[2] Both contain traditional Mexican markets and tianguis in which women can be found seated on the floor selling seeds, flowers, herbs and more.

One food specialty is a cold drink made with chocolate and water, whipped until foamy served in wooden bowls with flowers painted on them.

The neighborhoods closest to the center are urbanized, with those on the edges of the city maintaining more of their rural character, with economies based on agriculture and brick making.

They also built a new temple to Quetzacoatl, where the San Gabriel monastery is now, leaving the Great Pyramid of Cholula as the religious focus of the southern part of the city.

[10][11] According to legend, the city of Cholula has 365 churches, one for each day of the year or one for each pre Hispanic temple destroyed by the Spanish, depending on the version.

[17] After finding pre Hispanic idols and other pieces on what seemed to be a hill, monks decided to rededicate it to the Virgin of the Remedies and built this church, beginning in 1594.

According to records from a monk named Agustin de Vetancurt, the monastery was authorized in 1557 by of Joanna of Castile, sister of Felipe II.

[9] However, the authorization of the second monastery was soon disputed, as it changed created a second pole of power away from the Spanish dominated San Pedro side.

[9] In 1673, the repeated complaints about the monastery's authorization resulted in an order to the Marquis de Mancera to demolish the complex, even though some records indicate there were still Franciscans inhabiting it.

[9][24] Mancera was aware of the royal records related to the institution, so he decided to demolish most of the monastery area and only close down the church, after removing all of the altars and decorative elements.

It follows the design of many other monasteries from that time in Puebla with a square cloister, refectory, pilgrim portal, meditation room (sala de profundis) and sacristy.

[3] The Antigua Casa del Gobernador (Old Governor's House) was probably built after San Andres received its status as an Indian Republic, which was in 1714.

The hallways have wireless Internet service, a music lounge for visitors, an entertainment area, ping pong tables and more.

Some of the businesses inside include Beat Box, Hackl breads, Smart Mac, and Vibra (a meditation center).

[3] San Francisco Acatepec's economy is mostly based on livestock production along with the growing of corn, beans and animal feed.

This and other elements, such as paintings called El Lavatorio and La Ultima Cena by José Rubi Marimon, have allowed to the church to maintain its traditional look.

The second phase began at the end of the 17th century and beginning of the 18th, when the bell tower, cupola, basic layout and a small sacristy were built.

[3] The stucco work includes images of dark skinned angels, tropical fruits, ears of corn, eagle warriors, cherubs, serpents, dark skinned angels, children playing among flowers and fish along with the Four Evangelists, Francis of Assisi, Saint Anthony, Christ, Quetzalcoatl and especially the Virgin Mary.

[26] In the pre Hispanic period, the area was sacred to Tonantzin, or the mother goddess, who was substituted by the Virgin Mary after the Conquest.

[24] However, the walls of the large inner courtyard have mosaics of encrusted volcanic stone that depicts a goat, a rabbit, flames and elements of the Passion of Christ, such as the weeping face of Saint Veronica, her tear flowing red.

It has a large library with auditorium which hosts the Cine Club Las Américas, where students present independent films.

Most commerce is geared towards local needs with two important exceptions, the nightclub scene and tourism, which is focused on the Great Pyramid of Cholula.

[3] The pyramid, topped by the Nuestra Señora de los Remedios Church is one of the region's main tourist attractions, making Cholula one of the better known destinations in central Mexico for foreign travelers.

The municipality is in the southern part of the high basin of the Atoyac River, forms the border between San Andres and the city of Puebla.

[3] The first human settlements of Cholula are within the confines of the San Andrés municipality and date somewhere between 500 and 200 BCE, during the middle Preclassic period.

It rapidly developed into an urban center in the Classic period (200–800 CE) dominating the Puebla-Tlaxcala region, growing to an area of about four km2 and a population of between 20,000 and 25,000.

[29] However, there is evidence of a change of dominant ethnicity, with a people known as the Olmec-Xicallana coming to power and pottery and other artifacts showing Gulf Coast influence.

The defeated group was pushed to the eastern half of the city and the surrounding areas, maintaining a certain amount of religious and political autonomy, centered on the pyramid.

Organization of what is now the municipal territory changed over time, but San Andrés remained an independent political entity from the 18th century on.

[9] One reason the division remained was that during all of the colonial period and much into the 19th century, the Spanish and their descendants were mostly found on the San Pedro side, in what is still considered to be the center of the city of Cholula.