Off we go, onto the cuota highway…

We departed Mazatlán about 7 am Saturday after picking up our beautiful niece Mara. The car was pretty full, with a cooler full of food and drinks, 4 people and all our baggage.

Daniel had the brilliant brainstorm as we were entering Guadalajara about 1 pm that we should have Indian food for lunch. So Little India it was! It seems our friend the chef is gone, and the current owner, Deepak, was his partner and is now the sole owner. It was Mara’s first time ever to eat Indian food and I think she loved it, especially the lamb tikka masala. Deepak’s wife, a Tapatía, has a little shop around the corner from the restaurant, where she sells spices, some clothing, jewelry and incense.

The drive was long, approximately a nine hour ride to Guanajuato. The kids listened to music, played some games, and Danny read a book for a while. Fortunately things were very uneventful.

About 6 pm we were soooo happy to finally arrive in Guanajuato! Not the main purpose of our trip, but a place I’ve been wanting Greg and Danny to see, and I’ve been wanting to visit again, for a long time. We plan to spend two nights here.

We found a charming hotel that has three beds and a terrace, with this view. Not bad, I’d say.

After unpacking and resting a bit, we took a walk. The architecture here, as I remembered from my first visit, is incredible. I had not remembered the candy or snack shops, however!

We walked past the central market (Mercado Hidalgo) and the Plaza Mayor (Jardín) with its gorgeous church.

In the main garden/plaza is the Teatro Juarez, which in any light is absolutely gorgeous, but lit up at night it was truly incredible.

The students dressed in the cervantino garb, ready to take people on a musical “callejoneada” stroll, were gathered in front of the theater.

The kids were hungry, so we stepped into a restaurant a cenar. They make beautiful “sangrias españolas” here, layering the soda or juice with the wine much like a cappuccino.

After dinner we took a long walk through several of Guanajuato’s 18 tunnels, and miraculously came up for air nearly in front of our hotel, exhausted.