Advice, por favor

[SteveGinGto]

Yeah, Guanajuato to Teotihuacan is not a day trip. It is the equivalent to trying to take a day trip from San Francisco to L.A. or Boston to Washington D.C. You'd be best off finding a hotel for one night in the N or E of Mexico City (or closer to the ruins). There are a LOT of ruins in and around the Mexico City/Puebla area, so if ruins are your thing basing yourself over there for a future trip is not a bad idea.

But may I suggest you look closer to Gto for this August trip? There are a lot of day trips you can take. Here is a list I made for a forum in San Miguel:


1.) Between Guanajuato and Irapuato there is the Presa de la Purisima where they have boat races a few times a year. But on the east side of the presa is the Cerro del Sombrero which has neolithic spirals, which are very uncommon in the world. There are a LOT of them, on top of broad rocks at the top of the cerro. there is a path that goes up there, but I haven't been there yet myself. I will when I arrive in September. It's at the top of my list - but then I get off on really ancient stuff.

2.) SE toward Ac?mbaro, I found a nice medium sized town called Salvatierra a few years back. It's on the main road from Celaya to Ac?mbaro. The drive down that way - and past there, in the Bajio - in the rainy season should show central Mexico at its best. I plan to explore Salvatierra much more myself.

3.) In Ac?mbaro itself there is a Museo Waldemar Julsrud, which has some enigmatic figurines - over 20,000 of them, with a hundred or two on display. But they are interesting, nonetheless. Some say they are genuine and some say they are fakes. I don't know. Ac?mbaro is also renowned for its breads. It also has a pretty cool aqueduct and a bridge on the north side of town that was built in 1529, only 37 years after Columbus landed in the Indies. I THINK the bridge will last another 500 or even 1,000 years, so there is no rush, but it's a pretty well built bridge. This time of year it may actually have water running under it.

4.) East of Ac?mbaro in the puebla of Chup?cuaro is a small museum along the main E-W drag. It focuses on the people of the same name, one of the many indigenous peoples of Mexico that few in the USA have heard of.

5.) Mor?lia is not so far - under 100 miles as the crow flies and the roads are more or less direct, too. It is one of the crown jewels of Colonial Mexico.

6.) 35 miles ENE of Morelia is Los Azufres with several balnearios/spas and a lake. (about 76 miles as the crow flies from SMA)

7.) At the right time of the year there is the Monarch valley east of Morelia.

A bit further afield:

8.) Lake Patzcuaro with the town of Janitzio on an island in the lake. Patzcuaro is a center for Day of the Dead festivities.

9.) Uru?pan, the avocado capital of the western world is west of Lake Patzcuaro. It has a lovely national park right in the downtown area, with one of the nicer waterfalls in Mexico. Uru?pan is also known fo its food and its lacquers.

10.) North of Uru?pan are some of the artesan pueblas, each of which makes one kind of crafted goods - guitars here, equipales there, woven baskets, wroguht iron - all sorts of things.

11.) In that exact area is also the famous Paricut?n volcano - the one that grew out of a farmers's field back in the 1940s. It is still a tourist magnet. Paricut?n is right smack in the middle of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Zone. Volcanoes stretch from Orizaba in the east to west of Guadalajara.

12.) The cascadas of Huasteca Potosina are wiorth the trip, even if you have to stay over in Jalpan or Ciudad Valles (not so much there in the city). Cascada Tamul is an awe inspiring thing to see, though it has to be done by canoe. Other falls are El Meco, Xilitla, Puente de Dios, El Salto, and Minas Viejas. Along with the falls and strange buildings at Edward James' Las Pozos and the Sotano de las Golondrinas, it is more than one can see in a day, but is well worth a 3-day trip. And the Sierra Gordas are on the way there...

That list in no way exhausts the possibilities nearby. Since making it I found a very beautiful town 60 miles east of Morelia, tucked into the NE corner of Michoac?n. Its name is Tlalpujahua.

It is definitely a colonial TOWN, if not a city, and worth a look. If you are into churches, they have one with a stunning interior. And it is also the main glass Christmas ornament producer in North America, if not the world. And it is also pretty close to the monarch valley (but the monarchs will be up north still).

So, enjoy Guanajuato city and explore as far as you want to. There is plenty to see. Some of the towns and cities in Mexico don't have much to recommend them, but there are some you should not miss.

Steve