Ah Guanajuato, an endless maze of twisting, steep, narrow, flagstone streets and alleyways, filled with colors, textures, flowers, light, churches and people. It is an old city with a fascinating flow, as if the streets and alleys are rivers of life flowing with the movement of children, well dressed men and women, cars, scooters and old men leading heavy-laden burros.
The buildings lie scattered on the hillsides like piles of colorful Lego blocks, where old and new converge seamlessly in the dance that is Mexico. We never tired of walking down into the city from our high perch above, a gentle, living creature pulsing until the late hours, endlessly fascinating.
We were so happy to get into a place where we could unload the bikes and relax for a while after so much time on the road felt great. The view from the private apartment was so nice we just did nothing for a few days, leaving the doors and windows open and sitting on the balcony until our eyes couldn't stay open any longer.
The city is very nice, as are the people, though a bit more reserved. Occasionally we felt the cold shoulder of dislike, being ignored while waiting to pay for groceries or to get a table in a taco place. The indigenous folks seemed to have a more open dislike, but again, we were smothered in graciousness and smiles by the vast majority of people.
The Mercado downtown was a maze of vendors selling meats, chicken feet, pork skins and everything else. The huge steel structure was designed by Gustave Eiffel, somewhat of a surprise admittedly. However his steel structure did well when lightning struck while we were inside. During a gentle rain while staring at bloody animal parts on the tables, suddenly breakers popped on a post next to me, followed by a flash of light a millisecond later and a resounding boom. Folks all looked up for a second, then went back to selling.
MMMM Carnitas baby!
From our balcony each day, we could see a large building on the horizon, somewhat reminiscent of a monastery though hard to make out in the distance. I eventually located it on Google Earth and with some research found it to be a huge monument to Christ - Christo Rey. We made it a priority for a day trip out of town and headed out through the countryside. It was a nice road with plenty of twists, with a short lunch in the small town of Mineral de La Luz on the way.
We ate some seriously spicy tacos on the square, to the sideways glances of the local folks. We caught the interest of a few shady looking characters on a corner, whom we deemed "The Banditos" and they disappeared about the time we started gearing up. I told Kim to get her backpack and steel thermos ready in case someone needed a head knockin'
Upon arrival at the monument, the steep, spiraling, rough cobblestone road to the top proved a workout, as it was a traffic jam of tour buses and vehicles literally idling their way up. The bikes were getting hot and rattly and we were debating our choice by the time we finally got a parking spot.
Atop the mountain stood a massive seventy-five foot statue of Christ, the circular plaza filled with the faithful, many coming on their knees to the sanctuary. I must say we were both touched by the scene - certainly more than expected and we left with a couple of watering eyes at the sincerity of some of the people we saw.
The views were great but as the day waned we fired up the bikes and rolled our way down, following the road back for "home." Rounding a curve policemen waved us down, an overturned BMW car having taken the road too fast - not surprisingly as it was a road for fun.
The weather in Guanajuato was cool with daytime temps maxing about 80, with gentle rain showers occasionally in the day. Evenings were chilly with winds swirling through the streets. Street food was fantastic and plentiful, but with the university there were plenty of sushi and pizza places. In fact we've seen a great number of both throughout Mexico.
Anniversary serenade...
The Glimmer Twins, Fanda and Kaschka, contacted us from Morelia, which was 2 hours away and said they wanted to see us briefly before continuing on south. We were excited to see them again after so many months. They arrived late in the afternoon and we all shared the tiny apartment for the night after a walk down through the city and back up.
The next day they were going to ride to San Miguel de Allende for an afternoon on their way to Queretaro. We decided to accompany them for the day, but as we all caught up on internet stuff the day slipped away. By the time we left it was a bit late and my tooth infection was really kicking my butt. When we finally made SMA the Glimmer Twins had to leave almost immediately, which was a shame since it's a beautiful place.
We'd managed to find a host for the night and after telling the Twins goodbye headed over to her home. The next day we wandered the streets of the beautiful city, stopping in the jardins for breaks, only to be driven away by the conversations of the endless gringos. Though San Miguel has always been known as an American friendly place, its recent vote as the best city in the world to live in by a major magazine has brought a surge of new residents and visitors. Even our friend said it has been changing for the worse.
Evening in San Miguel
Aw.Sum.Ta.Cos.
After a day exploring, we headed back to Guanajuato and our apartment. It felt really good to have a place to unwind and begin getting a sense of life in such a nice town. We spent a few days just doing nothing but relaxing, something I've not done in years, and walking the streets until late, climbing the super steep street to our place each night. The walkway to the top was a serious butt kicker.
One day after returning from a ride, two workmen were leaving the house and the younger came over excitedly. In broken English he tried to communicate and we all waved our arms a bit. He said he would like to practice English as he was trying to learn, so we said we'd be happy to. Alejandro was his name and he said he worked at the GM plant all night but would contact us soon. I gave him a card and he smiled and shook our hands excitedly before leaving.
For all you photographers out there, you know the struggle to find the right gear and the ability to carry it all. My camera system had been split between a body and two zooms in my home-modified tank bag, with a backup body and three primes in a padded pack in the tail case. I wanted to evolve my system into one case that easily carried the whole shebang when on the streets, yet was still thin enough to save room on the bike. I have been sorely disappointed in the usual camera bag manufacturers and their reluctance to produce slim, minimalist cases. Nothing like buying a small camera and having to put it in a soccer ball sized case, entirely defeating the purpose.
But anyway, I had been looking for a low profile street carry case that didn't scream camera, and Kim spotted a guy selling handmade leather bags on the steps of a mezcal bar. I pointed to his bags and then began showing my camera and lenses, opening one of his bags and indicating dividers for lenses and such. He immediately understood, measuring the bodies and each lens with his fingers... three fingers for this and 4 fingers for that, etc. He indicated to return the next day at 8 pm and we shook hands.
The next day I carried all my gear down, and after some street exploration ended up at his bar location. He produced the leather bag, made exactly as I imagined and extremely well constructed. I was happy as a clam and the $45 US was a bargain. It has worked brilliantly and looks nothing like a camera bag.
We'd forgotten abut Alejandro - almost - when I got a text from him inviting us to his home for breakfast a day later. He sent a Google pin and I plugged the coordinates into the GPS. We headed out the next day for the meal, admittedly a bit uneasy at being invited to an unknown home 30 miles away, but as we rolled up to the area, an older man in a metal shop came out to wave us down. We circled back and parked the bikes on the edge of the main road and Alejandro appeared. He was excited and showed us the older man's metal shop, where he fabricated iron gates and such.
We were then led into his house adjacent and introduced us to his wife Fernanda, who was a bit apprehensive and guarded. She began working in the kitchen and we sat with Alejandro and his little daughter in the living room. Alejandro explained in poor English that he wanted to learn and improve his life, being in the maintenance department for GM at night, then attending college in the afternoons.
He shared that he had often approached Americans to ask them to converse with him but they refused or ignored him. Apparently we were the first to respond. A couple of minutes later were were summoned to the table for the first round of brunch, a hot bowl of menudo and tortilla chips. Alejandro explained that the older man was his father-in-law and they lived at his home with him.
A moment later the older man appeared for lunch sitting with us silently. As the next course came to the table, he began filling a coffee mug with water and I pointed to it. He stopped and looked at me curiously, then I jokingly said "Tequila?"... He burst into laughter and a huge smile, Alejandro simultaneously laughing out loud and shouting that his father LOVED tequila and baseball. The older man stood and indicated to wait, returning a few minutes later with a small wooden cask.
Alejandro told us that this little cask was always full of the best tequila and was near his father-in-law at all times in his shop. Needless to say a small celebration broke out around the table and he insisted we all have a shot.
The older man's name was José (a great name I might add) and he had played baseball fanatically most of his life, still playing every Sunday as a catcher in the stadium in Guanajuato. Faded pictures of teams adorned the walls of the home to attest to his love of the sport.
Lunch was finished and we knew it was time to go. We were so humbled to have been invited into their lives and treated so graciously, that it was hard to know how to say thanks but we tried. Kim invited Alejandro and his family to have dinner with us one evening in town, and we explored the welding shop before leaving, Jose proudly showing the intricacy of his metalwork by his forge.
As we started to gear up, Fernanda watched intently, and then Kim asked if she'd like a ride. She broke into a beaming smile and immediately came over. She climbed on my GS and indicated which way to go, heading through the little town and back so that her friends could see her.
We said our goodbye's, and Jose indicated to me to return with "Mi casa es su casa!" as we rolled away. Heading back into GTO to ride the streets, a gentle rain started and I spotted the sign for the "Museo de Momias". We wound our way up to it, not without a few missed turns, and parked in the rain. The museum is small, but houses a great collection of mummified bodies from the early 20th century, whom as best I can understand, were removed from their burial crypts when the cemetery crypt wall needed repairs and were found in such great states of preservation. The clothing and details were amazing to see and though a bit macabre, we enjoyed seeing the museum.
Afterwards we wandered around behind it to discover the huge cemetery, its walls lined with small crypts and a large section of it under repair. A worker said in broken English that the wall had begun to collapse and they were redoing the entire wall. It would be interesting to see if the mummified remains of other residents were being removed for the process.
The rains had stopped and we worked back to the bikes, heading up to the Panoramic a different direction and stopping briefly at a supermarket. As we loaded the bikes with food, a man and his daughter came over to say hello. He spoke English well and offered his business card in case we needed "anything whatsoever" in Guanajuato. He said he loved motorcycles and just wanted to say hello. I gave him a sticker and he got excited, saying he had a collection for his bike. We rode back up to the apartment and the relaxing overlook for the evening.