Peña de Bernal

The Peña de Bernal is one of the world largest monoliths, third largest in size following the Rock of Gibraltar in Spain and the Sugarloaf in Brazil.

There are a variety of theories regarding its origin.  Most likely it is what remains of an old volcano, where the magma cooled inside and the exterior has eventually eroded away, leaving a single large igneous rock behind.  Other theories include that it is of extraterrestrial origins; it certainly looks out of place in the landscape. 

The Peña de Bernal is said to be a location of energy, and many people make a pilgrimage to the site on the equinox.  They climb to the top dressed in all white, to recharge with its energy. 

After the required check in, we walked part of the way up the massive rock.  As it was mid-afternoon, we did not venture to the summit, so as not to have to walk back down in the dark.  Though we did enjoy the view from above down into the little town of San Sebastián de Bernal.

Say Cheese!

A little over an hour from San Miguel de Allende, is the town of Tequisquiapan.  Known as Tequis for short, it is part of the wine and cheese route of central Mexico.  We decided to make a stop at Quesos Vai, a local cheese producer in Tequis.

Quesos Vai makes all sorts of cheese from cow and sheep's milk.  Our tour began by looking at the various animal and understanding how many liters of milk each produce.  The kids got to feed the animals and even hold a baby lamb.

Once we had our fill of the furry ones, we put on our hair nets (no exceptions!) and went inside to see how the milk is pasteurized and the process of cheese making is done. 

Our guide showed us how artisan cheese is made using manual stirring during the pasteurization, how rennet is added so that the milk will curdle. 

Then she showed us how you fish out the cheese curds from the whey, cut them, and add salt. Next, she showed us how they are placed into molds and then are pressed firm. 

Finally she took us down into the cellar where the cheese is ripened.  She explained how the ripening process is a function of temperature, humidity, and time.  These all influence the type of cheese that you get and its characteristics in terms of texture and taste. 

We had the opportunity to taste a variety of cheese produced at Quesos Vai.


To top off our visit, the kids got to season and mold their own cheese by hand. 

And then we returned to the open area to enjoy the animals before heading out again.

After our fill of cheese, we headed to the downtown of Tequisquiapan to view the open air markets in the central square and also the local church in the main square.  This particular church was popular with the girls, since it was painted pink.

Talavera Making in Dolores Hidalgo

Talavera is the traditional pottery style, typical in Mexico.  Talavera originated in the city of Puebla in the 1500s, and the tradition has been continued in other towns in the center of the country. 

We stopped in the town of Dolores Hidalgo, known for its high quality and fair priced Talavera-style products, to see how the pottery is made today.

We saw how everything from tiles and flower pots to stoneware are made.  While originally, the pieces were all thrown by hand, today consistency is achieved by using molds. 

We saw pieces in all stages of the process.  Some that had been recently poured into their molds and were drying.  Some that had been taken from their molds and were being prepared for their first firing in the large kilns.  Yet others had made it through the first firing and had their white coat of slip.  We also saw many pieces which had been painted with glaze and were awaiting their final firing. 

Finally, we got to see a lot of final product pieces in the factory store.

Silver Mining in Guanajuato

During the colonial times, Guanajuato was the number one silver mining town in Mexico.  The Spaniards required local natives to work the mines, which then shipped the silver treasures back to the mother country.  It was hard work, and the average laborer worked in the mines for six to eight years, before he was no longer physically able to do the work.  Women typically worked sorting the ore on the surface, separating the rock from the metals, so that it could be processed into the finished products. 

We had the opportunity to enter an old silver mine, "El Nopal" that was used in the 1800s, and which has been taken over by the local University as a laboratory for its mining engineering students.  (The mine will soon be closed to the public, so we were fortunate to be able to tour it.)  We walked down the mining entrance and were shown the different types of tools that were used to loosen the rock.  We saw tunnels that led back to the main Hacienda, where the rocks were sorted and the ore extracted.  We could still see some of the veins of the different metals, which continue in the rock.

In one location, we saw the carving of a little face in the rock; these were used by the miners to identify their location by touch, when light was not available.  It was quite impactful to imagine the lifestyle and the hard work that went into the extraction of silver, so important to the relationship between colonial Mexico and her mother country.

A Day in Guanajuato

A few days after arriving in San Miguel de Allende, we headed over to the city of Guanajuato, which is the capital of the state by the same name. 

Our first impressions of Guanajuato were of its extensive tunnel systems, where main city arteries travel below the town.  Some tunnels had two-way traffic, while others were one-way.  Some tunnels allowed residents living above, to park along the side of the road.  There were long subway-style stairways linking some the tunnel sidewalks to the fresh air above.

Guanajuato is home to the Teatro Juarez, which is an intimate theater, considered the second best in all of Mexico.  It is absolutely lovely inside, decorated in a Moorish style.  When the theater was opened, it catered exclusively to the local elite, evidenced by the attendance of Mexico's president, Porfirio Diaz, at its opening.

Guanajuato is also a university town, and grows significantly in population during the time the students are in town.  We learned that students live in exclusively local apartments and/or with family, and not do not have US-style dormitories available.  We took a group picture on the same steps, where university graduates take their graduation class picture.

During one particularly prolific rain shower, we ducked into the Diego Rivera museum.  Guanajuato was the birthplace of the famous painter Diego Rivera.  His home has been turned into a museum, where you can see how the family lived when he was young, and also where you can see many of Diego's sketches, drawings, and paintings as he developed his artistic skill and found his own style.

While in Guanajuato, we also visited some of the old churches, enjoyed the many plazas, and even saw the "Callejon del Beso", a narrow alleyway, where the houses are so close that lovers could clandestinely kiss from balcony to balcony.  This is the setting of a Mexican instance of a real life Romeo and Juliet story from years back.  And it is said that if a couple kisses in this spot today, they will have many years of good luck.

Toy Museum

During one of the downpours of rain, we ducked into the Museo del Juguete Popular Mexicano, or the local Toy Museum in San Miguel de Allende.

Walking through the toys evoked all sorts of emotions - desires to reach into the display cases and play for the younger viewers, memories and nostalgia for the older viewers, as well as simply wonder at the ingenuity of the creators of the toys, and the love put into each one.

The materials used were just as fascinating.  We ran into everything including straw, paper maché, wood, clay, cardboard, recycled aluminum cans, gourds, mango pits, coconut shells and husks, etc.  Depending on what materials were most common for any given region or population, the toys were crafted and painstakingly adorned and made beautiful. 


The doll houses, their furniture, and cooking utensils were particularly interesting to the kids, as they reflected a very different architecture and lifestyle from what the kids are accustomed to, and at the same time, the kids saw miniature versions of many of the items they'd seen here in the markets during previous visits. 

By the time we made it through the museum and gift store, the kids found a few mini items to with which to remember Mexico by, and which they could add to their own doll house and toy box back home.

Back to Mexico - Welcome to San Miguel

Right after Christmas, we headed back to Mexico. 

This time, we flew into Mexico City and from there, we took a van ride to San Miguel de Allende, about a four hour ride to the north of the airport. 

It was interesting to drive through the outskirts of the megacity, and then through the countryside, past various villages, all the way to the town of San Miguel. 

It was evening by the time we found our house, a beautiful older home with lots of windows and traditional charm.  The only thing it lacked was some form of heat, to take the chill out of the unseasonably cold evenings. 

For our first two days, we encountered a lot of rain, again not typical for this time of year.  Apparently it was the first December in 35 years that it had rained in San Miguel. 


During the breaks of the rain, we braved the cobblestone streets that had been turned into little rivers, and walked into town. 

All was great, until the rain started up again and everyone's shoes were soaked by the time we got home.  We found a little electric heater and lined up the essential items (especially the shoes) to slowly dry out in the 40 degree house.

 Despite the cold rain, the downtown of San Miguel was beautiful! 

The plazas were welcoming, and all of the churches were open.  It seemed there was one wedding or Quinceaños (15th birthday coming out for girls) celebration mass after another.  Each church still had up all of its Christmas decorations, so there was quite a lot to see in each one.