We'd all had such a good time the night before that we regretted having to leave the next morning. Both Chuy and Fabiola asked us to return and spend more time with them and we promised we would. They were such wonderful and interesting people and we have had such good luck doing the couch surfing thing!
Our destination that morning was Guanajuato and we were excited. Kim and I had briefly visited the town one afternoon on a previous trip to San Miguel, two up on my old 1100. We'd had no idea what to expect on that first trip, being led into the maze of underground tunnels beneath the city, finally parking the bike near some light streaming in from above and accidentally finding ourselves in the main Jardin of the city.
Guanajuato was beautiful with its colorful homes and buildings nestled all around the hillsides, and its narrow twisting streets and alleyways called for continuous exploration. We ended up staying far too long that afternoon and had to ride back to San Miguel in the dark. Nevertheless we couldn't forget how much we loved Guanajuato and it seemed the perfect place to return and spend some time.
Your choice of roads in Mexico are either the “libre”, the older and slower original roads, or the “cuota”, newer tollways which are nice, smooth and fast. The free roads are more interesting, if not a bit more dangerous and challenging, but they also take you through many of the small towns. We try to save as much money as possible because the tolls do add up.
The GPS routed us through Guadalajara and past a brand new BMW motorcycle dealership that appeared to be preparing to open, then down along Lake Chapala and myriad other directions, including the heart of Léon before getting us to Guanajuato. Coming into the town can be quite confusing with multiple road convergences, traffic and traffic circles, as well as controlled lanes that you find yourself in with no warning.
Of course we missed our first traffic circle turn due to the sluggishness of the GPS and had to cheat our way back around on sidewalks, grass and rough private parking areas. There is a street called the “Panoramica” that runs the perimeter of the hills above Guanajuato, and our apartment was located there somewhere. My experience previously in the tunnels had been a bit intimidating, getting lost and confused and I was determined to avoid them, if possible. Knowing the GPS signal would be lost and the two of us would be trying to negotiate the tunnels with traffic, as well as the knowledge that the open streets are very steep had me a bit on edge. The narrow streets are steep, filled with taxis and cars, and making sudden sharp turns into other crowded streets, with no way to stop at the top or see oncoming traffic. Though Kim has developed into a very good rider, it can be a bit overwhelming.
We did pretty well, GPS taking us on a new road with a new tunnel into the edge of the old town. We idled our way through the crazy traffic until the street led into a tunnel. After the tunnel, we were to make a turn but with the GPS lag and traffic right on our tails we missed the steep, sharp, uphill right just at the tunnel exit, and found ourselves back down in the maze of underground tunnels again. It's not to say that we don't enjoy the subterranean areas, because we both did. In fact they're quite cool to ride through both literally and figuratively, but it is extremely easy to get lost as there are intersections and turns all through them.
After probably 30 or 45 minutes we had made our way back around to the place where we'd initially missed our turn. This time we took it by force and kept the bikes pointed uphill, until the street dead ended into the Panoramica. However, the street came in at an extreme angle requiring a very sharp turn up the wrong direction, off camber and over a huge lump. Thank God we both hit it in a break between buses and taxis, as our momentum carried us into the far lane.
Having made the turn and breathing a sigh of relief, we realized our next turn would be the reverse of that, going uphill into a small neighborhood. I dove in with Kim behind and we had to make very sharp switchbacks and blind narrow corners until we got to the place I thought was the apartment. We stopped in front of a beautiful home with some fancy toys in the driveway and the same address number. I texted the landlord and told her we were waiting out in front of the blue house. I saw the curtains open and a woman staring at us from inside the home suspiciously.
Our landlord texted back that she was waiting outside, but we could not see her. After a while she texted again that we must be in the wrong place, as she was standing across from the blue house and we were not there. I double checked Google maps and my GPS and we were at the correct address according to both. We were hot and tired and ready to get off the bikes, but luckily she texted me a location pin on Google. It showed the apartment to be a block over from us. Kim was having none of it and told me I could find the apartment and then return to let her follow. The streets were a bit intimidating and Kim needed a break.
Indeed, it required a trip through an alley and a dirt road to find the apartment nearby. Kim made the trek behind me and we were pleased to pull up in front of a beautiful home with gated parking. Our landlord and her daughter were gracious and enjoyable, showing us the little private apartment attached to the home with an outstanding view of the city. As we dumped our gear inside and cooled off with showers after a very long day, we were greeted by a view of the sunset and the night lights of the city from our balcony.
