San Miguel de Allende

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, this past weekend Alejandro and I drove to the city of San Miguel de Allende.

 

San Miguel was founded in the 1500s in what was then the wild, northern frontier of the Spanish colony of New Spain.  By the 1700s it had become a prosperous commercial city along the trade route between the silver mining cities to the north and Mexico City.  It was the birthplace of Ignacio Allende, one of the heroes of Mexico's War for Independence from Spain.  After Mexico had achieved its independence, "de Allende" was added to the name of the city in honor of its native son.   

In the nineteenth century, the city fell into decline, and by the early twentieth century it had nearly become a ghost town.  It's colonial architecture remained as if frozen in time, and the Mexican government declared it an "Historic and Protected Town".  In the 1930s and 1940s, the town's picturesqueness began to attract artists and writers, and a couple of art schools were established here.  Tourism followed, and then American retirees began to settle here for the mild climate and lower cost of living.  Today San Miguel is far from being a ghost town.  It has a population of 140,000.  The sizable ex-pat community and the large number of Mexican and international tourists give the city a cosmopolitan flavor.  Many of the old colonial homes now house hotels, fine restaurants, and art galleries.  Its colonial architecture has won San Miguel the designation as a "World Heritage Site" by UNESCO.

Hotel reservations are often difficult to obtain on weekends, but I managed to book a room at the "Mirador del Frayle", a hotel located on a hill overlooking the city.  I had mixed feelings about the hotel.  The grounds and the view are beautiful, the rooms are spacious and nicely furnished in colonial style.  However, the WiFi did not work, and we were a bit grossed out by the fact the bathtub was the residence of some small black bugs.  (We decided that we could forgo a shower for one day.)

After arriving at the hotel, we set off to explore the city.  The walk downhill is not bad, but it is a rather strenuous climb to return uphill to the hotel.

As we descended the hill, the towers of the city's parish church, the most prominent landmark, came into view.

  
We came into the historic heart of the city, with its streets lined with colonial houses and churches.

In the center of town is "la Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel"... the Parish Church of St. Michael the Archangel... one of the most photographed churches in Mexico.  The church's neo-Gothic facade and tower were added in 1880 by an indigenous, self-taught architect by the name of Zeferino Gutiérrez.  He had seen postcards of Gothic cathedrals of Europe, and they were the inspiration for his design.

 

 

 In front of the parish church is the city's main plaza, a lovely, little park known to the locals as "El Jardín"... the garden.  The benches beneath the trimmed laurel trees are a favorite place for residents to relax and watch the world by go.  

 

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, we then had  a very nice lunch with Barbara, an American ex-pat who lives in San Miguel and who writes "Babsblog".  By the time we were finished, it was raining.  Barbara kindly gave us a lift back up the hill to our hotel.  

By late afternoon the skies had cleared, and at dusk we ventured out again...

 

Back down the hill to the center of town...

Although the evening was chilly, the "Jardín" was quite lively.  Several mariachi bands were playing, as well as a couple of "estudiantinas".  "Estudiantinas" (also known as "tunas" in Spain where they originated) are bands of wandering student musiicians.  (I suspect, however that these fellows are long past their students days.)

 

The parish church was beautifully illuminated.

The end of a wonderful day in San Miguel