Ex-Convento Secreto de Santa Mónica

Ex-Convento Secreto de Santa Mónica Review

This former convent opened in 1688 as a spiritual refuge for women whose husbands were away on business. Despite the Reform Laws of the 1850s, it continued to function until 1934. It is said that the women here invented the famous dish called chiles en nogada, a complicated recipe that incorporates the red, white, and green colors of the Mexican flag. Curiosities include the gruesome display of the preserved heart of the convent's founder and paintings in the Sala de los Terciopelos (Velvet Room), in which the feet and faces seem to change position as you view them from different angles. Note that, at this writing, the building is closed for restoration work, with no firm re-opening date.