San Miguel

[bwana]

Does Michael live there, or just lead trips there?
Does anyone on this board LIVE there?

Interested in hearing about the place. Is it a 'Miami in Mexico"? A retirement Mecca for affluent ex-pats who fancy art? Or its its significant history in art/education attract artists still?
tnx.

[michael]

I live in San Miguel 4-5 months a year. Miami it's not.

My suggestion is to research it online. Not an easy place to summarize with a sound bite or two.

Michael

[Schewe]

Interested in hearing about the place. Is it a 'Miami in Mexico"? A retirement Mecca for affluent ex-pats who fancy art? Or its its significant history in art/education attract artists still?

Agree with Mike, do your own research (Google is you friend). SMA is an interesting place in the hills of central Mexico that does not suffer the problems of Mexico City (nor the Mexico/US border towns). SMA has a LARGE ExPat (from the US/Canada) population which encourages art and food and is an international heritage site (which means it's pretty darn cool). Can't think of a better place to go in Mexico unless you really want either Gulf of Mexico or the Pacific seaside areas...SMA is like the old school Mexico...really nice people and old architecture with great food and art...best way to know it is to go there and experience it...

[brianrybolt]

I agree 100% with Schewe.  I stayed with a friend who owns a home there and it was one of the best times I've had.  The Canadian/Americans make up the majority of ex-pats but they are also there from Holland and Scandinavia. 

One of the great things about the ex-pat community is that they are very active in the community and raise funds for various projects that directly relate to the indiginous population.  Not only is SMD interesting and culturally rich, the surrounding area is beautiful and very photogenic.

I'll certainly be heading back for another adventure.

Brian

[Pete Berry]

A truly lovely place that great friends - now in their early 80's - retired to fifteen or so years ago and live quite regally on SS and small investments in a villa of perhaps 3500 sq ft they bought.

It's about 6000' up so the near tropical latitude climate is moderated, but our friends do complain about the coldish winters. SMA is a walking town for most on the cobblestoned streets, with a beautiful Gaudi-esque cathedral, zocalo, art schools, galleries, an English library, excellent restaurants of all sorts. And, of course, unlimited photographic possibilities in the town and surrounding areas. We'll be returning next year, I hope...

[Schewe]

SMA is a walking town for most on the cobblestoned streets, with a beautiful Gaudi-esque cathedral, zocalo, art schools, galleries, an English library, excellent restaurants of all sorts.

It is a walking town for sure...the streets are way to narrow for much in the way of cars and the cobblestones make bicycle riding a problem....I do remember seeing a lot of scooters there...my complaint about walking in SMA is that it seems like every darn street is uphill–that's just not fair!  :~)

[Christoph C. Feldhaim]

It is a walking town for sure...the streets are way to narrow for much in the way of cars and the cobblestones make bicycle riding a problem....I do remember seeing a lot of scooters there...my complaint about walking in SMA is that it seems like every darn street is uphill–that's just not fair!  :~)

Could it be your shoes have heels at the front?
Cheers
~Chris

[petermfiore]

Could it be your shoes have heels at the front?
Cheers
~Chris

I think Jeff may still be wearing his Earth Shoes.....

Peter

[bwana]

thank you for your replies. it sounds rather inviting, like a village on a Greek island. Wonder when the weather is pleasant? I know

http://bit.ly/1nJSuHM

But there is no substitute for hearing someone say - "go there in August if you are a masochist" or "always cloudy in December" or " the best light is in September" - you get the idea,

[michael]

Jan & Feb. Cool and mostly dry. 15-20C. Occasional rainy days or even a few days.

March - June. Hot and very dry.

June - August - Monsoon Season. Very warm. Late afternoon thunderstorms many days.

Sept - Nov. Warm and mostly very dry.

Dec - Turning cooler. Mostly dry and sunny

Michael

[bwana]

thanks again. I am planning to go there in September- it seems that's when there are a lot of festivals. Good opportunities for capturing uncommon images, like that picture of the Mexican tribal chief titled "Three Faces. San Miguel de Allende, 2014" you had on the site in the article "What matters".