Spanish Influence Persists in Mexico’s Morelia : Mountain town was on the cutting edge of revolution, but it remains Iberian to the core.

In 1541, Antonio de Mendoza, Spain’s first viceroy to its new colony, conquered only 20 years earlier, named this town in the central Mexico highlands Valladolid, after his Spanish birthplace. He also encouraged patrician families from the old country to settle here, which has set the cultural and architectural tone of the city to this day.

In 1828, just seven years after Mexico won its independence and hatred of the Spaniards still ran high, Valladolid was renamed Morelia, honoring native son Jose Maria Morelos, a military leader who also framed the new country’s first constitution.

Yet the Spanish colonial influence remains strong in Morelia, which is about 140 miles west of Mexico City, and in nearby towns such as San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato and Dolores Hidalgo, all hotbeds of the insurrection.

Morelia today is Iberian to the core, with its Baroque architecture, broad boulevards, endless arcades and an intricately carved cathedral beside the gigantic zocalo (main plaza) of manicured laurel trees and flowers.

On an evening stroll beneath the arcades opposite the cathedral, we came upon groups of young university men in medieval Spanish student costumes--billowing blouses, regal capes, quilted-velvet breeches and enormous berets worn with rakish aplomb. They strummed guitars and mandolins as they sang soulful, centuries-old songs to a coterie of admiring young women.

The latter followed them relentlessly, pinned ribboned rosettes of admiration to the students’ blouses, and giggled just as often and as coquettishly as their counterparts we have seen on several occasions in Spain.

Despite the ethnic influence and marvelous handicrafts of Tarascan Indians, who settled the Morelian region 15 centuries before Christ, this capital city of the state of Michoacan retains its colonial heritage architecturally. Any new buildings in the Old Town must adhere to the colonial style completely. Further, they must be made of the local cantera rosa , a pink sandstone that gives the town a soft and alluring glow.

Anyone will enjoy a few days in this lovely old city, but it is a special treat for candy lovers. There’s a two-block-long mercado de dulces (candy market) beneath the arcades and just a few steps from the zocalo, and its colors and variety of sweets create a rainbow of delights.

Getting settled in: Few hotels enchant one so immediately and completely for their beauty and tranquillity as Morelia’s Villa Montana. Set on a gentle hill overlooking the city, the villa is a quiet enclave of 40 exquisite rooms and suites, each with at least one wood-burning fireplace, marvelous Mexican antiques, rustic ceiling beams, gleaming terra-cotta tile floors and great bowls of fresh flowers. The artwork and tasteful use of local handicrafts complement the elegance that pervades every nook and cranny of this magnificent Spanish colonial inn.

Several flowery terraces and patios, one with a formidable collection of pre-Colombian artifacts, create a garden of serenity between the units. The pool and tennis court provide recreation, and Villa Montana surely has more character than any hotel in our recent memory.

Posada de la Soledad began life in 1719 as a convent and later became a posada (resting place) for mule skinners and their animals, similar to Spain’s paradores. In the 18th and 19th centuries, it was a coaching-stop inn for travelers to and from Mexico City, an eight-day journey.

The mid-city posada is built in convent style around a huge open courtyard embraced on all sides by three stories of arcaded gallerias spilling bougainvillea. Bedrooms are modest in size and furnishings, but the breakfast buffet overwhelms one with its choice of Mexican dishes. The Saturday buffet of ranchero food is also a very festive affair.

Hotel Virrey de Mendoza, on a corner of the zocalo, is a 1744 private home named for Spain’s first viceroy in Mexico. It, too, is built around a courtyard, this one covered by an impressive stained-glass ceiling. Bedrooms are of medium size and have old-fashion furnishings, but the hotel has just reopened after a renovation that restored the formal luster it enjoyed seven years ago when we first visited. The restaurant and bar are much-frequented by locals, thanks to the excellent location and an affable bartender named Oscar.

Regional food and drink: Michoacan means “land of the fisherman,” which makes sense since the state has more lakes than any other in Mexico. (The Indian word is also the origin of the name of the U.S. state of Michigan.) Hence, freshwater fish appear on every menu--mainly trout, catfish, carp, whitefish and charales, a tiny fish deep-fried whole and served with chile sauce and guacamole.

Morelians claim their carnitas and tamales are superior to the garden variety elsewhere. Rabbit, enchiladas and other foods appear on some menus placero or callejeras --charbroiled in the manner of plaza or street vendors. Mexico’s red and white wines keep getting better with each of our visits, and we consider the country’s beer vastly superior to our own.

Good local dining: Meson San Diego (Fray Antonio de San Miguel 344) is a former private home where one may dine at tables in a galleria running the length of a long and lovely pool, often with flowers floating about. There are also several formal rooms opening onto the galleria, all handsomely decorated.

Fresh trout is the specialty, but the meson also owns a farm that raises pheasant, quail and duck. Smoked trout and other hors d’oeuvres run about $5, and trout or seafood main dishes are $8. The chicken mole is $7.50, and the wine list includes fine bottles from Mexico and four other countries.

Brace yourself for Fonda Las Mercedes (Leon Guzman 47), as it has without doubt the most eccentric decor in town. A Dali-esque nude female statue greets you in the 17th-Century courtyard, as does a life-size raffia figure of a formally dressed matron with a Day of the Dead skull, very popular in the country’s folk art.

Try the oxtail soup ($3) or the crepes of ham and poblano chiles ($5) for starters. A selection of 15 steaks and chops all go for $9.50, and the house table wines for $13 a liter.

For the city’s best continental kitchen with a smattering of lightly sauced Mexican food, head for the elegant atmosphere of Villa Montana. Within the dining room’s wealth of colonial antiques, old paintings and fresh flowers, or on a terrace overlooking the city, you’ll find the very best food and service.

Openers include ceviche (raw seafood marinated in lime juice with chiles, tomatoes and onions) or squid cooked in a piquant Italian sauce, both $6. Or treat yourself to Spain’s famous Serrano ham and melon for $10. Main dishes range from chicken placero or mole (in an unsweetened chocolate sauce) served with almonds, both $10.

On your own: The “plateresque” style of architecture derives from the intricate engravings of a platero, or silversmith, and Morelia’s 1640 cathedral rates as one of the best examples in Mexico--a rose-colored work of art with marvelous twin towers and a tiled cupola.

Try not to miss the display of handicrafts in the 16th-Century Convent of San Francisco, where artisans still work and sell their wares in the nuns’ former cells that line the inner courtyard.

Back in town, spend as much time as possible walking the streets around the zocalo and cathedral. Every small plaza and shady arcade seems to have its resident vendors, none of whom badger visitors, and a small band is surely playing lively tunes somewhere.

GUIDEBOOK: More on Morelia

Getting there: Malaysian Airlines recently inaugurated service to Mexico City, joining Delta, Mexicana, Aeromexico, American, United and Continental. Fly Aeromar or Taesa on to Morelia. By bus, it’s a four-hour trip; a good choice is the first-class ETN line, with airline seating, movies, free coffee and cold drinks. An advance-purchase, round-trip airline ticket to Mexico City costs $298-$411, most about $310. The flight on to Morelia is $74. An ETN bus ticket is $20, departure from the Central Bus Station.

A few fast facts: Mexico’s peso recently sold at 2,941 to the dollar, about .0003 each. It’s a good idea to stick to bottled water, which also means no ice cubes in drinks.

Where to stay: Villa Montana (Patzima 201, phone 800-223-6510; $72-$112 double); Posada de la Soledad (Calles Zaragoza y Ocampo, local phone 21888; $60 double); Hotel Virrey de Mendoza (Portal Matamoros 16, local phone 20045; $70-$100 double).

For more information: Call the Mexico Government Tourist Office at (310) 203-8191, or write (10100 Santa Monica Blvd., Suite 224, Los Angeles 90067) for a brochure on the colonial towns of Mexico, including Morelia, and other information on travel within the country.