With its high walls, orderly garden and neatly trimmed hedges and lawns, the hacienda offers a peaceful rural retreat in a world of cowboys, dogs and horses. Think of long lunches served on broad terraces with plenty of tequila and Mexican beer. The hacienda system began in Mexico on 1529, when the Spanish crown granted Hernan Cortes the title of Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca, which entailed a tract of land that included all of the present state of Morelos. This was his reward for overthrowing the powerful Aztec and Mayan kingdoms with just a handful of soldiers.