Our Family's Mexico Adventure: Trip to Guanajuato

Today Mom, Barbara, and I hired a driver to take us to a neighboring city called Guanajuato. This is the capital of the state of Guanajuato and is a large university town. Our driver, Miguel, picked us up at the house at 9 am and off we went. The drive was only about an hour and then our first stop was a beautiful lookout over the city. The lookout is lorded over by a man named Pipila (you'll see him below in the picture) who is regarded as a hero. Pipila put a rock on this back to deflect the Spaniards bullets and ran to the granary and set fire to its doors so that the rebels of the Independence movement could enter and kill the Spanish within.

Guanajuato has lots of underground streets and it reminded me of many towns in Europe. The town itself is nestled in the mountains and is located even higher than San Miguel at about 6400 feet above sea level.

From the overlook, we then took some underground roads and parked in centro. Miguel took us on a walking tour of the major sites of the city as well showing us the numerous plazas and churches. We went into the Teatro Juarez which is a large theater right downtown. Most of the theater is designed and filled with French furniture and lights. It is quite lovely and is still used today.

What I loved about this city was the winding, hilly streets. It reminded me of some islands in Greece as well as a few places in Europe. There were far fewer tourists in this city than in San Miguel and even the prices were much cheaper.. I liked the flavor of this city and would love to go back and spend more time there.

We did find a lovely B & B which we shall recommend to Charles' folks who are coming into town next week. We met the owner and toured the rooms which is always fun.

Our next stop was the Diego Rivera museum. Diego Rivera was a Mexican muralist and painter and was born in Guanajuato. The museum is housed in the home where he was born and where he lived when he was a small child. He married Frida Kahlo and their stormy relationship can many times be seen in his artwork. Many of his paintings were controversial as they had communist overtones and many did not like that! However, his talent for historical paintings and of his portrayal of the indigenous people, led him to be one of Mexico's most beloved painters. The museum itself is quite small but it is interesting as it shows his progression as a painter. He tried many different styles and you can his style maturing over the years. On the top floor (there are 4 floors!) there is a beautiful mural that really shows him at the pinnacle of his talent.

After the museum, it was time to leave Guanajuato. Our driver took us to a fancy lunch place for lunch, but we looked at the menu and realized it was too expensive for our taste when a pitcher of water costs 90 pesos (abour $8.00)! We said we wanted a cheaper, more local place and he was quite annoyed that his recommended restaurant was getting the thumbs down. I guess the older I get the more I'm not afraid to speak up!

Anyway, we enjoyed a nice "menu del dia" at a local place in Santa Ana. Santa Ana is located in the mountains and is at 8000 feet above sea level. You start climbing the hill from Guanajuato and just keep climbing. This is the long way back to San Miguel, but also the most beautiful. The terrain turns to luscious green trees and you leave behind the semi-arid dessert. It was really stunning.

We then drove another 30 miles and came to Dolores Hidalgo. This town is known for being the place where the Independence movement was launched. Father Hidalgo, the priest at the time, gathered his people to join the fight for Independence and met Allende to march towards San Miguel. The Independence leaders were successful for a while, but after about a year were captured. Hidalgo and his 3 cohorts was executed and their heads were hung on the granary in Guanajuato as a warning to the people. The heads were hung there for 10 years (yuck!), but rather than instill fear in the people, it made them want independence all the more. You can see one of the pictures here has the plaque on the granary where Hidalgo's head was hung.

Dolores Hidalgo is a working town best know for its Talavera pottery and many flavors of interesting ice cream. Let me give you an example of the ice cream flavors: chili, octopus, shrimp, tequila, beer, zapote (a kind of fruit), and the list goes on. We tried 5 or 6 and then all settled on different kinds. I chose tequila and it was like eating a frozen cocktail.

We then went to a Talavera store and bought a few pieces of lovely pottery and tiles and headed home. It was a great day and it made me want to go back and explore some more. Later...I guess!