Mexico Guide
Northern Jalisco and Michoacán
The cathedral
With its pointed, tiled twin towers, Guadalajara's cathedral (daily 8am–8pm; free) is a bizarre but successful mixture of styles. Building work began in 1561 and didn't finish for over a century – since then, extensive modifications, which effectively disguise the fact that there was probably never a plan behind the original design, have included a Neoclassical facade and new twin yellow-tiled towers (the originals collapsed in an 1818 earthquake). The interior is best seen in the evening, when the light from ornate chandeliers makes the most of its rich decoration; the picture of the Virgin in the sacristy is attributed to the Spanish Renaissance artist Murillo.