Friday, July 5, 2013

SalvaTierra - Day Trip

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As I said yesterday, up early, to the gym and hit the road.  That is exactly what we did.  Rained quite a bit last night and blew out a transformer on the other side of us so when we got to the gym there was no light.  No problem, we worked out anyway.   Came back home, showered up and out the door we went.   Well, first we had some of that great multi grain bread with a slice of turkey breast and an egg on top served with a slice of panela cheese.

Getting to SalvaTierra is easy.  Take the highway to Celaya, a really good highway in excellent condition.  You pass through good ole Mexican farmland, green, lush, tractors roaring through the fields bringing fresh produce to tables all over the world.   Once you arrive to Celaya, go under the overpass and turn right at the Home Depot (Ave Tecnologico).  We stopped there to buy supplies to make our own screen door.  The estimates we got were about 1000 pesos or more.   Our door cost us 132 pesos and a little work which we will do mañana and post pics.

Monument at the entrance to SalvaTierra, Cardinal Posadas Campo.


Drive 31 kms and you arrive to SalvaTierra also known as "la puerta de oro del Bajio" (the gate to gold in Bajio).  The cathedral in the main plaza rises up above the town.  Salvatierra is surrounded by agriculture and the town is truly hustle and bustle.  Lots of small businesses that sell everything a farmer may need not to mention all the construction materials, hardware stores, and of course the main covered market with the building being constructed in 1912.

Kiosk in the main plaza, the largest plaza in the state of Guanajuato.


We strolled around the plaza, watched students march into their magnificent cathedral and looked for something good to eat.   So much to choose from.  As we browsed through the marketplace we saw beautiful meats on display (I'm still not eating red meat but the temptation fell upon me), fruits, vegetables, fresh fish and stalls with lots of great eating.

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 Another magnificent cathedral.  Do you ever wonder how many secrets have been reveiled, how many requests have been made, sins exposed including murders, theivery, etc., not to mention those of the priests and nuns who took advantage of those poor souls.

The rectory where the priests live.  I made a huge mistake no answering the call.


In the end, we settled on Chinese food.  It turned out not to only be very good Chinese food but we found an answer to a question that had been burning on our minds all day long in SalvaTierra.   As were waltzed around town we saw women dressed similar to nuns in long brown robes, with a wide belt, and gold-embroidered trim.   At the Chinese restaurant, a woman dressed in this garb entered with two children.  They sat across from us and she gave us a big smile.  A great opportunity to find out what was going on with the robes.   Those who need to repay a debt to the Virgin de la Luz where these robes during the month of July which is the commemorative month of the Virgin.   The woman we met says she almost died from surgery after having a late diagnosis for a gall bladder infection.   She promised the Virgin she would wear the robe for a month.   She was almost in tears and her children were very happy with her story of how much she loves them.


We headed back to Celaya and stopped by the Mundo de Wally (WallyWorld or Walmart :) ) to find some cat litter but ran across a vodka that Juan has been searching for in vain.  Made it back driving in the rain in time for national news and a short 30 minute nap.


1 comment:

  1. I have caught up with your blog and am ready to follow along for the rest of the summer. Thanks you Juan for being the remember to bring the camera guy. Loved the story about the senora in the brown robe. I wonder if that is only a local tradition.

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