Día Uno

I had a lot of late-ish work to get through on my first morning in San Miguel de Allende, but I also needed to check out my surroundings, get lunch, and get my bearings. I didn't even know which way the center of town was. I'd been in a daze at 1:30 last night when the shuttle from Queretaro Airport has wound into town, slowing down for the many speed bumps.

I unpacked quickly, so if the housekeeper stopped by, she wouldn't find a wreck on the floor of my new apartment. I took a look at the map and googled some lunch spots. I planned to aim for the closest. There. Cafe Buen Dia. That looked just fine.

I headed down the cobblestone street between two rows of colorful colonial buildings. Burnt siennas, amarillos, burnt oranges, and reddish-brown squares with ornate iron bars and large carved doors. Lovely. 

Right at the end of the block was the main tourist crafts market. That was nice, but next to it was also the fruit and vegetable market—great!—and some lunch stalls. I kept walking for now, headed via the crafts stalls to the next street, then the next.

My lunch was buen as promised, and then I didn't want to go home yet. I wanted to investigate. So I walked more, until I got to the main square, the zocalo, here called the jardin. On the far side was a huge brick-red church. Wow, what a facade. I veered over to Tourist Information.

"Hola, habla Ingles?" 

Of course he spoke English. He was in Tourist Information. "Yes."

I needed some basic stuff, and I was too spaced-out to sightsee, so I asked him how to get to the big supermarket. He told me to catch the bus on Mesones for five pesos. I did, zooming up the hill to a supermarket, where I got yogurt and milk and granola and a few other things. I'd have to find coffee in town in a few days. I'd brought enough with me to get started, and didn't want to get the local equivalent of Maxwell House.

I caught the return bus across the street, and we hit traffic on the outskirts of the centro. Was this a funeral? There was a coffin in the procession. But there were also dancers and musicians. Baffled, I followed the lead of the locals and got out and walked the rest of the way.