Homes and gardens

On Sunday the library here runs a home and garden tour as a fundraiser. They had four busloads of people! They showcase different homes each week . This week they took us to homes that had "bovedas", or arched brick ceilings. We were surprised to be taken out of town to a private gated community with ultra modern homes. This was the first one we saw.



Loved the red tile bar.


The domed bovedas ceiling over the living and dining room was quite impressive. It takes a specialized craftsman to build these.


Below is a blurry picture of an artist's house in the suburb of Mexiqitas(?) I think it was. It was full of all kinds of cool stuff!


The owner made art of metal as you can see on his kitchen ceiling.



The outside cocina (kitchen)






Later that evening we went over to visit Susan's friends Rod and Glenna . They had a fab view from the beautiful place they rent. A few years back they drove all over Mexico in their RV. They told us about a great RV park near where we are staying now. I would love to go check it out! I guess you know how much I enjoyed talking about RVs with them. Their daughter is taking the bus out of San Miguel back to Dallas on Tuesday. It costs $75. I look forward to hearing a report on that experience from them.


They took us to their favorite restaurant and indeed it was awesome. I had a chicken cordon blue and some of this ginormous margarita that Susan and I shared. What a great evening with some really fun people!

Maybe this video will play

Concheros dancers from festival day. I understand the video did not play in the original post.

New and old worlds collide

Today we made our way out to the edge of town to visit the "Fabrica" which was not quite what I had expected. I thought it would be a mercado where local artists gather to create and sell their art. Instead we found a sleek and modern complex of galleries selling all kinds of art. Some areas had a little more Mexican character.



We loved the silk scarves and the jewelry as well as all the fabulous oil paintings and antiques. The prices were shocking, as in really expensive. One shop had a loom set up to show off some local yarn and textiles they had for sale.


The courtyard areas were so pretty. This one had a brilliant poinsettia bush in full bloom.






Other areas featured cacti.



We met a new friend, Carmen, who was selling items from India. I love her umbrella!






The shops were cute but we had a plan to go check out another interesting site a few miles out into the countryside. The "Painted Church" of Antotonilo was built in the mid 1700's. It is known for its intricately painted ceilings and wall. I did not get any good pictures of the inside because these folks were having their wedding.



The church and the surrounding tiny village are UNESCO world heritage sights. Here are a couple of shots of the church.








This young man, who appears to be wearing a modified bridal veil, was participating in an eight day spiritual retreat. They also had little rope whips with which they hit themselves. There were quite a few young men and guys doing this retreat. The little village of Antotonilco was tiny and really, really rustic. Its murals commemorated the arrival of the Spanish and the life and works of Jesus.
Another fine day in Mexico!

Festival day

What a spectacular day we had today! It was an unexpected treat to be here on the day of the Feast of our Lord of the Conquest. It is not a well publicized event and so there were not many tourists, mainly just locals celebrating in the streets. The day started off very early with loud fireworks and church bells about 7 am. By the time we got to the plaza the Concheros were dancing in front of the church in some of the most fantastic costumes I have ever seen. Check it out below.

The Concheros are groups of indigenous people (they have to document their heritage to belong to the group) who are preserving the dances as performed by the Aztec. When the Catholics came they incorporated these dances into certain feast days to try to convert the native people. Now there is a movement among the dancers to remove the European influences and get back to the purest form of the dance. It is not considered a "performance" but rather is an ancient ritual to honor a culture and the ancestors of the native people. These are just regular office worker type folks who really seem to relish this experience as a way to get in touch with their spiritual roots. Their pride was evident. They make their own costumes from feathers, skins, skulls, bones and textiles, the more natural the better. This guy's headress was awesome.



Close up of headress shows a parrot with an arrow through its eyes, then a leopard head then a vulture head(I think?)



I am thinking this is maybe the spine of an alligator below



Everybody had there shell rattles on their ankles.



These headdresses had bird heads.



Parrot head






Toucan head



Alligator skull?



There were also donkeys wearing sombreros


And some giant paper mâché puppets, mariachis, and just general mayhem, fireworks and church bells.

What else could we do but go for some " two for one" tequila shots with sangrita and lime?



We also had one of my favorites today which is posole (pork stew with hominy). The food continues to amaze us!
Well, here are a few of my fav pics from today. It was simply awesome !

Walking and talking

Yesterday and today we have mostly done a great deal of walking and talking. Walking is such a challenge because the streets are cobbled and the sidewalks are uneven. You just have to watch your feet or you will get tripped up! The problem is that there is such a wealth of fascinating things to look at. Not only are the streets so picturesque, there are interesting tiendas (stores), galleries, churches, courtyards and restaurants everywhere. Now and then you turn a corner and get a sweeping vista of the mountains or countryside.




I noticed today as we were walking around that there are no stop signs or traffic lights. Not sure how they keep from crashing into each other but it seems to work. They have a traffic cop at some of the really congested intersections, but mostly you are on your own!

Below you see the courtyard of an old convent which is being renovated as the Institute of Belles Arts. It is going to be really wonderful when they finish. It is near the theater where we have tickets to see a flamenco performance tomorrow night. This town is all about the arts.


Oh and it is also about the restaurants because it appears to me that everybody goes out to eat all the time. The food here is so great! Nothing is fried and there is an emphasis on fresh healthy ingredients cooked in very tasty ways. We actually ate in the library cafe today. The special today was chicken fajitas with beans and salad plus cream of broccoli soup, fresh limeade and chocolate cake all for about $9.






Last night I had big shrimp stuffed with a little queso fresca , wrapped in bacon and then grilled. Yummy. We met a bunch of other Americans there and they told us of another nearby place. We went there tonight and met the folks at the next table . He has published 6 books about San Miguel and invited us to a lecture he is giving on Monday. His wife is an artist who crafts silver jewelry. She showed us the lovely turquoise bracelet she had made. They also told us about an archeological sight nearby which features ancient pyramids on a private ranch. The young woman sitting at another nearby table gave us the phone number of an archeologist who is an expert on these particular ruins. We contacted him and he is going to take us on a tour on Tuesday ! Cool! That's just how it is here. Everybody talks to everybody everywhere. There are so many interesting folks here.
Lastly, here is a pretty bad picture of the splendidly decorated bus we rode downtown this morning. It is so fuzzy because the bus ride was really bumpy but so fun and interesting. Tomorrow we are off to a folk festival in the main square with lots of dancing and music. Can't wait!

Location:San Miguel de allende

Down Mexico way

Here I am soaking up some sun in central Mexico. The weather is beautiful and the birds are singing. We are staying in a house with a couple of cats. It is nice having a whole house to ourselves.

Our patio










Today we went out to explore the neighborhood. I ate tacos cochinita pibil with a frosty Victoria beer for lunch at a lovely sidewalk cafe on the plaza. Here are a few pics. Very laid back here, tons of expats everywhere and the local folks are all so friendly.

The monks who live here in the church pictured below make and sell Rompope (a creamy alcoholic drink kind of like eggnog),cakes and cookies etc. can't wait to try it out. We went to a bakery today and had a blast buying one of every kind of pan dulces, Mexican sweet breads. So good! They had lots of kinds I had never seen before.



There were venders selling fresh flowers around the plaza today.


I have been told by a couple of snow birds from Vermont that I met that these taco stands are super but haven't tried them yet.



Many of the inner courtyards are just beautiful.


I am having fun speaking Spanish. The folks here are so patient and used to speaking to people with limited Spanish. It's great! I feel so competent! It is all an illusion though, as I still struggle to understand the natives speaking to one another at normal speed.
Hasta luego folks!

Location:San Miguel de allende, sunny Mexico

We stayed at a couple of National Park lodges and it was a great experience. What made it even better was the fact that we could split the cost of the room three ways since they are certainly not bargain priced.

This is Lake Crescent Lodge where we would have gladly stayed, except that they had no vacancies. It was a simply gorgeous setting on a crystalline lake. At least we got to eat dinner there and enjoy the sunset.










Another booked up Lodge was Sol Duc. It is famous for the hot springs. The sulphur smell was so intense that I was just as glad we decided to forgo taking a dip.

Location:Lodges of the Olympic National Park