Guanajuato: My New Mexican Favorite

During our trip to central Mexico earlier this year, we visited a trio of popular cities in Mexico’s central highland, Bajío. Compared to San Miguel de Allende or Santiago de Querétaro, the city of Guanajuato was a little bit of an unknown to me before the trip. While not exactly a well-kept secret among international travelers, Guanajuato City is undoubtedly upstaged by its more upscale neighbors. Because this particular trip was somewhat last-minute (due to the closure of Morocco), I did not have much time to research the places we would be visiting. All I knew ahead of time was that this is a college town and home to the infamous Guanajuato Mummies. Given our wonderful time in Querétaro, I was reticent about what Guanajuato has in store for us.

Collegiate Basilica of Our Lady of Guanajuato.

At the end of our trip, I could confidently proclaim that Guanajuato was unquestionably the highlight of my trip. It is a place that feels distinct from the rest of Mexico, and it is unique in its urban geography. It is one of those places that fundamentally altered my perception of a country. More than any Mexican city, this place feels physically and culturally vibrant. I hate to admit it; Guanajuato has knocked off Merida to be my new favorite Mexican city I have visited thus far. I would recommend Guanajuato over San Miguel de Allende if you asked me. I am confident this magnificent city will soon get its due among foreign visitors.

A City of Valley & Tunnels

For anyone who spent enough time in Mexico, it is not difficult to recognize the anatomy of a typical Mexican city. Following a rigid grid plan, the town center typically comprises the main square and an imposing cathedral. A sense of Déjà vu seemed almost unavoidable as we moved from one town to another. This uniformity of Spanish colonial cityscape was out of the window for Guanajuato. Born as a small mining settlement in the mid-sixteenth century, the city experienced rapid growth in the 1720s after the opening of the nearby La Cata silver mine. The rapid urbanization along the narrow ravine created one of the densest settlements within New Spain.

The intersection of two different are among the most interesting space in the city.

The rapid buildup around the narrow river made Guanajuato especially vulnerable to regular flash floods. In response, the colonial authority constructed a dam upstream in 1823 and inaugurated the first tunnel: El Cuajín. Over the next century, more tunnels were built to manage the water better. Eventually, the planners paved and widened these tunnels to allow carriages to pass through during the dry season. Nowadays, the network of tunnels creates an underground spine that has become an indispensable infrastructure of Guanajuato. While some still double as flood control channels, most serve as the city’s main artery for public buses, delivery vehicles, parking, and pedestrians. A stone staircase connects the tunnels to the street level about every fifty meters.

The underground tunnel network is an efficient artery of public transportation.

This separation of traffic made Guanajuato one of the most pedestrian-friendly cities in Mexico. Switching between the two levels is like navigating between two worlds. And unlike New York’s subway, the tunnel of Guanajuato is meticulously kept, and it also feels like an urban park (albeit without the greenery). Because these tunnels were never meant to be the city's public face, they are the ultimate “back streets of Guanajuato.” The soaring building facade facing the narrow open-air “tunnels” is unlike anything I have ever seen. It was reminiscent of the medieval riverfront of Rome before the construction of the embankment. Oddly enough, the beauty of the stately facade around the main square is not nearly as fascinating as these back alleys.

Honestly, I would consider the tunnels of Guanajuato to be the city's star attraction. However, it comes with its own challenges for first-time visitors. Because of the narrow lanes and the tunnels, Google Maps and navigation around the city could be quite challenging. Even for a self-styled frequent traveler like myself, it took a solid day to have a good grasp of navigation around the city center. Every guidebook recommends not to self-drive into the center of Guanajuato. This became evident from our cab ride from the central bus station to the hotel. The roads are exceedingly narrow, and the steep slopes made it quite a thrilling ride. We are very grateful for not renting a car on this trip. Naturally, most cabs in Guanajuato have no working seatbelts.

Late-afternoon view of the hills of Guanajuato.

Mexican cities are generally well-known for their colorful urbanscape. I would say that Guanajuato is a class of its own. As the city expanded, the residents began constructing homes further up the hill. Today’s Guanajuato is a beautiful Kaleidoscope of colors. Aware of this, I purposefully booked a hotel with a massive rooftop terrace and bar. Antigua Trece Hotel Fusión is a beautiful home base for our three-day visit. From the rooftop, we had a panoramic view of Guanajuato. While grand monuments like the University of Guanajuato and the Collegiate Basilica of Our Lady of Guanajuato dominate the skyline, the real draws are the houses sprinkled across the surrounding valley. Architecturally, these houses may not be anything special, but they created sublimity.

The main building of the University of Guanajuato.

For me, Guanajuato’s narrow streets make the city particularly photogenic. There are just so many corners that are ripe for urban safari. But there is one spot that seems to attract all the visitors. It is a spot even our taxi driver pointed out on our drive into town. Located just a few minutes from our hotel, the alley seems to be mobbed by crowds at seemingly all hours. Known as the Alley of Kiss (Callejon del Beso), this is the narrowest alley in Mexico at just over 27 inches. The popularity of this place is connected to a real-life tragic love story. According to a common tradition, a young couple, Anna and Carlo, from very different socioeconomic backgrounds, fell in love. Knowing they wouldn’t receive the blessing from their families, the couple kept their relationship secret.

But the rumor of their affair eventually reached the father of the girl. Furious, the father decided to lock the girl in her room to end the affair. To continue seeing each other, Carlo rented a room from an adjacent apartment and continued meeting Anna every night over the two balconies. Anna’s father eventually found out about their clandestine meetups. An altercation broke out on the balcony and led to the death of Anna at the hands of her father. Allegedly, she fell to her death and landed on the third step of this alley.

Some say he jumped in a bid to save Anna, and others say that he committed suicide inside a silver mine no long after. Regardless of the details, the legend of the star-crossed lovers spread quickly. To honor the love and their brief lives, the locals started a tradition of kissing their loved ones on the third step. The locals believe the kiss on that spot would guarantee fifteen years of love. Entrepreneurial locals have since capitalized on the fame by charging for access to the balcony for visitors to recreate the kiss of Anna and Carlo.

For much of the day, this is a typical crowd at the Alley of the Kiss.

The popularity of the Alley of the Kiss is tremendous. During much of the day, the place was completely packed with visitors. Don’t expect your visit to be a romantic affair. Instead, it operates like a well-oiled tourism machine. It is arguably the most touristy spot in Guanajuato and resembles other famous attractions such as Brussel’s Manneken Pis or New York City’s Charging Bulls. This area may be over-commercialized, but few seem bothered by it. Rather, the overwhelming sentiment here is joy and love.

A City of Culture & Learning

While the unique geographical features of Guanajuato drew me here, the city’s cultural energies would lure me back. Perhaps because of its narrow streets, Guanajuato appears far more crowded and energetic than other Mexican cities we visited thus far. We first visited Plaza de San Fernando, a quaint square with old colonial buildings, a Baroque fountain, and many outdoor cafes and bars. It has a decidedly bohemian feel and is one of the most charming public spaces we visited on this trip.

Plaza de San Fernando is the epicenter of bohemian Guanajuato.

The low-key ambiance of Plaza de San Fernando contrasts sharply with the Plaza de La Paz, the city’s cathedral square and where many of the most important civic monuments are located. On the side of the square is the Museo Palacio de los Poderes, a small museum dedicated to the history of Guanajuato. Unbeknown to most international visitors, Guanajuato is the capital of the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato. The museum building is the former home of the Congress of Guanajuato, with its original legislative chamber intact. The museum docent here was very helpful in explaining some of the more unknown episodes of Mexican history.

Without question, the city’s most emblematic monument is the Collegiate Basilica of Our Lady of Guanajuato. The mustard yellow and red church is unusually grand despite its architectural simplicity. The church is positioned on a slight hill, which creates a forced perspective to exaggerate its height. Constructed in the 17th century with funds from the silver mines, the basilica is considered the center of the cultural and religious life of Guanajuato. As its name suggests, the church houses Our Lady of Guanajuato, a famous icon gifted by King Philip II of Spain to the city in recognition of its vital contribution to the wealth of New Spain.

Compared to many other cathedrals in Mexico, the Basilica of Guanajuato seems busy with worshippers at all hours. Pope Benedict XVI was among the famous visitors to this church in 2012. During our three-day stay, there seemed to be a mass whenever I popped in. Back on Plaza de La Paz, it seems like everyone in the city converges here in the afternoon. All around are lovely eateries and snack stands. For Mexicans, this plaza also holds special historical significance. In 1858, President Benito Juárez declared on this spot that Guanajuato was the provisional capital of Mexico while his liberal forces battled the conservative rivals.

The Barque fountain of Jardín de la Unión.

A block away is the city's main plaza: Jardín de la Unión. The triangular-shaped plaza is dominated by dense Indian Laurel trees planted during Mexico’s Porfiriato period when all things French were in vogue. The thick canopy provides permanent shade for the surrounding cafes and some of Guanajuato’s fanciest restaurants. The square is the stage of roving mariachi bands from restaurant to restaurant. Because most patrons are mostly Mexican visitors, it has none of the kitsch of a typical mariachi band back in the States. Observing the interaction between the bands and dinners is fun for visitors.

After mid-afternoon, the area around Jardín de la Unión is invaded by dozens and dozens of roving musicians. All dressed in black renaissance outfits, they are estudiantinas (or callejoneadas), ensembles of light-hearted musicians and singers that performed music and drama right on the streets of Guanajuato. A tradition originated in Spain; the estudiantinas took the group to various stops throughout the city with songs. In between, they tell stories and jokes, very often related to the history and folklore of Guanajuato.

Throughout the afternoon, estudiantinas rove the city center to sell tickets for the nightly performance. At around 8 pm, the performances commence at the steps of Teatro Juárez. Each ensemble includes fifteen to twenty-five spectators. Among the common instruments in the ensemble are guitars, mandolins, accordions, violins, and tambourines. To cajole the mood, souvenir porcelain drinkware is distributed to all participants; they are containers for tequila, red wine, or mezcal for those who wish to partake. As the night goes on, things could get rowdy but nevertheless more joyous than obnoxious.

The sculpture of an *estudiantinas* singer.

While estudiantinas are not unique to Guanajuato, they are now central to the city’s cultural identity. In 1962, the university students began to organize the ensemble to supplement their tuition and living expenses. Over the decades, more and more students formed separate ensembles and competed for businesses. Even though not all estudiantinas today are students or young, the enterprise remains largely free from the overt commercialism you would expect. Overall, this is the one activity that everyone would recommend. Even for someone like myself who doesn’t speak a sentence of Spanish, the passion and levity of estudiantinas are infectious.

When people call Guanajuato a university town, they are not kidding. Even though we visited the city immediately after the New Year holiday when school was closed, the city was filled with young people and families. The University of Guanajuato is the biggest and most prestigious among all the colleges. With 30,000 students, it has a big impact on the city center. The grandest edifice of the university is its 1940 neoclassical building. At about ten stories, the building soars above the rest of the city and even dwarfs the nearby basilica. Unfortunately, the grand staircase of the university building was off-limit during our visit. Otherwise, the views from the top are supposed to be fantastic.

The grand staircase of the University of Guanajuato.

Culturally, what put Guanajuato on the map is the Festival Internacional Cervantino (FIC), which is also known as El Cervantino. The festival celebrates the works of Spanish novelist Miguel de Cervantes, who is often considered the Shakespeare of the Spanish-speaking world. Among his most famous works is Don Quixote. I must be the first to admit that I knew nothing about Cervantes or Don Quixote. Because I already felt so inadequate about my English comprehension, I knew little about the literature of a foreign language. Thankfully, Brian was here to explain the significance of his works.

Guanajuato’s El Cervantino is considered the largest in the Western Hemisphere and one of Mexico's most celebrated cultural events. Of course, Cervantes has never been to Guanajuato; the city’s connection to the author is accidental. In 1953, a professor named Enrique Ruelas at the University of Guanajuato staged a short play from Don Quixote on Plaza de La Paz. Over the next few years, the festival developed and eventually received financial support from the federal government.

Mexican officials successfully promoted the festival internationally and attracted big-name performers like German conductor Herbert von Karajan. Famous festive attendees include Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, Prince Fumihito of Japan, and King Juan Carlos of Spain. More recently, the festival has evolved into a major international event with many foreign ensembles from as far away as Russia and Japan and attracts tens and thousands of spectators. For those of us who may not be interested in Cervantes's works, it may be wise to avoid visiting Guanajuato during the festival because of the scarcity of accommodation.

This light-hearted take on Don Quixote is perhaps my favorite in the museum.

The celebration of Cervantes is best evident by dozens of Don Quixote across the city center. They range from classical realist statues to highly abstract works and are quite fun to identify as we walk around the town. As a layman, the best way to appreciate their passion for Don Quixote is to visit the Don Quixote Iconographic Museum, just a short walk from Jardín de la Unión. Started by Eulalio Ferrer, a war refugee from Spain, this museum is the world's largest collection of art relating to Don Quixote. Nowadays, the museum is in a grand mansion and contains wide-ranging objects, from large expressionist murals to surrealist paintings. Even for a novice like myself, I found the artwork and the overall experience at the museum to be quite entertaining. The exhibition includes many works by noted contemporary Mexican artists like Gabriel Flores and Rufino Tamayo.

Another popular museum not to be missed in Guanajuato is the Diego Rivera's House Museum. The influential Mexican muralist grew up in Guanajuato with an upper-middle-class upbringing. This museum is on the pilgrimage trail for the fans of Rivera and his wife, Frida Kahlo. Rivera’s daughter, Guadalupe Rivera-Marín, rescued the house; she rallied enough cultural institutions to help preserve a little-known chapter of his life. From what I read, Rivera seldom spoke about his upbringing in Guanajuato, probably because his family moved to Mexico City when he was six. Honestly, who could blame him? How much do I remember from that age? However, it is alleged that he did paint his first mural in one of the bedrooms in this house at the age of three!

Having been to the Frida Kahlo Museum in Coyoacán just a few days prior, I have high expectations of this museum. While I don’t consider myself a devoted fan of Rivera and Kahlo, I am keen to understand their magnetic appeal to such a wide swatch of Mexican and foreign visitors. The museum’s first floor meticulously “recreated” his childhood home during his time. Most of the furniture pieces on this level are said to be original. What immediately struck us was how grand and well-appointed the Rivera House is. Given Rivera’s politics and whole-hearted embrace of socialism, it is ironic that he grew up in such a palatial setting. Perhaps the contrast between his family wealth and the plights of Guanajuato's miners informed his politics later in life.

A good collection of Rivera’s earliest works is on the museum's upper floor. Like most artists of his time, Rivera had European classical training and experimented with the great artistic epochs of the early 20th century. The museum exhibited many of his less-known works, such as those in Cubist and post-Impressionist styles.

Diego Rivera’s illustration for the English edition of *Popol Vuh*.

My favorites from the collection are his sketches in the style of Aztec and Mayan codexes. This series of watercolors by Rivera was created as illustrations for the English translation of the Popol Vuh, a Mayan text that chronicles the mythical birth of civilization to the arrival of the conquistadors. These sketches reveal an entirely new perspective of the artistic technique and genre.

The Cradle of The Mexican Revolution

To add to the long list of reasons why Guanajuato is my new favorite Mexican city, this colonial city also played an important role in the history of Mexico’s War of Independence. This region is the birthplace of Mexican nationalism, as the whole movement began with a stirring sermon by rebel priest Miguel Hidalgo in the nearby town of Dolores. After he led his loosely assembled insurgents through San Miguel all Allende, the troop marched on Guanajuato, the region's wealthiest city and the Spanish royalists' political headquarters. With the rebels vastly outnumbering the royalist troops, the city’s political and economic elites decided to hold out inside Alhóndiga de Granaditas, the royal grain exchange building. The rebel forces of twenty thousand, led by Miguel Hidalgo, Ignacio Allende, Juan Aldama, and Mariano Jiménez, laid siege to the building.

With only three hundred soldiers on their side, the royalists did not stand a chance and were brutally massacred. The siege was followed by widespread looting and massacre throughout this wealthy city. With the revolutionary spirit running high, many of the city’s miners joined the rebellion and looting. The Siege of Guanajuato was a shock in New Spain. The brutality of Hildalgo’s forces led to the unconditional surrender of many other towns and the urgent mobilization to counter the rebel advances. Hildalgo and his fellow rebels were subsequently defeated and decapitated. By then, the colonist forces had retaken Guanajuato. As a warning to all, the severed heads of four rebel leaders were hung on hooks at four corners on the exterior of Alhóndiga de Granaditas. Their head remained there until Mexico achieved independence.

The massive mural that José Chávez Morado painted in 1955.

Today, the hooks where those heads once hung are still there. Next to each is a plague with the names of the four leaders: Hidalgo, Allende, Aldama, and Jiménez. To visitors nowadays, the image of such a brutal display is jarring. Despite the rebel forces’ brutal tactics, these leaders were celebrated in today’s Mexico as forefathers of Mexico. Today, the four revolution martyrs are publicly venerated inside the Alhóndiga de Granaditas. This historical granary is now open to the public as the Guanajuato Regional Museum. The museum is just big enough to quickly survey the city’s history from historical times to the period after independence. Even though all the signage was in Spanish during our visit, the exhibit was still exceptionally engaging.

But for most foreign visitors, the highlight would probably be the two sets of massive murals over the staircases. Painted by José Chávez Morado, the mural memorializes the siege, as well as other pivot events such as the abolition of African slavery and Guanajuato’s contributions to the integration of the nation. As most Mexican muralists often do, the works also connect the historical events to contemporary issues of race and class. Lucky for us visitors, a handy illustrative board is on hand to explain the numerous characters inside the murals.

While the revolutionary heroes mentioned below are well respected, one individual became a local folk hero and symbol of perseverance and bravery. Known commonly as El Pípila, Juan José de los Reyes Martínez Amaro was originally from San Miguel de Allende and worked in one of Guanajuato’s silver mines. During the siege of Alhóndiga de Granaditas, El Pípila carried a slab of heavy stone on his back to shield him from the musket fires from the Spanish defenders. Once getting to the main gate, he set the massive wooden doors on fire with tar and a torch. The fire weakened the gate, allowing rebel forces to storm the building. His humble origin and bravery became a source of local pride.

Today, El Pípila is memorialized by a massive 65-foot sandstone statue perched on top of a hilltop just south of the historic center. The statue shows El Pípila in a heroic pose as if he was calling for the storming of the colonial stronghold. His right hand is raised high in the sky with the “torch of liberty”. This beloved statue is said to be the second most visited attraction in the city, after the Mummies of Guanajuato. Not only is the statue gleaming in bright sunlight but it is also situated on perhaps the best viewpoint over the city. Luckily, there is a handy funicular up the hill just a block from Jardín de la Unión. From the observation point, it was a convivial scheme filled with tourists and locals.

The City of People

For a beautiful town listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Guanajuato seems surprisingly resilient in dealing with tourism. Despite the influx of visitors since the UNESCO designation, the city retains its workaday atmosphere. The historic center may be popular with visitors and filled with elegant restaurants, but it feels neither artificial nor exclusive. That said, exploring the rest of the city and appreciating the lesser-visited section of town is still important.

Mercado Hidalgo is one of the most underrated piece of architecture in Guanajuato.

In my mind, one of the must-visits in the city would be Mercado Hidalgo, the city’s impressive historic market just a few blocks from Alhóndiga de Granaditas. Somebody once said the local market is the best way to experience the city. This is not your ordinary market. Constructed as part of the centennial celebration of Mexican independence, the market is as grand as it gets. According to various resources, the design was originally intended for a railway station in Belgium. That certainly explains the grandness of the architecture. It is also believed that Gustave Eiffel of the Eiffel Tower fame designed the central clock tower.

From the mezzanine, visitors had a wonderful overhead view of all the stalls. Surveying different purveyors, we could almost taste and smell the produce and dishes inside the building. The massive food court is a good introduction to local cuisine and a place to see what is popular with the locals. A great market like Mercardo Hidalgo is a democratic space for all citizens. It is not very often that a grand architectural space is truly devoted to all citizens.

▲

My New Mexican Favorite: Guanajuato

A City of Valley & Tunnels

A City of Culture & Learning

The Cradle of The Mexican Revolution

The City of People

Matera - The Cappadocia of Italy

Preparing For My First Camino