mexico travel, travel in mexico, visiting mexico, retiring in mexico, magazine about mexico
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Posada de las Minas
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San Miguel de Allende and Pozos San Miguel de Allende is unquestionably the cultural capital of Mexico's retirement destinations. It was declared a 'Mexican National Monument in 1926. This meant that while other towns pulled down heritage buildings and replaced them with glass and steel boxes San Miguel was off-limits to that form of modernization. Without this single gesture, San Miguel may have become just another slightly decaying rural market town - a backwater that time and the major highways left behind - instead of the architecturally pristine city gringos have come to love. And what a National Monument it is! Its proximity to the nearby silver cities meant that by the eighteenth century it was an important way station en route to Mexico City and an agriculture centre supplying the needs of the burgeoning city of Guanajuato. Spaniards, wealthy from extracting silver, built magnificent palaces here and then enhanced their already enormous fortunes farming the surrounding countryside through huge estates with equally magnificent haciendas as their centrepiece. Further enhancing the architectural splendour are ornate churches and oratorios that owe their existence to the patronage of these wealthy patrons - and the sweat and slave-like servitude of indigenous Indians. Despite the fact that many of the palaces and haciendas were gutted and plundered during the Mexican Revolution in the second decade of the last century, the basic structures were still extant in 1926. It was this slightly scarred and somewhat neglected eighteenth century architectural masterpiece that so enamoured the few foreigners who ventured through here in the late 1920's and early 1930's. Set in pastoral rolling hills, watered by natural springs, enjoying a spring-like climate all year and suffused with a light beloved by artists, how could they resist the town. One such person was American, Sterling Dickinson who, recognized the possibilities, and founded the internationally renowned Instituto Allende in 1938 as a place of study for fellow expatriates. This was the second pivotal action that ensured San Miguel de Allende's future for, with the end of World War II came the United States GI Bill that supplied education grants to returning servicemen. These GIs soon discovered their limited funds went further in San Miguel and the Institute thrived. A vibrant artistic and cultural society grew up around a still small but permanent expatriate community that serviced their needs. Many of these visiting students never left, instead they became the kernel of a growing artistic community that, generations later, continues to be supplemented by new infusions of artistic talent that has also fallen in love with San Miguel's special "light". At the same time, many of the wealthy tourists originally attracted by the town's reputation, returned to reside here on a permanent or semi-permanent basis. Attracted by this charming and safe city with a perfect climate they, in turn, became the basis of the well-heeled 'retirement' community that San Miguel is today. At the same time other less wealthy (or merely more ambitious) visitors saw the opportunities afforded by this influx and opened even more businesses to serve this expanding tourist and residential market. These North Americans had the desire and the funds to restore the many badly neglected buildings - in accordance with the strict 1926 guidelines - so that today, the town is effectively an eighteenth century wonder with electricity and running water! Well, not quite. The ubiquitous internal combustion engine knows no limits and San Miguel is no exception. Her narrow, winding and often very steep cobblestone streets can soon get jammed with noisy diesel spewing trucks and buses as well as the latest gas guzzling SUVs. Ironically it is the SUV that is the most appropriate vehicle to ply the uneven 200 year old cobblestone streets. Certainly, its 4 wheel drive capability comes in handy when the summer rains hit and the more steeply sloped streets become slick and traction becomes your number one priority. The answer is to learn to walk everywhere downtown and so avoid the necessity of having to find the rarest thing in central San Miguel - a parking spot. The relationship between the expatriate and Mexican communities is remarkably cordial. One even gets the impression there is only one community. This is born of the fact that the two live side-by-side and both benefit from the other despite the fact that (with the notable exception of a growing number of middle and upper class Mexicans - many from Mexico City) most expatriates are wealthier than their neighbours. Poverty and crime do exist in the peripheral Mexican areas of town but a strong tradition of volunteer work within the expatriate community has ameliorated many of the resentments such an "invading army" of privileged foreigners could have engendered. Certainly, San Miguel attracts relatively wealthy people but, generally, they don't flaunt it. That is not what San Miguel is about. Wealth is generally hidden behind the high walls that enclose most downtown residences - for this is a town that values and encourages cultural and social endeavours above overt displays of wealth. Many expatriates operate businesses here and the jobs they have created have, in turn, generated a higher standard of living and quality of life for all San Miguel residents. I was fortunate to meet a number of them - mainly in the real estate and hospitality fields - and was struck by the fact that many of them put as much time and energy into their social and charitable concerns as they did into their commercial pursuits. This too is a San Miguel tradition. Before the housing boom that began in 2004, most real estate companies here were long established concerns and so knew the San Miguel housing market inside out and imparted to potential purchasers that they were not just buying a home but buying into a community. With the rapid expansion of new developments and gated communities in and around the town this community aspect is being diluted. New arrivals are being tempted with designer golf courses and on-site spas - formerly alien concepts to most San Miguel residents. The type of expatriate being attracted to the town is therefore changing and with it so, perhaps, will the town change. But whether they are house-hunting or just passing through, visitors need somewhere to stay. On the face of it that should not be a problem in San Miguel where the number of hotels, inns and B&Bs must exceed that of any town of comparable size in Mexico. Most, however, are small - with as few as 3 rooms - so don't be too confident you'll find a room without booking ahead! Old favourites in the deluxe class, such as the La Jacaranda, Casa de Sierra Nevada and la Puertecita must now compete with the intimate luxury of much smaller hostelries that dot the town, while less expensive old time landmark hotels such as the Mansion del Bosque remain perennial favourites. Some San Miguelites have 'discovered' a new San Miguel at Mineral de Pozos just 45 minutes away. Popularly called Pozos, this formersilver mining town is also federally protected and many of its old mansions are now being lovingly restored. In the main square are two hotels adjoining one another - Casas Montana and Mexicana, and most recently the Posada de las Minas opened it's doors just up the street. All are American owned and are just a sampling of an already settled gringo vanguard of businesses here. Many more will come, some attracted by the clear skies, peace and solitude and others by the more affordable prices.
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