Puebla & Cholula with Nicolas Luna & Family (May 3, 2026)
After my incredible day in Mexico City with Jen Nash (see related post), how could Will and I ever come close with our second day here? Let me back up a bit further. In truth, I’m here in Mexico BECAUSE of my friend Nicolas Luna (a.k.a. Nick). Nick reached out to me on this website and suggested we meet up in Cholula. You’re forgiven if you’ve never heard of this particular city. As spectacular as it is, it’s a bit of a hidden gem — which is why I gave him a HELL YES!!!! So glad I did.
Elan, Nick, Pam, Bill & Will in front of Catedral de Puebla
Hmm, where to begin. Let me start by admitting the Karma Fairy came along and kicked my butt last night. I was just telling Jen Nash how “I never get jet lag” and felt sorry for my wife Elena who took almost a week to recover from her flight from Japan back to New York. Well, to tech me a lesson, the Karma Fairy woke me up at 1am and wouldn’t allow me to go back to sleep until 4am. To catch our 2-hour bus ride, we had to be out the door by 7am, so not the greatest night of rest before our big day here in both Puebla and Cholula. Thankfully, I get my energy from being with other people and Nick’s family was an incredible energy boost.
Meet Elan Luna, who was quite a trooper spending a day together
One of my greatest joys traveling the world is meeting the families of my coach friends. Elan was such a joy to spend time with. He’s bright, funny, and one of the most patient kids I’ve met. Despite spending hours together going to cathedrals, the oldest library in North America, and museums, Elan hang in without any complaints. Amazing.
Pam, Nick and Elan getting to ride on the shoulders of dad.
Then there’s Nick’s wife Pam. I loved hearing their story of how they met. Nick left Mexico to go to Thailand and the two of them there. Pam is from Chiang Mai (see related blog post), which to date has been the “coldest” part of our trip. Why? Because Chiang Mai is in the northern part of Thailand and we spent most of our time in the mountains where the temperature can be a good 20 degrees colder at night. Anyway, Pam and Nick started out as friends and ended up getting married after dating for a year. We swapped stories of how we met our spouses and agreed it’s wonderful to be friends first if possible.
Pam giving the peace sign as Elan attempts to hide behind dad ;-)
“Hey Nick, what’s with the marching band?” I ask. “Does this have anything to do with Cinco de Mayo?” Nick explained that there are marching bands every weekend and parties every night. What? Yes, it turns out that Mexican culture combines working extremely hard with enjoying life in equal measure. On this day in particular, Will and I witnessed (and I’m not making this up), two weddings, a funeral, a baptism and quinceanera … ON THE SAME DAY. In fact, there is something like 180 cathedrals in this one area of Mexico.
Nick’s plan for the day was incredible. We began our journey in Puebla (as this was an easy bus route form Mexico City). We saw the Catedral de Puebla, and then the local museum: Amparo. Had an incredible lunch at Nick’s favorite spot, visited the oldest library in North America, then spent time in Choulula, his home town where he grew up.
Will and I loved this statue — especially the buck teeth and big jowls
Next was the oldest library in North America. The Biblioteca Palafoxiana in Puebla, Mexico, recognized as the oldest public library in North America, was founded in 1646 by Bishop Juan de Palafox y Mendoza, it is recognized by UNESCO for its immense bibliographic heritage. It remains in its original, intact building and serves as a museum and research library, according to NBC News.
There are books on display going back to the 1400s! But what’s fascinating are the section titles. You may not speak Latin, but I’m sure you recognize a few of them including the history of pornography and another section on profanity. I’m so curious what books live there and how they have changed over the years. For now, it’s more “display” than actual research. In looking below, notice the wooden book wheel. This is the “too many open tabs in Google Chrome” equivalent for the 1600s.
Will and I are both writers and happy to be in the oldest library in NA
Lastly Nick took me to see the largest pyramid in the world as measured by the base. Yes, the Egyptians are known for their pyramids, but the Incas and Mayans build very different structures which allowed for a sprawling base. So big, in fact, most of the largest ones are still buried. In Cholula, the Spanish built a massive cathedral on what they thought was the top of a mountain, but it turns out that mountain contained a massive pyramid. Of course, the Spanish uncovered this as they were building their cathedral. Rather than pausing or finding a different location there were like, “GOOD! Think of the symbolism of crowning their pyramid with our church!” I’m paraphrasing of course, but at the time it was a symbolic middle finger to the locals. Our God is the ONLY God. Choose: cross or sword!
Ironically, the locals had their revenge by carving all of their gods into the intricate markings inside the cathedral itself. Yep. Payback is a bitch, isn’t it? If you neglect to learn the local customs and theology, it turns out you don’t recognize the very public snubbing inside your own house of worship. Isn’t history fascinating? I love it.
Epic view of all of Cholula on top of one of the largest pyramids
What an epic day all around. Will and I enjoyed hanging out with Nick, Pam and Elan. I really feel like we got a powerful education about Puebla and Cholula and saw some incredible sights. Thanks to Nick’s planning, we had an incredible experience and wonderful connection. So grateful to have the opportunity to spend quality time here.
