San Miguel On High With Masks

Another view of the Casa de la O courtyard.



Today I set out to do a little exploring. Poking your head into (open) doorways in el centro frequently reveals another amazing courtyard. Most of these building were built as homes and the interior courtyard was the "backyard" gathering place where the neighbors couldn't bother you. Even many of the commercial buildings have courtyards. Do you think this would work in Minnesota?





As I wander around I've been looking at the masonry of these old walls. Hundreds of years old, it looks like they used anything available to fill a hole.




I've also been looking at the fine detail in the cast iron benches you find all over town. The story goes that they were all made by the same guy. He had political connections. He got the contract for the whole city.




The conversation at breakfast has been very interesting. Today, one guest was telling us about the house she is renovating up in the hills above San Miguel. Only it's not any old house, it is the guardhouse for a church and dates back to 1595. A "fixer upper" you might say. The area sounded worth taking a look, so I headed up the hill.




There is some serious real estate being built up there. The second house from the right is for sale, "Se Vende". I didn't write down the realtor's number.



And they get a pretty nice view from on the hill. You pay big for that kind of view. (click on the panoramic to get a better look)




I found the old church, San Jose, but I'm not sure if I saw the guardhouse.



On the way back down I noticed even some lesser properties have a decent view (they gotta do a better job with those wires).



This will probably be one of the next hills to be filled with houses, if they can find enough water in the area.



There down at the bottom to the northeast of el centro I found yet another old church. This was probably way out in the country until relatively recently. It likely just served some nearby farmers.



After all that walking I needed to refuel. I stopped in for comida (late lunch) at the Aurora Food Factory restaurant at the old textile mill turned artist enclave. I had the Asian Pasta. Not fab but very good.



On the way back toward el centro I stopped at this arts & crafts market. I liked the building more than what was inside.



Then I strolled through the Mercado de Artesanias again. Several more venders were open today so this suddenly turned into mask day. I had gotten a couple last year and wanted more. The face inside the animal's mouth ones are particularly interesting to me. I'm not sure if they were ever actually used as masks at the ball or a celebration, but they are hand-made of carved wood and painted. The two smaller Aztec-style ones are just reproductions.




Loaded down, I took a taxi back to B&B. The taxis are great, plentiful, and cheap. $20 pesos will get you anywhere within the center of San Miguel. Last year it took $25 pesos to get up to Maggie & Charlie's house up the hill. Still not bad.

Three of our fellow B&B guests decided to join Maria Teresa and I for dinner tonight. Richard, Richard & Joyce are from Oregon. Their fourth, Joanne, was "under the weather." We went to Café San Francisco for an excellent meal and conversation. You meet some great people here in San Miguel de Allende.

I had the Fajitas Mixtas de Filete de Res y Pollo Acompañadas de Frijoles y Guacamole. Or as we say up north, beef and chicken fajitas with beans and guac. ¡Excellente!



I think tomorrow is going to be a slower day. That hill just took it out of me.

Shopping Walking Reading Eating Listening

Today started out by saying goodbye to new friends Victoria and Gianna as they took the bus back to Mexico City, Victoria's home. Gianna will continue on to Indiana for a birthday celebration, then home to Las Vegas. Maria Teresa was feeling better this morning so she headed over to the Instituto for her painting class.

I went over to the Mercado de San Juan de Dios a block away from Casa de la O. It was mostly a food and clothing market, not what I was interested in. On the way to another market, I stopped at Templo de San Juan de Dios, which is right behind the B&B.



Along the way I noticed these two fine establishments. I've been told they are not intended for the gringo tourist trade.




I walked over to the Mercado de Artesanias on Calle Colegio. In addition to food and other necesities, they have many arts & crafts vendors. I bought a few things there last year.




I wound up getting 3 rugs from 2 different vendors. These are from the Oaxaca region and very finely made (not sure if they are hand or machine-made, I suspect hand-made with machine assistance). The total came to $1650.00 pesos, or about $152.00 USD. This is why I left extra room in my luggage for the return trip.



With new rugs in hand I went to the jardin to catch up on the news with an english language paper from Mexico City. Being San Miguel does not make the news more charming.



The iron benches in the jardin look great but I can only last about an hour. So I walked back to the B&B to drop off the rugs. The bouganvilla out front looked pretty good in the sun.



Then back to the jardin to meet up with Maria Teresa and to head over to La Azotea (the rooftop) again for dinner. Not a sunset yet but the view is great. (A nod to Maggie as I am just trying to duplicate her image from the same spot.)



I had the Chapata de Arrachera, which is chapata bread with arrachera (flank) beef and cheese, plus fries. Probably the best beef sandwhich I've ever had. Oh, and the Negra Modelo was good, too.



After dinner we went over to Bellas Artes for a lecture by Diana Anhalt. She is the author of the book "A Gathering of Fugitives: American Political Expatriates in Mexico 1948-1965." In 1950 when she was 8, her parents abruptly moved from New York to Mexico City. They never told her exactly why, but her father was involved with the communist party in America. During the McCarthy era, many Americans fled to Mexico. Some didn't stay long, but Anhalt's parents lived in Mexico until their last few years. Very interesting.

Walking Tour and More Walking

It was quiet on the jardin Monday morning after all the festivities the day before. The first thing on today's schedule was the walking tour of the historic colonial el centro (center of town). It is preserved by the federal government as a heritage site.




Paul, our tour guide, was excellent and very informative. He has been living in San Miguel for three years. We learned all sorts of interesting details about the history of San Miguel. Like....it was the first city captured from the Spanish in the 1810 War for Independence. And, of course, the history of the town involves the Catholic church in a major way.




This church (I can't remember all the names) was the last stop on the tour. A relatively plain interior (Franciscan?) it was "modernized" at one point. The ceiling used to have painted plaster, but now has the brick exposed. Also, elaborate stained glass windows were replaced with simpler designs.



The walking tour is every Monday, Wednesday & Friday at 10am. Anyone visiting San Miguel should take advantage of this activity.

After the formal tour I did my own walk around some areas of town that I did not get to last year. First I had to track down the address of the house a friend is staying in this summer. Then I went to Parque Benito Juarez. This beautiful park is in the southern area, in the Chorro barrio. Not too many people on a Monday, but quite nice. The history sign said this was orchards back before San Miguel grew out this far.




Near Parque Juarez is a complex that is now La Casa de la Cultura San Miguel de Allende. A beautiful location and view.




And there is some serious real estate near the parque.



Up above the parque in the chorro barrio is the Santa Cruz del Chorro chapel. It dates back to the beginning of the 17th century.





And then there were many streets with a view.






I can't forget to mention the statue of Fr Juan de Miguel, namesake of the town. Or one of them. Allende, the independence hero, is the other. Here Fr Juan is shown protecting the native indian. That is, before they were enslaved by the Spanish.



And no day in San Miguel de Allende would be complete without a fabulous meal, this time at Hecho en Mexico near the Instituto. This was the 4th time I've eaten there. The staff did not yell "Pedro" when I walked in, but it's getting to be a regular spot. Tonight I had the grilled Chilean salmon with rice, black beans, and.....Negra Modelo. Excellent.



Good thing San Miguel is a walking town.