Chapter 38: City With No Roads

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This weekend, Laura and I took the a trip to the beautiful city of Guanajato. The past weekend some fellow PCT's had gone to the same place and they had been singing praises of it for the whole week. So I had to check it out for myself. But their prases did not prepare me for this hidden gem of a city. Guanajuato is the capital of the Mexican State of Guanajato (yes, like you, I had also never heard of it before).

But, apperently at one time it was the Gold and Silver capital of Mexico. But that is now ancient history. Luckily the legacy of the mines have not been forgotten. In fact they are what provides the modern city with much of its charm. Those mines have now been converted into tunnels, and as a result, most of the main roads downtown are underground. While that does make it very difficult for you to find your way around, it does provides the added benifit of allowing a lot of pedestrian walkways on the surface. So most of the center is perfect for walking. Add to this that the town is nestled in some hills with a horde history, entertainment, and restaurants, and you have one of my favorite places in Mexico to date.

The days were spent going to all the sites the town had to offer. We went to the Valencia Mines, the Museum of the Mummies, The art museum, the Musuem of Don Quixote (The town has a festival in his honor every year), and simply exploring all the town had to offer. There is much more in this town than can be seen in just 2 days.


At night, we partook in a Spanish tradition that has made its way to Mexico. There is a group of musicians called "Estudiantinas" that start singing every weekend at the Church of San Diego in El Centro, and then walk through the streets singing and telling stories. They are of course accompanied by a group of about 100 tourists. So we spent 2 hours walking through the windy, and hilly streets of the town hearing stories (some true, some not), and jokes. Luckily my spanish comprehension is pretty good... so I understood about 10% of it. :P

Another great thing that happened this weekend, was we happened to share a taxi with a doctoral student of Mathamatics at the University of Guanajuato (which has the best Mathamatics departments in Mexico) returning from the mines. His name was Fransisco, and he was from Columbia. But the interesting part is, that as a hobby he is a prefessional Organ player in churches. So, in exchange for me agreeing to help him practice English, he gave a tour of all the churches in El Centro, along with an extensive historical overview, and culminating in a free concert in one of the churches (Mozart, Bach and many more). We have exchanged emails, and if I every find my way back to Guanajuato, or to Columbia, I have a free place to stay and a tour guide. Que Buena Suerte!

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