What I like and what I don't

Best things about SMA

1. The light here is so clear and bright. I can see why the artists love it. The colors just jump out at you. It's a delight to be outside. I wish I had a better camera to capture it.



2. Flowers. Bougainville drapes down the pastel walls like a curtain even in January. Brilliant poinsettia peek over a gate, or in the case below over a wall topped with glass shards.


3. Tacos. Cheap tacos of every variety are everywhere . The guy 3 doors down makes a good brain taco (also tongue taco) for only 70 cents I am told. I tried the chicken mole taco from a street vendor and loved it.

4. The locals smile a lot and seem happy. They are kind and friendly. I think the gringos provide a good source of income for them. If they resent us being here, they sure don't show it. I like the way they treat their kids, and their grandmas too.

5. The vegetables are fresh and cheap and within walking distance. They have a good deal of organic stuff here.

At the organic market on Saturday.


Lots of food to chose from


I ate gorditas. Yum.


They have stuff like rugs and baskets too.


It was cloudy that day.


6. You can walk almost everywhere, but a cab ride only cost three bucks or so if you get tired.

7. You could eat at a different restaurant everyday for a month!

8. The pharmacy in my neighborhood sells tequila which I consider very nice of them. So handy when shopping for shampoo etc.

9. The locals are veerrryyy patient with those of us who are trying to improve our Spanish. They speak slowly and try to make it easier. It helps so much.

10. There are so many interesting expats ( short for ex-patriot, a person living outside their country of citizenship) who live here and also numbers of widely travelled people passing through for a time. I love meeting them and hearing their stories. Fascinating folks! I learn so much!


The cons

1. It's a pain that you can't flush your toilet paper. You have to wrap it up in more TP and deposit it in a trash can next to the toilet. Ick. The sewer pipes under the streets are just too old to manage it, apparently, and they can't rip up all the streets to replace them without destroying historic stuff.

2. Along the same lines, you can't drink the tap water. Actually the water is fine as they have a good water treatment plant, however the pipes that carry the water are all old and corroded and contaminate the water. Replacement problem same as #1.

3. The cobblestone streets are heck to walk on after a while. Sidewalks are really narrow and uneven with many obstacles. You have to keep your eyes on your feet when walking and don't walk where it's dark.

4. It's really hard to learn the bus stops, routes, schedules etc because there are no signs. At all. Someone just has to show you where to stand to catch the bus. Once you figure it out, though, it's all good because it only cost thirty cents!

5. The electricity is unpredictable! Light bulbs burn out all the time and may even trip the breaker! The hair dryer can't do "high". Cross your fingers when using the microwave.

6. The kids here are in love with fireworks. If it's your birthday you can go wild with the firecrackers! Loud! Actually, I don't think you even need an excuse.
I wish the pic below were mine, but I found it on google.


7. Ice cream stand, bakeries, and candy stores are everywhere and it is nearly impossible to resist. Here are some candies I bought. They are made to look like tamales but are coconut inside.




8. Because the cable channels come in from Washington state for some weird reason, you can't watch Downton Abby until 11 pm and it's hard to stay up that late for us oldsters. I can't figure out when anything is on because some channels also come in from Miami. Solution: read a book!

9. There is no airport here. You have to take a shuttle to a town over an hour away to catch a plane. The silver lining is that there are no planes flying over. None at all. That's nice.

10. There are stray dogs here, which you rarely see back home. Also quite a few "roof dogs" that live on the tops of the houses. If you see water dripping off a roof, always walk way around it to avoid being splashed. People hose off the dog waste from the roof and you don't want to get mixed up with that! Sorry, no picture.

So that's my summary so far!

Location:San Miguel de Allende, Mexico