San Miguel y Tío Juan

We took off from Guanajuato on Friday afternoon and headed for San Miguel de Allende, a trip of about an hour and a half. This is the town that my Uncle John and Aunt Elanna, may her memory continue to be for a blessing, lived in for many years. My uncle still lives there, and he and his caregiver Holly came to pick us up from the bus stop. It was really a nice change to get picked up by family rather than catching a cab. From the station they drove us to our hostel to check in. We were in a dorm room this time but as it turned out we had it all to ourselves for the two nights we were there anyway. From there we drove out to see my uncle's house, which my dad designed, and I have always wanted to see. It is located a little outside of town and has incredible view of the lake and valley around San Miguel, I must say the architect really used the land in beautiful ways, and the large windows took advantage of the natural beauty of the area. The house was really cool although right now it is a bit dusty from not being lived in, when someone wants to come see it the real estate agent gives them notice and they come give it a little cleaning for potential buyers (its for sale--Interested? Let me know!). It was so cool to see the house in person and I could tell that will with a little attention I think it will be as gorgeous as when my Aunt and Uncle were living there and giving it more love and attention. Every room in the house has a giant window that faces the beautiful view of the valley and lake. After watching the sun set from the balcony. Holly and my uncle took us out for dinner at a very delicious restaurant with a very American menu, called Hecho en México. My uncle seemed really good and that was good to see. The staff that takes care of him seemed responsible, friendly and well trained. Holly cooks him healthy food and the one of the two live in care givers is studying to be a nurse. It was a little sad to see him have trouble with his memory but he seems to remember well and with fondness many of his experiences rocking with New Riders of the Purple Sage and he mentioned talking to my grandma and told us about what she said on the phone that day so I think that he is still doing well. It was fun for Michael to get to meet him too since he was one of the last relatives left for Michael to meet, since he wasn't able to come up for the wedding.

One can easily see why San Miguel is so well loved by the 25,000 expat Americans who now call it home. It is a really charming city with a very pretty colonial center and thanks to the influence of the wealthy tourists and foregin residents, it seems to have quite a bit of money. You can also find most any American type treat you might want. Including... THAI FOOD! (I guess that is not technically an American treat, but you know). We were very skeptical when we walked into a little restaurant that labled itself Thai Mexican Food. Holly had told us there wasn't any good Thai food so we had very low expectations but thought, what the hell. We were so pleasantly surprised! The food was really good. Including the chicken being all white meat, the curry being really well spiced, and the Pad Thai just as authentic tasting as most of the places I have tried in the states.

We also were lucky enough to be there for The Day of the Dead, which is currently on my top 5 favorite holidays list. I am going to let Michael tell you more about it, but really if you ever have the chance to come to Mexico over Nove 1-2 I recommend it. Although you have to venture further south than the border because as you go north the tradition gets mixed into a strange Halloween/Day of the Dead hybrid. We are told Oaxaca is a great place to be for the celebration.