Dolores and Guanajuato: Hotspots on Ruta 2010
Story and photos by Rich Grant
By a stroke of good fortune for the Mexico Tourism Office, both of the country's revolutions began a hundred years apart – in 1810 and 1910. So there's going to be a string of big double-duty historic celebrations this year in spots across the country, in some cases introducing foreigners (and in particular the foreign press) to places they've never heard of. Like Dolores Hidalgo and Guanajuato.
“Ruta 2010” routes that follow the various military campaigns have been laid out, one linking these two key towns in Mexico’s 1810 uprising for independence from Spain. Located in the highlands of central Mexico, they are, luckily for tourists drawn there for the celebrations this year, among the most beautiful and charming destinations in the whole country.
Dolores Hidalgo: Town of pain..and ice cream
Dolores, which means “pain,” is the most historic of the two towns. It was here on September 16, 1810 (a date celebrated in Mexico as a national holiday) that a rather bizarre priest named Father Miguel Hidalgo rang the bell of his church and issued the “El Grito de Dolores” – the call to revolution.
Hidalgo gambled, danced and fathered seven children, but this unorthodox padre is a Mexican national hero and his fiery, bald-headed image shouting out for independence can be seen throughout the country in countless murals, statues and even at the entrance of a large disco down the road in San Miguel.
Hidalgo and compatriot Ignacio Allende threw together an army of 80,000
machete-armed rebels, who captured Guanajuato, San Miguel and
Guadalajara before meeting disaster against well disciplined royalist troops.
Hidalgo and Allende were captured, executed and beheaded. Their heads hung in iron cages in nearby Guanajuato for 10 years, until independence was finally won in 1821.
Today, Dolores is much more peaceful. You can visit Hidalgo’s home, see the bell he rang for freedom (the Liberty Bell of Mexico) and visit a museum on the revolution, but most people stop here for ice cream in the pleasant town square. In one of those quirks of Mexico that you just accept, Dolores has become a national center for homemade ice cream. You can get dozens of flavors that include favorites such as beer, tequila, avocado, cheese and even fried pork skin.
If flavors such as corn ice cream don’t appeal, they also have every tropical fruit flavor imaginable, all served at the corners of the square from distinctive stands.
Silvery Guanajuato
Forty minutes from Dolores is one of the great colonial gems of Mexico – the incredible silver mining town of Guanajuato (wanna-what-toe). As much as a quarter of the world’s silver has come from this town. Founded in the 1550s, there are still eight active mines in the area.
The wealth of the hills was poured into fanciful (and colorful) Baroque and neoclassical buildings, churches, mansions, parks and homes, all painted wild colors from turquoise to brilliant burnt orange. But it is Guanajuato's location that is truly different.
Built in a steep valley, the town spills up the sides of the mountains in twisting cobblestone streets, stairways and alleys that have a real European feel. The main roads of the town go through five miles of tunnels that branch off, interconnect and meet up again – all underground. The unique layout, preserved architecture and wonderful pedestrian-friendly center have won Guanajuato a designation as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Jardin de la Union is the center of the city – a wonderful triangular park of cast iron benches and trimmed trees, lined on all sides with umbrella-filled outdoor cafes. It has the feeling of Italy or Spain. Nearby is the university, the elegant Teatro Juarez and the Basilica of Guanajuato, but it is the plazuelas (the pocket parks) that you will remember. Built wherever there is a flat spot, these little green spaces offer an oasis from the labyrinth of narrow, twisting streets – one of which is so tight it is called the kissing alley, because legend has it that two lovers kissed across the alley from balconies on either side.
In the evening, groups of “estudiantinas” (musicians dressed as 19th century troubadours) stroll the alleys, serenading tourists. It’s a little corny, but great fun, though it must drive the local residents crazy to be serenaded every night.
The town has an inexplicable love affair with Don Quixote (there are statues everywhere and a museum) and in October hosts a yearly, three-week
Cervantes Festival that celebrates all the arts with music and dance in the streets.
It’s no surprise that “Zorro” and “Once Upon a Time in Mexico” were filmed here. This is romantic Mexico, so wildly beautiful and colorful that it’s difficult to believe Guanajuato is an actual working town of 140,000 people and not some movie set.
Ride the funicular rail car to the hilltop for a stunning view at twilight, have a drink at a café around a square, poke in the galleries and shops, and get lost in the backstreet alleys. This is one great town.
More info: For details of the 2010 celebrations click bicentenario.gob.mx/ and gomexico.about.com/od/historyculture/p/mexico_bicentenial.htm. Also visit the Mexico Tourism Board at www.visitmexico.com.
