It was another morning of setting the alarm at 4 am. Also keep in mind that this is also on the east coast, so back in LA, it's 1 am. Somehow, with all these weird time changes and early call times, my body adapts and functions. I have yet to succumb to requiring coffee. They all say it's only a matter of time. I honestly think my body doesn't respond to caffeine anyway. After a three hour flight from Cleveland back to Houston, we went to our new gate and headed off to Guanajuato, Mexico: a new destination. While in Cleveland, I did a little bit of research about the town and thought it was worth investigating. After landing at the small airport, we rode in the shuttle for about 20 minutes to our hotel. This was still a ways from the town center, so I ended up taking a taxi to the zona centro. Somewhere 1500 miles away, I think I heard my mother screech at the thought of me hiring a taxi in Mexico. It was safe. Calm yourself. One interesting aspect of the drive to the zona centro is the tunnels that go beneath the city. They were not technically designed for cars, but for diverting river water back in the day, but it's a maze of underground intersections and junctions now. It's actually pretty interesting in its own right.
After getting dropped off, I explored the town's many squares and plazas. This is a picture of the Parroquia de Basilica Colegiata de Nuestra Señora de Guanajuato. That was a mouthful. I didn't go inside because I felt awkward about it, but it looked very photogenic from the outside in its bright colors. I continued my stroll through the Jardin de la Union, which was surrounded by numerous cafes and a few shops. I stopped here briefly and sat on a bench where I successfully hacked someone's wifi for about 30 mins before I got kicked off.
This is the Jardin as viewed from above at the Monumento al Pipila, which I walked up hundreds of steps to reach. Apparently there was at some time a funicular that would take you to the top of the hill, but it has been broken for months. Tripadvisor suggested getting a taxi to the top, but I discovered that you can walk up the hill by going through numerous alleys with lots and lots of steps. And let's not forget that the city is already around 6,000 feet above sea level, so my heart was pounding pretty hard.
Eventually I reached the top, but it was not without some effort. My 12-year-old self would have had the foresight to count the steps when I started. Then I could rattle off some number that would impress the masses, but all I could *pant* think about was *wheeze* . . . *coughing fit*. . . actually I can't remember. The view from the top was the best part of my mini day trip into town. It really gave perspective on the layout of the town and you really see how it was built into the hills. And the crazy thing is that I walked up to this overlook twice. It was overcast and hazy when I initially arrived, but after grabbing a late lunch in one of the plazas, the sun came out and broke through and I felt obligated to retake the pictures I already had because the lighting brought out the colors of the buildings a lot better. After spending the week complaining about missing the opportunities to run with any regularity, I have perhaps made up for it by climbing those steps at altitude . . . twice.
Was it worth it? Yes. So as I mentioned, I had a late lunch. I found the cafe by accident. I was on my way to a market, but looked to my right and saw an alley going somewhere that looked interesting, so I forked off. It was a little less touristy than other parts of the town. I just picked a cafe at random without yelping or otherwise. I ordered the carne a la tampiqueña because at least I knew what that was. This version was not only better, but cheaper than the hotel restaurant version I had in Monterrey just days ago.
It was a hearty late lunch and my perpetually hungry stomach decided it didn't really need a dinner. I've been getting good use of my elementary spanish on this trip. I can tell you firsthand that the Duolingo language app does actually help. When I went to Peru and Chile almost eight years ago, I knew "Por Favor,""Gracias," and "Buenos Dias" and that was about the extent of it. Today I was giving directions to a cab driver, discussing money amounts, ordering food, and understanding the responses too. The only snag I ran into was when the waitress asked how I wanted my steak and I really wasn't sure how to convey "medium-well." I did, however, understand when she brought it out that if my steak wasn't how I wanted it, she could take it back and make another one. I was pretty proud of myself for understanding any of that. After a busy day, I noticed a cab was dropping some folks off so I asked if he was "libro" and I successfully got back to the Holiday Inn Express. Hear that Mom? You can relax now.
This is the Jardin as viewed from above at the Monumento al Pipila, which I walked up hundreds of steps to reach. Apparently there was at some time a funicular that would take you to the top of the hill, but it has been broken for months. Tripadvisor suggested getting a taxi to the top, but I discovered that you can walk up the hill by going through numerous alleys with lots and lots of steps. And let's not forget that the city is already around 6,000 feet above sea level, so my heart was pounding pretty hard.
