The All About San Miguel Mexico Newsletter Archives
Issue #3, Volume I
October 2, 2003

Brought to you by:
www.internetsanmiguel.com and www.thesanmiguelchronicles.com 

The End of the Fiestas Patrias

San Miguel de Allende, famous (infamous?) for its fiestas is wrapping up the Fiestas Patrias with a bang. On Friday, October 3rd, the traditional carved figure of St. Michael Archangel will arrive in the Parroquia wearing his new attire donated by Mrs. Armida Acu�a at 11 a.m.

That same evening there will be more entertainment in the Plaza C�vica and finally groups of citizens planning to celebrate the Alborada, will begin their journey through the streets of San Miguel accompanied by the Banda de Don Anselmo Aguascalientes to collect the symbolic gunpowder in honor of our patron saint. This follows a tradition begun by the workers of the Aurora Factory in 1924. The gunpowder was used to fire the miniature cannon they had made and is still on view at the factory. However it is no longer used in these events. This is an all night event ending with fireworks in the Parroquia. Usually there are street vendors serving food and drinks throughout the night and it all ends with the singing of �Las Ma�anitas� around 6 a.m.

On Saturday, October 4th, a mass will be held in the Parroquia, horsemen will arrive in the Jard�n and the famous Voladores de Papantla will fly over the Jard�n followed by the burning of the Monos (large papier mach� figures). Native Indian dancers will be performing and finally the arrival of the x�chiles (large offerings made from corn husks and dried plants) usually around 5 p.m. to be placed around the Parroquia. These arrive after an all night trek from Atotonilco and will be accompanied by much dancing, music and mojigangas (large papier mach� figures).

At 7 p.m. in the Plaza C�vica there is a show for kids followed by music and folk dancing in the Jard�n plus more fireworks.

On Sunday, October 5th, from 9 a.m. through 11 p.m. there will be more fireworks, dancing by Indian natives, flying by the Voladores de Papantla, parades and even more fireworks. It�s a busy day in San Miguel. This brings to an end the September Fiestas Patrias in San Miguel de Allende.

But don't worry, there's plenty more fiestas yet to come!

The Tuesday Market

By Lee Asheroff

I always tell my visitors � if you can arrange your time, try to be here on a Tuesday so you can experience the Tuesday Market.

"This is better than a mall,� a friend exclaimed, as we arrived on a bright, sunny Tuesday and she caught sight of the colorful tarps covering an area bigger than two football fields. This after we had negotiated the pitted dirt field that passed for a parking lot and arrived at the first lane of stalls where every imaginable item was displayed.

A stand with mounds of candies and nuts immediately caught her eye � nothing would do but she must buy little bags of various brightly colored goodies. I warned her that her bag would get heavy before we returned to the car and she should wait to buy fruit until we returned from our explorations. There was so much to see. Or course, the only problem with this advice was the odds of our finding a particular stand when we wanted to. But we pressed on.

There was clothing of every kind; jeans, children�s jackets, blouses, shoes, boots, sandals, bras and panties, socks. Then stands with watches stopped us. A fake Rolex caught my friend�s eye. "How much?� she asked. $12 pesos with the band adjusted to size. I remembered when my niece from London had looked at these watches and decided not to buy one, explaining that people were mugged for Rolex�s in London and she did not want to be mugged for a fake Rolex. But on her next visit she bought two watches and tells me she is still wearing them, three years later.

We continued, sporting our new watches and came to the tables full of used and new clothing � brand names like Liz Claiborne and Ralph Lauren were there for the intrepid shopper who could sort through mountains of tumbled clothing to find a prize. Mexican women vied for space with excited Americans looking for "the bargain of the year.� Used clothing was mixed in with the new � and finding a particular size was a chore.

I needed some beans so we looked for the area where tarps on the ground displayed beautiful mountains of different types of beans. I am now a seasoned shopper so I looked for the vendor with a crowd of women buying beans and asked one woman which were the best beans that day. There followed a discussion among the women and they finally decided that Cinco de Mayo was my best bet. I thanked them � we smiled and nodded and I made my purchase.

Under one stand we saw a baby in a cardboard box, contentedly sucking on a bottle � other children played under the stands � content with pieces of cardboard and a small doll. This was my favorite part of the Tuesday market � people watching � and especially children watching.

After an hour we tried to return the way we had come to find the lady with the beautiful big strawberries.- we never did find her � but were lucky enough to find another stand selling strawberries. We bought a big white cauliflower, some bananas, mangos, broccoli and some wonderful white onions and finally laden with our purchases, happily tired, we headed back to the car.

I had succeeded in keeping my guest from eating anything in the market by promising to take her to a great restaurant and we headed back home to store our purchases. My friend said she would never be satisfied with a New York supermarket again and promised on her return visit to be sure to be in San Miguel on a Tuesday.

Advice: Wear comfortable closed shoes, carry a bottle of water and a big shopping bag and, as in any market, keep your money in a safe place. Then go to the Tuesday market and enjoy yourself.

Margaret Galloway at 88

At 88 years young, Margaret Galloway is a petite, dynamic lady who has no plans for retirement. She arrived in San Miguel 26 years ago from Canada, where she had been teaching at the Toronto University Music Department after graduating from the Royal College of Music in London.

The plight of the elderly in San Miguel who sat shivering in doorways led her first to start a program of Knitting for the Needy. The group produced sweaters, socks and shawls for the elderly and for children, eventually teaching some villagers to knit who became very proficient at their work, which developed into an important source of income for them.

But Galloway�s vision was far greater�she dreamed of a home for the elderly and in 1990 the municipality donated the land-- 12,000 mts2 in La Lejona, where Galloway, with the generosity of many, built ALMA a beautiful residence that now houses 34 needy elderly residents.

Maintaining ALMA and caring for its residents is no easy task. There are no government funds available and the day to day running of the facility depends entirely on private donations. In the future Galloway envisions the construction of private casitas on the property for more affluent retirees who would benefit from assisted care and yet live independently.

For more information on ALMA you can email Galloway at: magnom@unisono.net.mx. Tax-deductible donations can be made through the San Miguel Educational Foundation (www.smefmx.com), PMB 43K, 220 N. Zapata Hwy #11, Laredo, Texas 78043, earmarked for ALMA.

Margaret Galloway is also a talented painter and an exhibition of her watercolors, monoprints and ink drawings will be held at the Galer�a Casa Diana, Recreo 48, with a cocktail reception on Saturday, October 18th at 6 p.m.

A San Miguel Artist

San Miguel de Allende is deservedly known for its artists drawn here from many parts of the world, seduced by its natural charm, architectural variety, simplicity of life and the rich cultural activities not often found in a small Mexican town.

Artist Juan Ezcurdia did not have far to travel� he was born in Mexico City 41 years ago. His mother and his grandfather are both artists and yet he turned to psychology and children�s theater as his first interests in life.

It wasn�t until a friend of his proposed he should illustrate some children�s text books that he gave any serious thought to his natural talents and in 1997 he was awarded a national prize for his illustrations.

Ezcurdia�s work continues to display a childlike curiosity about the world belying the sophistication of his paintings. Somewhat bemused humans interact with curious animals in riotous colors, defying gravity in Chagallesque flights of fantasy. People metamorphose into animals and animals into people developing unique relationships that elicit smiles from the viewer in recognition of an uninhibited imagination.

Ezcurdia exhibits exclusively at the Galer�a Izamal, Mesones 80, San Miguel de Allende. You can view his paintings at: www.ezcurdia.com and www.sanmiguelartists.com/ezcurdia/.

30th Annual Sanmiguelada Recap

By Patrick Deese

Another year, and an almost canceled Sanmiguelada (aka Pamplonada) is behind us.

There was a lower turnout than in previous years, mostly thanks the decision made late in the year by the head of the Municipal Tourism Department to schedule the event for the 27th instead of the traditional third Saturday of September, and some premature rumors of the cancellation of the annual running of the bulls by some of the Mexican national news outlets.

However, there was a SanMiguelada, thanks to some eleventh hour intervention by the San Miguel Hotel Association and other interested parties.

At my Internet Caf�, we were privileged to have a visit from the Contadores de Monterrey for the third year running. The 25 or so young men and women from the Accounting School at the University of Monterrey spent a several hours with us, watching the running of the bulls on TV and drinking beer before they wandered off into the Jard�n in search of dinner and hard liquor.

This is what the Sanmiguelada really is; an excuse for boys and girls to have a wild weekend in San Miguel, and it is all in good fun.

One of our readers from New York who came down for the event has shared some photos of their SanMiguelada experience.

This year, thankfully, there were no deaths, and only 27 injuries, most of them relatively minor. San Miguel de Allende was left with a lot of trash on the streets, and the alcohol supply considerably diminished.

We�ll see you next year!

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