Nochistlán

Nochistlán de Mejía is small town deep in the south of Zacatecas almost on the border with Jalisco. With a deep and unusually well-documented history, it's a vibrant place of local pride and indigenous independence.The place was first inhabited by the Tecuexe people in the 10th century. They were later expelled by the Caxcanes and these people would put up significant resistance to the Spanish when they arrived some 300 years later.

The name Nochistlán comes from the Nahuatl for the nocheztli beetle later called the cochineal, and thus the name could be translated as place of the cochineal. The beetle was important for the production of dyes used in clothing. The honorific, de Mejía, was later added to honor Colonel Jesús Mejía, who died defending the town from the French in 1864.

Today people visit the town for the sheer exuberance of walking the central streets and for nearness to the surrounding countryside. Sunday evenings see people arriving from all over the region for a weekly celebration. In fact, there are still too many points of interest and attractions to be listed here. It's known across Mexico as the Land of Musicians for the sheer number of musical genres that have begun here and come to fruition here. There is always a melody in the air. 

This is still Zacatecas, and so one should expect fine leather work and saddlery. Food is especially concentrated around the giant municipal market where there are daily specials and sit-down treats of every kind. Don't miss the Casa Museo if you want to learn more about the local and regional history. It's more fascinating than you might expect. 

People come on a long weekend or just to take in the countryside. And they often don't believe it, but the nearest airport to Nochistlan is actually in Aguascalientes. It's about 90 minutes away. But that said, the majority of people visiting this part of southern Zacatecas will arrive from Guadalajara. It's a little more than two hours to the south. People also arrive on regional tours that can include San Juan de los Lagos (a little more than an hour east) or even from Lagos de Moreno (not quite two hours to the east) or Temacapulin(about 45 minutes directly south). It's a magnificent area, and travel here is never to be forgotten. The capital of the state, high in the northern mountains, is about 3.5 hours away.