Mexico City's Oldest Building Is A Hidden Secret
Hospital de Jesús: Place of Peace and Healing in the Melee of Mexico City
If there is one good thing you can ascribe to the conquistador Hernan Cortes, it is that the Spanish adventurer founded the first hospital in the Americas, and incredibly enough, it still maintains its original purpose, functioning as a hospital to this very day.
Believed to have opened its doors first in 1524, the hospital was part of a stone church complex. In fact, inside the connected temple to the side of the main altar, one can visit the final resting place of the historical figure who set into motion the Mexico we know today.
Perhaps the strangest element about this historic structure is its exterior is masked by unattractive 20th-century architecture, meaning you would not know what kind of time-traveling world awaits you in its interior unless you were looking for it.
This is just one example of the under-the-radar places which Borderlandia loves to incorporate into our cultural exchange trips.
We encountered a rare sense of tranquility and a deep sense of history here in the heart of the pulsating capital.
See the Hospital de Jesús dating back to the 1500s for yourself, now is the time to unlock the metropolis of Mexico City with Borderlandia.
P.S. We did not show the beautiful murals and Moorish ceiling of the hospital, because you need to see them in person!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Like this article and learning about the cultural heritage of the borderlands?
Sign up for our free digital magazine for more and receive our 5 Things You Need to Know Before Visiting Mexico Checklist.
Find value in our public history work?