A Weekend in Guanajuato
While we were discussing our plans for a road trip through Mexico, one of my good friends convinced us to spend a weekend in Guanajuato. She and her husband have traveled to Mexico several times, and Guanajuato was one of their all-time favorite towns.
Only a short bus ride from Mexico City, we were convinced that a weekend in Guanajuato was a must.
For the full story on our road trip through Mexico:
- Baja or Bust: a Road Trip Through Mexico
- Crossing the Sea of Cortez: The Ferry to Los Mochis
- Four Days in Mexico City
- Teotihuacan: the Perfect Day Trip from Mexico City
- A Day in El Fuerte
- The Drive to Copper Canyon
- Exploring Mexico’s Copper Canyon
The State
The state of Guanajuato is an interesting place to visit for many reasons. The region developed during the 1500s with the silver and gold mines (the contents of which were mostly sent to the Spanish Crown).
Although the area was prosperous, most of the wealth was concentrated in the hands of the European-born Spaniards. Thus, a rebellious undertone began to brew. The various revolts against the Spanish eventually lead to the war of independence.
Guanajuato is the birthplace of the revolution!
If you’re familiar with Mexico, you may already know of San Miguel de Allende. Located in the state of Guanajuato, San Miguel found a place on the American tourist map during the 70’s when hippie-ish-artist-folk began to settle there because of its affordable charm.
Since then, its popularity has continued to grow. With this growth, the hotels got a little more luxurious and the food got a little fancier.
The quaint San Miguel is now an uber trendy vacation destination for the fashionable elite.
The City
The city of Guanajuato, which is an hour west of San Miguel, has the colorful historic architecture, charming church squares, and glittering evening life that makes a town magical; but it is a little more affordable than its trendy neighbor.
The lively college town has tons to offer, and while it does get its fair share of Mexican tourists from other parts of the state and country, it is still fairly off the beaten path when it comes to foreign visitors. Since the locals usually know what’s what, we knew there were going to be some gems in Guanajuato.
Getting There
We had about a week in Mexico City, and there really is so much to see, so our detour to Guanajuato had to be quick.
We took an early Saturday morning bus from Mexico City and arrived in Guanajuato by the afternoon; the total ride was a relaxing five hours.
The bus left from the northern bus station (directions to the station in this post); we took the ETN bus line. It was a luxurious, double-decker bus with lounge seats and individual TV screens (although all the movies, as usual, were dubbed in Spanish).
We were given a bottle of water and a snack box (a ham sandwich and some chips). The ride was extremely comfortable (just pack a sweater, the air conditioning can be quite cold).
There is also a bus by Primera Plus that is a tiny bit cheaper, but the timing didn’t work for us.
Once we arrived, we caught an uber to our AirBnb. We dropped of our stuff and headed to the town center.
See Guanajuato
This was a quick trip, so we couldn’t see everything. Here is what we did see during our weekend in Guanajuato.
Admired the Colonial Architecture
We spent most of our time wandering around the adorable streets, admiring the brightly colored homes and narrow passageways.
We sat in the lively town square and people-watched. As I mentioned, there were a decent amount of tourists, but most of them were domestic tourists on family vacations.
Music and theater are big in Guanajuato, and there are people stationed around town, dressed in costume, selling tickets. It really adds to the vibe.
As to be expected, there are several lovely churches in Guanajuato, which adds to the visual landscape. The main church, the Guanajuato Basilica, can’t be missed. Literally. I mean, the stunning yellow and red church sits on a hill right in the center of town.
Mummy Museum
One of the most interesting (or maybe just different) things to do is the mummy museum. These aren’t mummies like the Egyptian sort; they aren’t ancient nor were they intentionally mummified. They were actually preserved by accident (due to the mineral content of the local soil, as well as the climate in Guanajuato).
In the late 1800s, the local government began to charge a perpetual burial tax. When taxes weren’t paid, the government exhumed the bodies and stored them in a local, climate-controlled warehouse. When people began to pay to see the mummies, the government opened a formal museum. There are about 60 mummies on display.
Ride the Funicular
Guanajuato is so cute, so you may want to soak it all in from above. In that case, check out the funicular, which takes you to the statue of El Pipila. The view of the town below is stunning!
Mercado Hidalgo
I have to say, this wasn’t the best market that I visited in Mexico. Maybe it was just the time of day that we visited, as it was pretty sleepy. It also had a strange mix of goods, like made-for-tourist t-shirts next to plastic trash bins. However, I personally can never pass up an opportunity to visit a market, so if you feel the same, you might as well stop by; you never know what you’ll find!
* The Music Men *
Our absolute favorite thing about Guanajuato were the estudiantinas, or groups of traveling musicians. We were told to wander in the evening, but we did not expect the music!
There is a tradition here that dates back to the Spanish, where a small band will perform in the streets. They do it because they love it and because they want to bring joy to others. They play songs that are funny, and tell jokes in between, and encourage the crowd to join in. They play as they walk through the narrow alleyways of the old town, and the crowd, that swells as the night goes on, follows them. There isn’t just one band, but many. The already lively town fills with music and excitement. It was truly spectacular; such a fun experience!
Savour Guanajuato
Guanajuato is known for its street food, most of which comes out at night. For our dinner, we did a self-guided (guided by our noses, eyes, and rumbling bellies) street-food tasting-tour. We got tacos fresh off the grill, delicious grilled corn cups with cheese and spices, and churros with chocolate sauce.
The great thing about street food is that the servings are usually small enough that you can try several things!
After dinner we headed to La Clave Azul, a little dive bar that Arie had read about. The bar makes its own tequila, and the bar tender had us taste a few of his favorites. I’m not actually sure what we ended up getting, but it was dark, smooth, and perfectly dry.
Style in Guanajuato
The moment I crossed the border into Mexico, I was on the hunt for some colorful pottery. After doing a little research, I found that, like the Tequila industry, the pottery industry is highly regulated and region specific.
Just our luck, the Guanajuato region is know for producing majolica pottery!
The Gorky Gonzalez Workshop, which is in Guanajuato city, makes beautiful pottery, which is sold all over world!
Side Trip to Dolores Hidalgo
If you’re really on the hunt for colorful tiles, consider spending a day in Dolores Hidalgo. This is what we did (the hunt was serious). Dolores Hidalgo, about an hour up the road, is loaded with pottery workshops and factories, the products of which are largely exported abroad.
If you have a day to spare, Dolores is worth the trip. We boarded a local bus (standing room only) and were in Dolores in no time. Other than pottery, this revolutionary town is also known for its strange ice cream flavors. Some, like shrimp or beer, were a bit too over the top for me. I ended up with a cone full of angel kisses, or beso de angel, which is a fruity/nutty flavor. There are several of these ice cream carts in the town square; you’ll be overwhelmed with choices!
The moral of this post is: if you are in Mexico City, and you have a few days to spare, consider taking a short trip north. Just follow the pied pipers. Who knows, you may love it so much you’ll end up staying!
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