Amealco

The Lele - "baby" in Otomi - is the doll that became a national emblem: a cloth figure with black braided hair tied in ribbons, embroidered eyes and a dress of bright appliqued fabric, made by Otomi women in the villages around Amealco and sold by the thousand across Mexico. The craft grew from scraps and necessity into a signature; in recent years the state recognized the doll as cultural heritage, a museum devoted to it opened in the town, and a Feria Nacional de la Muñeca Artesanal each spring gathers doll makers from across the country. Around the craft sits a genuine highland Otomi region: pine and oak ridges at 2,600 metres, the villages of Santiago Mexquititlan and San Ildefonso where the dolls are actually stitched and where visitors can meet makers, weekly markets, a colonial parish on the plaza, and country attractions in the Bordo del Venado reservoir, waterfalls and cabin camps. It is not a polished tourist town - which is the point; the dolls come from working households, and buying at source pays the maker rather than a middleman.

What you actually see

• The Lele dolls - braids, ribbons and appliqued dresses.
• The doll museum - the craft's history and national spread.
• The Otomi villages - makers stitching in home workshops.
• The highland country - pine ridges, reservoir and cabins.

When to go

October to May for dry roads; the spring doll fair for the fullest gathering of makers. Market days in the villages give the best chance of meeting artisans.

Honest expectations

Amealco town is modest; the interest lies in the craft and the villages around it, which need a car or arranged transport. Prices at source are low - pay fairly rather than haggling hard. Nights at altitude are cold.

Nearby

San Juan del Rio's opal workshops lie north; Toluca and the Nevado's crater are east over the state line.