Guanajuato City, Guanajuato, Hotel San Diego

Yesterday, Friday, late in the afternoon, Derek, Lupita, Tomas, Cathy, and I headed out from San Miguel, me and the wife saying goodbye to the city for the time being, and headed out to Guanajuato City. It was about an hour and a half drive across the arid rolling plains and hills and over the San Rafael (??) mountains into Guanajuato City.

The skies darkened along the way, so we didn't get to see our entry into the city, but the change in terrain was dramatic as we climbed to this former (or still) mining town. The city sits in a bowl of sorts, surrounded by ridge and peak, and to enter you drive through a series of tunnels, rather than surmount a pass and descend in. A very cool drive in.

We got a room at the Hotel San Diego, right on the Plaza de Union, one of the city's main squares. That night we walked out and had dinner in a restaurant on the square, me having chicken-chipotle something and Cathy having the specialty enchiladas of the region with carrots and potatoes. Very good.

We walked around the old city's cobbled streets after dinner, looking around and taking it in. It was quite lively, apparently a hotspot for students on this night.

This morning we started with coffee and huevos at a small place called La Truca, I think. Then we hit the pavers to take in the city.

We visited the museum of the house of Diego Rivera, his old residence now preserved as a museum and gallery. Many paintings and photos lined the walls, but the highlight was surely the mural on the main room of the top floor recounting the history of Mexico. This was one of those paintings that you could stare at for hours, and not just because of its size.

We left there and went to an indoor market in the former train station. Then we had a small lunch and a couple beers, walked around some more, had some ice cream, and went to the funicular. We rode this glass elevator up to the highpoint of the city where we got a fantastic view of the town and surrounding hillsides.

From there we headed back to the Plaza de Union and hit a restaurant for some tacos and beer. We'd cap this great afternoon with a nap before dinner. And what a dinner--I had a creamy poblano soup that was perhaps the tastiest thing I'd had this whole trip.

Derek and I would go out this night for a few beers, and stay out too late as usual. My 2am bedtime didn't mesh so well with my 4:30 departure for the airport, but what else is there to do on a plane but sleep?

All in all a fantastic, relaxing, very nice vacation. Great food, wonderful people, and a pace that I could adapt to pretty easily. It'll be hard to give up taking a nap every afternoon.