The Colonial Center-I
Queretaro & San Miguel de Allende
Left Column: Querétaro
Querétaro
The city of Querétaro is 100 miles north of Mexico City and after arriving in the evening, we were ecstatic to luck into a dog-friendly but very fit-for-humans motel, where we had a race for the shower. We found Querétaro much to our liking and we opted for additional nights. It has a large colonial central, is clean and green, and features a lengthy elevated aqueduct built in the early 18th Century, and a river, now channeled into an attractive stone-walled and landscaped canal that runs the length of the city. (Most rivers we have observed are now dry arroyos because of continuing demand for water). We ate at yet another randomly picked sidewalk café, one that featured a fixed-price five-course menu for $3.75. I was dubious, but Bill wanted to give it a try, and it turned out to be one of the best meals we had enjoyed on this trip.
San Miguel de Allende
We spent several days strolling around the crown jewel of the colonial cities, San Miguel de Allende (SMA to the numerous expats who live there). The town, like many of the colonial cities, was built off mining wealth. It exudes charm, and with its steep hills, narrow alleys, cobblestone streets, blue-blossomed Jacaranda trees, and stucco or stone houses trimmed with wrought iron, intricately carved doors, large potted geraniums and walls draped with bougainvillea that remind me of the Mediterranean towns of France and Italy. Dog-owners who live in the old part of colonial towns such as SMA often keep them on the roof, where they bark furiously down at passersby, particularly those on a leash. I took a good photo of a Boxer leaning over the top of his rooftop abode and gazing at Milo and Roscoe with considerable interest. SMA has far too many cars and needs to address that problem, although the town is making a stab at auto emission controls; it is also starting a recycling program soon, one of the first in Mexico, no doubt. It is a popular place for the artsy crowd, as well as retirees and ordinary tourists. Every day and evening there are a number of events going on. For example, on our second day, there was a late afternoon lecture on Moctezuma, then a classical guitarist’s concert, and following that a jazz concert. The city has a half-English, half Spanish public library that is dog friendly (we naturally liked that); it has a modest center courtyard that seems to be a morning gathering spot for the gringo community. A highlight for me was getting our laundry done, twice. This is a real treat because it’s cheap, fast, and everything comes out neatly folded and packed beautifully in plastic.
The first thing we did after finding a parking spot (which took awhile) was to locate the local tourism office, but it was closed, and someone remarked that it is rarely open -- one of those mysteries of Mexico. We then stopped several gringos walking dogs to inquire about where we might stay. One told us he had spent a pleasant week with his pooch at El Molino motel on the edge of town, so we headed there. My Spanish had become proficient enough that I could actually argue with the desk clerk about the motel’s dog policy. As part of my initially inquiry I gave little sales pitch for the pooches, one that I had been perfecting: “They are clean, flea-less, well behaved and we always clean up after them.” The desk clerk’s first response was “no dogs.” I told her I knew that wasn’t true. Then she said they had to sleep in the car. I explained that this wasn’t the case either, I had that for a fact. She finally relented, on the condition that the mutts were kept leashed and confined to the floor. Deal, I said.
Below: Boxer Patrol
Right Column: San Miguel de Allende
