San Miguel de Allende
2/25/09 – 2/28/09
The centerpiece of San Miguel is the Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel (the pink church) and the neighboring Jardín Principal. These seem to be the hubs of culture and tourism in town. We arrived on Ash Wednesday and made our first venture into town that evening. We were overwhelmed by the nighttime beauty of the Parroquia and pleasant bustle of local families in and around this area, celebrating the beginning of lent. We had a small bite to eat on the third floor of Catzo & Charly’s Bar and grill, which overlooks this central area and provides spectacular views of the evening sky.
Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel
Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel and Templo de San Rafael
Catzo & Charly’s
Roaming around town we were impressed with the artwork that adorns the facades of many buildings and is spilling out of shops and galleries along each narrow street. We were quickly introduced to the bilingual newspaper, “Atencion” and Public Library in town which accommodate the plethora of North Americans making both short and long term residence here. It didn’t take us long to realize the striking dichotomies present in this town. We saw many listings for $1 to $3.5 million homes but saw rooms for rent for $50 a month along with modest apartments for around $250 – unsurprisingly these prices were all listed in US dollars.
Additionally, dining options span the same range. We happened upon a fairly upscale restaurant called Dila’s, touting a Suisse trained, Sri Lankan chef (to illustrate the eclectic options available in San Miguel) at 31 Ancha de San Antonia and stopped in for a glass of wine. We wound up ordering a very reasonably priced bottle along with some spring rolls and coconut milk based chicken soup – all delicious. We were also fortunate to engage the bartender and some others who all happened to be culinary students in town. They provided us with invaluable dining advice throughout San Miguel. From that advice we can recommend three places in this town where two can dine for less than 50 pesos in a town where a couple could easily spend more than 500 for dinner.
Carnitas Hermanos Bautista is located immediately across from the Pemex along Ancha de San Antonio. We had a substantial mixed plate of carnitas with all the trimmings and a coke for 42 pesos. They are open from approximately 11:00 to 4:00 and are closed on Fridays (during Lent anyway). The best gorditas in town come from under the bridge south of the intersection of Cana and Quebrada for 15 pesos each. This woman seems to be open for business during afternoon and evening hours. As far as the best tacos, we were directed to La Brasilla, also along the Ancha San Antonio, on the east side of the street, before the Pemex heading into town. The specialty is pastor tacos. We had a plate of four with a potato and all the accoutrements for 48 pesos. By far these were the best pastor tacos we have eaten to date. Their hours are 2:00 pm to 2:00 am. We strongly recommend each of these options and are grateful to the culinary students for the economical advice! Less economical advice is readily available from the aforementioned Atencion newspaper.
While in town we camped in a field behind the La Siesta motel which provides clean bathrooms and very hot showers, although there was a fairly severe drainage problem during our stay. They have a reliable internet connection at the office and a very cold swimming pool available to campers. The walk to town is about fifteen minutes on cobblestone streets or a short bus ride. We also looked at Webers trailer park which is located a little closer to the center of town on Calle San Antonio (which intersects Ancha San Antonia near the Institute Allende). It is a bit more expensive, only suited for smaller vehicles and seems to house longer staying visitors who described the facilities as very nice.
Murals in the Institute Allende
Templo de San Rafael
We certainly enjoyed San Miguel and would recommend it for a visit to an old beautiful colonial town. However we can’t help mentioning that we were a bit shocked at all the imported wealth and luxury touted throughout town. While it is very nice to have all the U.S. amenities available, it is strange to be in a central square in Mexico and only capture North Americans in the camera lens.
Gringorrific!!!!!
The centerpiece of San Miguel is the Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel (the pink church) and the neighboring Jardín Principal. These seem to be the hubs of culture and tourism in town. We arrived on Ash Wednesday and made our first venture into town that evening. We were overwhelmed by the nighttime beauty of the Parroquia and pleasant bustle of local families in and around this area, celebrating the beginning of lent. We had a small bite to eat on the third floor of Catzo & Charly’s Bar and grill, which overlooks this central area and provides spectacular views of the evening sky.
Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel
Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel and Templo de San Rafael
Catzo & Charly’s
Roaming around town we were impressed with the artwork that adorns the facades of many buildings and is spilling out of shops and galleries along each narrow street. We were quickly introduced to the bilingual newspaper, “Atencion” and Public Library in town which accommodate the plethora of North Americans making both short and long term residence here. It didn’t take us long to realize the striking dichotomies present in this town. We saw many listings for $1 to $3.5 million homes but saw rooms for rent for $50 a month along with modest apartments for around $250 – unsurprisingly these prices were all listed in US dollars.
Additionally, dining options span the same range. We happened upon a fairly upscale restaurant called Dila’s, touting a Suisse trained, Sri Lankan chef (to illustrate the eclectic options available in San Miguel) at 31 Ancha de San Antonia and stopped in for a glass of wine. We wound up ordering a very reasonably priced bottle along with some spring rolls and coconut milk based chicken soup – all delicious. We were also fortunate to engage the bartender and some others who all happened to be culinary students in town. They provided us with invaluable dining advice throughout San Miguel. From that advice we can recommend three places in this town where two can dine for less than 50 pesos in a town where a couple could easily spend more than 500 for dinner.
Carnitas Hermanos Bautista is located immediately across from the Pemex along Ancha de San Antonio. We had a substantial mixed plate of carnitas with all the trimmings and a coke for 42 pesos. They are open from approximately 11:00 to 4:00 and are closed on Fridays (during Lent anyway). The best gorditas in town come from under the bridge south of the intersection of Cana and Quebrada for 15 pesos each. This woman seems to be open for business during afternoon and evening hours. As far as the best tacos, we were directed to La Brasilla, also along the Ancha San Antonio, on the east side of the street, before the Pemex heading into town. The specialty is pastor tacos. We had a plate of four with a potato and all the accoutrements for 48 pesos. By far these were the best pastor tacos we have eaten to date. Their hours are 2:00 pm to 2:00 am. We strongly recommend each of these options and are grateful to the culinary students for the economical advice! Less economical advice is readily available from the aforementioned Atencion newspaper.
While in town we camped in a field behind the La Siesta motel which provides clean bathrooms and very hot showers, although there was a fairly severe drainage problem during our stay. They have a reliable internet connection at the office and a very cold swimming pool available to campers. The walk to town is about fifteen minutes on cobblestone streets or a short bus ride. We also looked at Webers trailer park which is located a little closer to the center of town on Calle San Antonio (which intersects Ancha San Antonia near the Institute Allende). It is a bit more expensive, only suited for smaller vehicles and seems to house longer staying visitors who described the facilities as very nice.
Murals in the Institute Allende
Templo de San Rafael
We certainly enjoyed San Miguel and would recommend it for a visit to an old beautiful colonial town. However we can’t help mentioning that we were a bit shocked at all the imported wealth and luxury touted throughout town. While it is very nice to have all the U.S. amenities available, it is strange to be in a central square in Mexico and only capture North Americans in the camera lens.
Gringorrific!!!!!
Hi Jess & Rebekah,
Enjoying your CC entries - both text & photos
Good job!
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Hello:
I will be traveling alone in an RV to SAn Miguel. Do you know anything about the RV parks? Please share with me anything you can about any park that is near the center/Jardine.
Many Thanks,
Roz
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Hi Roz,
The camping areas that we reviewed above are both RV parks with full hookups. If you have a larger vehicle, I would recommend La Siesta. It is within a short distance (15 min. walk, 5 min bus ride) to the center, yet also close to supermarkets and other restaurants. If you have a smaller vehicle (no more than 26 feet), you could probably fit at Weber's, which is a cozy atmosphere closer to town. Weber's is often full, but La Siesta often gets caravans. We enjoyed a three day stay at La Siesta.
Weber's website is here: http://www.sanmigueltennis.com/san_miguel_campground.html
There is also a campground further from town called Lago Dorado, but we did not check it out as we also wanted to be closer to town.
If you are planning on doing any other RV travel in Mexico, Mike and Terri Church's book, Traveler's Guide to Mexican Camping is invaluable. The new edition should be out soon and will be worth waiting for. Their website is: http://www.rollinghomes.com
Have a great trip!
Rebekah
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