San Miguel de Allende 3

November 1, 2021 - November 3, 2021

On Monday two events occurred.  First, I had my first Spanish class at Hablar Espanol language school.  At first I was placed in a class with two other students who had started the class a week before. After about 30 minutes the director of the school took me to another classroom and taught me many of the basics of the language. The lesson was total emersion in Spanish and took a large amount of effort and concentration to understand the instruction and answer the questions correctly, but I learned a lot.  After class and after lunch with Bob I reviewed and organized my notes and did my homework .  I was required to write 10 sentences using the material we covered in class.  After I wrote my sentences I called Nancy and she helped me with pronunciation and made grammatical corrections.  I felt like I spent the whole day studying Spanish.  

As are many buildings in SMA it is not very impressive
 from the outside, but inside is a lovely courtyard
with two floors of classrooms overlooking the courtyard.

The next big event was the “Dia de Los Muertos” celebration downtown.  Bob and I walked to the square after lunch.  It was very crowded, but there wasn’t much going on so I decided to go back after dinner.  The crowd was much larger then and there were many more people in costume with the traditional makeup.  The makeup artists were still providing their services all along Hildago Street ( which was closed to traffic).

Children and adults both participated
in the celebration.

Perfectly made-up

Red and Black were a popular color selection

.

This Catrina with her amazing costume
happily posed for photos.

A Catrina and a Catrin are ready
for the parade.

These ladies had the most beautiful crowns.

On the way home I captured this photo
of chandeliers hanging in the entrance of a hotel.

Another important aspect of the Dia de Los Muertos celebration are the alters family members construct to honor their lost loved ones. The alters contain photos of the person, a special pan de muertos, and other favorite food items of the deceased.  Of course, they are decorated with marigolds.

The entire front of this house was an alter .

A smaller alter inside a home's entrance

This alter was constructed on a street near our apartment.

Tuesday was grocery shopping day.  We tried a new market that is just across the highway from La Comer. It is named City Market and is owned by La Comer so Bob and I are wondering why the markets are so close together.  City Market seems to be focusing on the more organic minded customer, but La Comer had many organic products too.  After lugging and stowing all of the groceries we each ate two empanadas that we purchased at the market, carne pecante and espinacas y queso - yummy!

The lovely entrance to the market

At 2:00 pm I had my weekly Zoom with my sisters and then headed to my Spanish language class. I definitely had a very full day.

On Wednesday morning I talked to my daughter, Rachel, and my granddaughter, Claire. Claire is teething and not her cheerful self, but still adorable.

It's getting colder in Oak Park.

Thank you for reading my blog.

 

Life in San Miguel de Allende 2

 October 29, 2021 - October 31, 2021

Friday morning I walked down to the main square to use one of the bank ATMs. I guess the payday Friday is a custom in Mexico, too, as the banks and ATMs had lines.  I also stopped at the tourism office on the square to get some information about local tours companies since some of the places we want to visit may work better on a tour (as much as we dislike being herded around by a guide LOL). Of course I couldn’t help taking a few photos on my walk.

The Mercado de Dame is next to 
la Parroquia.

The courtyard of Starbucks decorated for 
 dia de los Muertos.

Saturday is college football day for us.  There were two games we wanted to watch; Michigan vs. Michigan State at 11:00 am and Penn State vs. Ohio State at 6:30 pm.  We walked to the Corner Cafe (Cafe de la Esquina) nearby for breakfast and walked around a bit after.  I made beef taco pie using tortillas for the crust for lunch. It was quite tasty.  After Michigan State won 37-33 I went for a walk to look for some marigolds to decorate for dia de los muertos.

Colorful awnings on the street we walked on

On every side of town you can see the hills beyond.
If you look closely at the photo you can see the
river among the rocks on the bottom left.

I purchased a large bunch of marigolds
from a street vender. Legend has it
that they attract the souls of
lost loved ones.

I couldn't resist hanging more fiesta banners.

On Sunday after my walk and shower I cooked a lunch of baked pesto chicken breasts and a green salad.  The chicken was easy and delicious - always my favorite kind of meal to cook.  After lunch we took a cab to a special bazar which featured only Mexican made products.  I bought a basket and some leather slippers ( the tile floors here are super cold). We walked from the bazar to the town center which we found crowded with many people celebrating Dia de Los Muertos.  Apparently the fiesta lasts for four days this year because of the weekend.

The bazaar offered everything from shoes, textiles,
clothing, hats, to jewelry all hand made in Mexico.

We passed a Catrina on the way to el Centro.

Similar courtyards are found all over the city.

My first purchase downtown was 
this crown of marigolds which
is traditionally worn for Dia de
los Muertos fiestas.

Calle Hildago was lined with makeup artists
creating traditional faces for the festivities.

When we returned to our apartment we found artists
creating new murals on the wall.

Claire is ready for Trick or Treating 
with her sister and parents.

And Monday and Tuesday are the big celebration.  I’m looking forward to this cultural event.

Thank you for reading my blog

Life in San Miguel de Allende

 October 26, 2021 - October 28, 2021

Yesterday’s rain stopped sometime during the night, and it was quite chilly on Tuesday morning.  We had cereal and blueberries for breakfast.  We have noticed that the fruit here is exceptionally good, especially the avocados. 

It’s good to have goals in life. So our goal on Tuesday was to purchase some margarita glasses at the Mercado de Artisansia.

one of the streets we walked down 
on the way to the Artisans Market

There are about four blocks of colorful shops
lining each side of the walkway.

The shops range from t-shirt and souvenir shops ...

to colorful pottery shops...

to hand tooled leather shops...

to shops of culturally significant items...

and fine silver jewelry shops.

Unfortunately, the shop with the glassware was not open.  I guess we will have to go back soon.  I did purchase some sterling silver hoop earrings and a colorful shopping bag. Bob purchased a braided leather belt and a brightly colored ceramic outlet cover. We had lunch nearby at the Santa Anna Cafe located in the back of the library.  We will definitely eat there again!

The cafe was in a lovely courtyard.

What a beautifully presented Cobb salad.

While we waited for our lunch we were
treated to a mini concert when this musician
stopped in to play the guitar and sing.

On the way home Bob snapped this
picture of me with my
garish (Bob's description)
new shopping bag.

Before breakfast I took a long walk around the Guadeloupe neighborhood where we live.  I discovered a walkway that goes along the "river" (it is very dry right now and hardly looks like a river), crossed the river on a footbridge and returns on the other side.  

We decided to have lunch at what is becoming our favorite Cafe, Hiebra Santa - Chocina del Sur. Then we returned to the Artisans Market to purchase our Margarita glasses.

The charming little bar area at
Hierba Santo.

My lunch of Tacos Dorados which is
chicken tacos with vegetables and broth.

We put our new Margarita glasses to 
good use at happy hour.

I took another long walk on Thursday morning before I started the laundry. That turned out to be a mistake as the maid comes on Thursday and she uses the washing machine to wash all of the sheets she changes out.  It worked out though as I tried not to take up much hanging space so she could have room to hang the bedding.  Our plans were to have lunch at a restaurant named Chill SMA which supposedly opened at 1:00 pm so we stopped by the cafe nearby to have a coffee and some fruit tarts before we did a little grocery shopping.  Another gringo came into the cafe as we were finishing our coffee and we struck up a conversation.  Low and behold he was a previous renter of our very apartment. He talked about his three years in SMA and gave us some tips as we related some of our adventures.  It was fun making the connection and I’m sure we will see him around the neighborhood. After getting our groceries and wandering around the neighborhood we set out to find the restaurant.  That turned out to be frustrating.  After searching for awhile we located the restaurant by looking up and recognizing the restaurant from pictures on trip adviser. Unfortunately, it did not open until four so we went home and had some snacks while we waited for 4:00 pm.

We walked by another
beautifully painted doorway.

Another fascinating mural

It turned out that the wait was worth it.  The open air seating area on the second floor was delightful and the food was unique and tasty.

The open air sitting area of Chill SMA

The view from the restaurant was great.

My next blog will feature the Dia de los Muertos celebration in San Miguel.

Thank you for reading my blog.

 October 22, 2021 - October 25, 2021

As of Friday we have been in San Miguel for an entire week.  I must confess that I do not feel at all competent in using Spanish, but I do continue to try.  Most people are very understanding and helpful, but I’m sure it is as frustrating for them as it is for me when there is a total lack of communication. Basically, we did our errands on Friday.  We found a locksmith to copy our house keys and found two great markets very close to our apartment. We didn’t need to purchase much, but it is good to know where we can get all of the basics closer to home then the Mercado Ignazio Rameriz or La Comer supermarket. 

A house we passed on our walk
has a beautifully decorated doorway.

I passed this interesting sculpture on my walk.

And another sculpture using the
same techniques was close by.

That afternoon I registered for a two week course of Spanish language lessons. I’ll start on November 1st.  The lessons include two hours of instruction each day and a 1.5 hour cultural tour of San Miguel on Monday and a Music session on Wednesday.  I am very much looking forward to my class.

I also researched the celebration of Dia de los Muertos in San Miguel.  Apparently when a large number of expats moved to San Miguel they began to celebrate Halloween and in an effort to preserve the Spanish culture in the area the city began to promote the celebration of Dia de los Muertos.  It has become a great festival here lasting three days. The belief is that on November 1st the souls of the younger dead relatives return to earth to visit their family and on November 2nd the older souls of the dead do the same. So the days are not a celebration of death, as some believe, but a celebration of family and respect for lost loved ones.  We are looking forward to the experience.

Saturday morning was cool and by the time I ventured out at 10:00am it was only 56 but the high is expected to be 79 by the afternoon.  I do enjoy this climate. I walked mostly for exercise, but I also took some photos and purchased a few necessities.

It is difficult to pass the Perroquia
and not take a photo.
It is just so impressive.

The decorations for Dia de los Muertos
are already being displayed.

 

Legend has it that marigolds attract the 
spirits of the dead and they are 
always included in decorations.

Costumed and made up ladies are called catrinas.
This is a model of one. Notice the marigolds.

In San Miguel charming small cafes like this one
 are plentiful. This one's door opens right
on the narrow sidewalk.

At 11:00 am the football game between Penn State and Illinois kicked off.  At half time Penn State was leading 10 - 7.  But, unfortunately, after nine overtimes Penn State lost 16-18.  Bob was very disappointed. 

After breakfast on Sunday I continued my habit of taking a long walk for exercise.  Mid morning here is perfect for walking.  Although I can’t walk at my usual fast pace because of the cobblestone roads and narrow sidewalks it is revitalizing.  Today I didn’t even need my maps app to find my way home so I feel like I am getting acquainted with our immediate neighborhood.  Today, I located the brick oven pizza cafe and an additional bodega. 

A recent photo of my granddaughter Claire:

Apparently she is happy with her hat on,
but her mom told me she really
doesn't like them.

and my grandson Acen:

He is a jujitsu champion.
Can't wait to see his trophies.

Acen being silly with his mom when
she visited him at school for lunch.

Monday was our first rainy day here. Believe me our car needed to have the dust washed off.  We ventured to the La Comer area.  Our plan was to have lunch at a nearby restaurant but after driving in circles for awhile we decided to head to La Comer Supermarket and have lunch at their cafe. Our lunch consisted of Hamburgers and water which cost less than five dollars.  The hamburgers were not great, but it kept us from being hangry while we were shopping.  We took our time walking up and down the aisles looking for specific items, but also just looking at what was available. We purchased several household items which our kitchen lacks as well as resupplying our groceries.  As before shopping and carrying everything to our apartment and putting it all away was exhausting.  Are we getting old or is shopping in a foreign country just exhausting?

Thank you for reading my blog.