Before I tell you about the little things I love about San Miguel de Allende, I’d like to apologize for the geographical error I made in my last blog, but not my taste in majolica! Now, let’s move on.
The outpouring of comments made me realize that even with the noticeable rise in crime in our area, there are so many things to love about living in San Miguel.
First and foremost, this is a place that engages something in your heart. When I’m walking down the Ancha de San Antonio and I see a handsome young guy on a beautiful horse with the largest bouquet of flowers I have ever seen, or when I turn a corner and see the top of a building covered with what looks like sails, but after a moment I realize its pork skins drying so they can become pork rinds (not air cooked), I think how lucky I am to live here.
Here’s another reason why I love it here: I was leaving a friend’s home and saw a guy on the sidewalk wiping a picture frame, so I stopped. He took me to his shop where they were busily working on an order of amazingly beautiful frames for Australia. The world wants what is made by our wonderful artisans in San Miguel and that makes me proud.
Another small story that adds to the many reasons why people want to live here involves my very best friend, Katherine Leutzinger, who, in my opinion, is San Miguel’s best decorator. She had been buying milagros for years from an older gentleman, but he recently passed away. His family had no interest in continuing the business, so Kathy bought it and set someone else up to run it because she felt we could not lose this wonderful expression of religious folk art.
And then there was the time I overtook 75 guys on racing bikes on a local highway. When I finally passed them, I found that the leader had tied a four-foot statue of the Virgin of Guadeloupe to his back. When was the last time you saw something like that?
I am under no illusions that everyone who lives here feels as I do, but I know many who do. I once told a friend that I wasn’t sure I had chosen San Miguel to be my home, but it had somehow become that. She said, “Maybe San Miguel chose you”
Maybe it did, but I know that I couldn’t imagine leaving this place because of an uptick in crime. It happens and can happen anywhere. It’s really about how the local community reacts and handles the situation. Let’s not forget that this city has been around since the 16th century. All things shall pass.
