Saturday and Sunday, October 7 and 8, 2017

We began Saturday with a walk to the central district.  Along the way we passed this gated community.  Before jumping to conclusions about how safe SMA is I need to point out that I live in

a gated community in VA.  The guard at this complex let us in to take photos.  That would NEVER happen where I live.  You must be able to tell the guard who you are visiting and their unit number.  Then the guard looks to see if your name is on "the list" and if not, the guard calls the resident to confirm you are expected.  Not even 3 LOL's (that's little ol' ladies) would be let in to take photos.

One stop once we were in the heart of the central district was Templo de la Purisma Concepcion (Church of the Immaculate Conception).  This church is know for having the largest dome in SMA.

Note that the dome is self-supporting bricks.

Look closely and you will see a nun in a blue habit on the right cleaning the alter.

Next door to the church is the Centro Cultural Ignacio Ramirez El Nigrmante (art school).  The above sculpture was made by an American student using scrap metal.  I'll never look at a whisk the same way again.

This school is the reason Americans have been moving to SMA since immediately after WWII.  GI's discovered the low cost of living and that the GI Bill would cover their tuition to attend the art school.  After this group successful immigrated to SMA, word got out and Americans and Canadians have been moving here ever since.  Currently these residents number around 16,000.  It still is a welcoming community for artists.

Colonnade inside the school.  The building was originally a convent for cloistered nuns.

The school has many  classic murals like this one.

We took a break at a sidewalk cafe that had this sign out front.  It does capture the attitude toward our current president in SMA.

We saw a lot of wedding parties in the central area.  Note this woman having to carry her shoes.  You do NOT wear heels on cobblestone streets, but she was bare foot.  I'm not sure that's better.

After a bit of shopping we managed to find a hole in the wall, 3 table bar that had a TV on and was showing the Nats v the Cubs game.

We were very happy to have found the bar.  Renee's back is to the camera.  Lucille is the one with the terrific smile facing the camera.  The gentlemen at the table under the TV thought it was halarious that 3 LOL's were loudly cheering for the Nats.  

Next we stopped at an art exhibit and met the artist and his wife.  They are from Germany but lived in Manhattan for many years.  Check out his web site:  https://carlosgmaier.com

Dinner was at Hecho en Mexico.  Renee's last night.

It was lovely to have quiet music in the background.

Sunday began early with Renee being picked up by the shuttle service right on time - 6:30 am.  She had a connecting flight to Houston and on to DC.  Wish she could have stayed longer.

Lucille and I attended the 11 am service at Parroquia - the large church in the heart of SMA.  She was going to participate so she went down front and I stayed back to observe.  Across the aisle from me were these 2 girls.  Other than the swinging feet, they were perfectly behaved during the entire service.

The church was packed and when Lucille got up to take communion she lost her seat.  We ended up leaving early but that was fortuitous because it put us in the perfect spot for seeing the parade in honor of San Miguel Archangel.  I took mostly video but here are a few photos:

The statue of San Miguel Archangel was removed from the high alter and carried by a team at the head of the parade.  It is extremely heavy.  Each time the parade stopped another team of men rushed to put supports under the statue to give the team carrying the statue some relief.  They carried it for several hours throughout SMA.

This little girl was so cute.  She was the only child in this musical marching group that was stationed right in front of the church and they began playing when the statue of San Miguel appeared.  She was so serious and an excellent musician.

We had been told that this was the best place for brunch.  We managed to get in before it closed at 2 pm.

Coffee is taken vary seriously here.    It  truly is excellent.

Lucille agrees that this is an excellent meal.

St. Paul's Anglican Church was the location for an amazing concert by Jinny Lin.  She is a world famous pianist who has played at the Kenndy Center, Carnegie Hall, etc.  We were able to see her for around $15 US.  I said it was amazing!

Once upon a time in SMA there was a US Consulate.  Not any more.  Americans must rely on volunteers who work with the embassy in Mexico City for any assistance they may need.  There is a network of expat volunteers throughout Latin America available to assist the US traveler in trouble - maybe medical, lost passport, etc., - when there isn't an embassy or consulate available.

The E in the circle means don't park here.