Zócalo

Zócalo Review

The square around which this colonial city was built has in its center a gazebo used by marimba musicians most weekend evenings at 8. You can have a coffee on the ground floor of the gazebo; expect to be approached by children and women selling bracelets and other wares. Surrounding the square are a number of 16th-century buildings, some with plant-filled central patios. On the facade of the Casa de Diego de Mazariegos, now the Hotel Santa Clara, are a stone mermaid and lions that are typical of the plateresque style—as ornate and busy as the work of a silversmith. The yellow-and-white neoclassical Palacio Municipal (Municipal Palace) on the square's west side was the seat of the state government until 1892. Today it houses a few government offices, including the municipal tourism office.