Diary/Photo Journal

Week of November 02, 2003

What a harrowing day!  We were on our way to Guanajuato when Cindy started to sputter and lurch and eventually came to an abrupt halt.  We were unable to restart her and just happened to be situated on a rather steep incline.  Gerson carefully rolled her backwards (alongside of a very busy 4-lane highway) to a flat area near a roadside fruitstand and fortunately, the owner pointed Gerson to a nearby mechanic. 

In ten minutes, Gerson and the mechanic pulled up and within 15 minutes, a wire to the ignition was bypassed and Cindy started up fine.  Apparently, a wire was loosened with all the jostling these wonderful roads provide and the wire was sending incorrect messages to other parts in Cindy.  Yes, this is a simplistic explanation but Cindy is plodding along once again.

Cindy waiting and our highway mechanic that saved the day

Guanajuato sunset

We made it into Guanajuato (Guana-hwatto) and had no idea what we were in for.  A travel book we are referring to mentioned not to drive in the town because of  "low clearance".  We thought, "no problem" Cindy is short in stature and definitely shorter then the buses we saw careening around the streets.  So, we proceeded to follow a bus into what turns out to be a labyrinth of subterranean streets.

The rather harrowing aspect, however, are some of the streets we had to maneuver through.  Saying they were steep is like saying Lombard St. in San Francisco is slightly sloped.  The cobblestone gets a little slippery and with the tremendously steep incline and Cindy's rather weighty bulk, there were more than a few white-knuckle moments.  We were quite relieved to be parked with the roof intact and the front end still on the front.  Let's put it this way, it is 8:00 p.m. and Gerson is already asleep.  He had a very difficult drive (and  yes, I was nice to him).

Various views of and over the city.  I have more of an appreciation for the bright colored homes after seeing this city

Just a typical colorful street

Guanajuato was built around the silver mining industry and once that dissipated, they converted much of the town's silver tunnels into subterranean streets.  These streets are not to be confused with tunnels because they have all the amenities of a normal street - sidewalks, parking, bus stops, etc. (all that is missing are shops).  The pictures will provide all the explanation that words cannot.  I was a kid in a candy store with the construction techniques used to fuse the house foundations with the very walls supporting the roads.  In addition, we stayed at the edge of a cliff off of the Panoramica Highway (aptly named) and the view of this valley town was extraordinary - as much so as the town itself. 

Subterranean highway - look closely at the foundations of the homes lining the highway.  You can see their plumbing, their chimneys, etc.  Check out how people construct their additions.  Remember, these were old silver mining tunnels from the 1500-1600's and many of these homes are over 100 years old.

Just some more cool pictures of the highway

A brief historical soundbite: Guanajuato was settled by local tribes in the early 15th century and was soon overwhelmed by the Spanish.  Once silver was discovered by the late 1500's (by the 1800's, 1/3 of all the world's silver was produced from this region!), massive churches and spectacular homes/buildings were built, all reminiscent of the baroque-churrigueresque style with viceroyal art.  Because of the layout of its streets and quaint alleys as well as for its singular beauty and its historic legacy, Guanajuato has been declared a national monument by the Mexican Government and UNESCO has also established it as part of the World's Cultural Heritage. 

Gerson has lived in Paris and London and  he was in awe as much as I was with the city itself.  It is one of those cities that its construction seems to defy logic yet, there it has stood for hundreds of years.  We walked through the subterranean streets, sat in the middle of the Jardin Union (main plaza) and people-watched, indulged in ceviche and shrimp in the Hidalgo Market (that was designed by Eiffel as in "Eiffel Tower") and walked the streets surrounded by very brightly painted homes/buildings.  This is definitely another "come-back-to" city.

Various gorgeous sights:  Templo De San Diego Overviews of the City and the Hildalgo Market

Unfortunately, Guanajuato is where we will also remember suffering our first theft.  We were a little too confident and we failed to heed the good advice given to us by our family and friends.  We left our things outside, overnight and when Gerson came back from the bathroom, he noticed something missing.  I dismissed his accusation because we were perched on pad of ground overlooking the city and there are very few homes nearby and only one way in and out.  I figured he just could not find it in the dark. 

So, like the most naive of tourists, I left other things outside overnight only to awaken in the morning and discover that another item disappeared.  Gerson had an immediate suspect but I thought, "no, he does not look like a criminal with his professional demeanor and his handsome bearing". 

Well, my being fooled was soon altered when Gerson's suspect traced his criminal steps and came back to the scene of the crime.  He saw Gerson and quickly skulked back down to his home, not 50' away.  Later that morning, as Gerson and I were walking up the road to catch the bus into town, we saw what was left of one of the items and then realized that it was unlikely that we would ever see Gerson's item again.    Here is what is left of mine...

The victim

The culprit

From Guanajuato, we stopped in for a quick overnight stay in San Miguel Allende to basically do laundry.  There is nothing nicer then handing off your laundry to the RV Park management and returning from a walk around the city and eating a fine dinner and then to have the laundry waiting for you, still warm and folded. 

Parroquia de San Miguel Arcangel

Believe it!  He ate the whole thing.  Grande calzone for a whopping $7 US.

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