Arrival in San Miguel de Allende

Rooftop margarita at my new place

Well, I made it to San Miguel. It was a long travel day yesterday, for sure. I flew out of Merida at 8:30 a.m. to Mexico City, which I think took two and a half hours, then I had a layover there for a couple of hours. Fortunately, I had met a nice college kid from the States at the Merida airport, so we had lunch together and passed the time during the layover. The flight from MEX to Leon was about an hour, and once I landed, I took a shuttle another hour and a half to San Miguel.

It was hot and on the drive from Leon and the scenery was brown and dry.  Looking around, it reminded me a lot of Morocco. I wondered if I had just signed on to a month in the desert.

Barren landscape driving from Leon 

Road to nowhere?

Then I started to get a bit carsick in the shuttle. I hoped I would make it to San Miguel without having to stop the van! It didn't help that there was this really annoying older gringo behind me who spent half the time talking in bad Spanglish to his Mexican companion about credit cards (exciting topic!) and the rest of the time giving the young Mexican couple next to him (the husband of whom mentioned he worked in customs for the Mexican government) advice on where to go, what to do, and what to eat in San Miguel. He even advised them on staying safe, imparting such nuggets of wisdom as "Don't wear flashy jewelry." The couple was amazingly cordial.

Once I arrived, I had a bit of trouble finding my place, since it's located on a narrow alleyway deep in the artisans market. Yes, it's as cool as it sounds. San Miguel, in general, is in fact so cool I can't even stand it. It's like being in a movie. I didn't explore much yet, because I was so tired and frazzled when I arrived, but just driving through town in the shuttle, I was in awe. The cobblestone streets are narrow and steep, and the houses draped in bouganvillas and geraniums and various man-made adornments, like ribbons and colorful flower pots full of lavender. Of course, the whole town is brimming with cute outdoor cafes, art shops, and bohemian clothing stores. The people are a mix of locals, Mexican tourists, older foreign tourists, and young, sexy hippies draped in casually cool Free People-esque outfits.

When I got to my place, I liked the apartment fine, but I was stressing about the noise level because, surprise–there's a restaurant in the inner courtyard of the apartment, with people eating outside my door! Luckily, the landlord, Jose Juan, was super nice and eased my fears. He said it's usually quiet, especially during the week. He managed to walk me back from the brink of a meltdown and then I told him I was going to go relax on the rooftop patio and unwind.  I joked that a margarita would help immensely, and the next thing I knew, he appeared at my door with one in his hand. He really was helpful and reassuring, and honestly, even if there's a bit of noise, I think the apartment is going to be great. The location is amazing!

Last night before I collapsed in bed I did notice an issue with the Wifi speed (about 2 Mbps) as I tried to watch Netflix, and I panicked a little. However, this morning it is back to a speedy 19 Mbps, so we'll have to see how that goes. I can always work on getting a router if need be. Hopefully, it won't be necessary.

Now it's Sunday and I'm rested, fed and ready to go explore San Miguel. I can't believe Mike will be here on Wednesday and I'm actually going to take a vacation (almost a week!). It will be fantastic to enjoy this town with him. I really hope he likes it.

Money spent yesterday
60 pesos - Uber to airport
200 pesos - Airport lunch/snacks
30 USD - Shuttle to SMA
300 pesos - Basic groceries, shampoo, etc.

1160 pesos = 60 USD