vest, a turban with a peacock feather, and a mask with a mustache and beard.

Principal crops include fava and other kinds of beans, wheat, alfalfa, walnuts, and various fruits such as pears, plums, apricots, peaches, and tejocotes.

Most commercial businesses serve local and regional needs, but they also include shops selling the area's signature cider and fruit conserves.

[6] Huejotzingo received its coat of arms in 1553 from Carlos V.[2] It shows a silver fortress on a red field, which has a blue flag with the Cross of Jerusalem in gold.

Surrounding all of this is a decorative border with five blue stars on a silver background, with the words "Carolus Quintus Hispaniarum Rex" (Latin: Charles V, King of the Spanish).

[14] For most of the 20th century, the municipal presidents came from one party, the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI), and two local families, which rejected industrialization and the building of highways.

The PAN candidate received the largest number of votes, but PRI asserted that there were irregularities at eleven polling stations.

are the lower slopes of the Sierra Nevada, and above this on the far west side, the territory is part of the mountain chain and the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt.

Rivers and streams generally cross the area from southwest to northwest, coming from the Sierra Nevada, and all are tributaries of the Atoyac.

These include the San Diego, Cuaxupila, Pipinahuac, Alseseca, Achipitzil, Tolimpa, Losa Cipreses, Actiopa, and Xopanac.

[18] Some of the rivers have cut deep ravines and small canyons into the landscape, including the La Manga, Xeniqui, Ocoxaltepec, Xacatiotlapa, Hueyatitla, Tepetla, Coxocoaco, Apitzato, and Hueacaclán.

[14] The small city of Huejotzingo is the local governing authority for over one hundred other named communities, which cover a territory of 188.91 km2.

[14] There is one major institution of higher education called the Universidad Tecnológica de Huejotzingo, which was established in the community of Santa Ana Xalmimilulco in 1998.

The institution primarily offers technology-related degrees in fields such as mechanical engineering, information and communications technologies, administration and evaluation of projects, and textile industry design and production.

[25] In total there are six that provide service to Monterrey, Guadalajara, and Tijuana along with Houston and Dallas in the U.S.[8] Buses and taxis connect the airport to the city of Puebla, as well as rental cars.