Well, we’re here in San Miguel! A place that Scott and I both love and have talked about visiting together since we met. We love its restaurants, art galleries, culinary markets and classical Spanish architecture. There’s also a large expat community here, so there are numerous English-speaking art and cultural events.
Unfortunately, it’s really cold here now (low 30s). Very unusual, even by the locals standards. And not something we bargained for on this trip.
Happy Hour and big laughs on the rooftop of the Rosewood Hotel.
Wearing all the clothes I have…and still cold.
We rented a lovely two-bedroom Airbnb house — with a living room and full kitchen — very near the Rosewood Hotel, and within walking distance to everything in town ($73/night). Unfortunately, there’s NO heat! Our host provided a small propane heater and it worked for the first night, but the tank quickly ran out of fuel. When we inquired about a refill, she explain that we would need to take a taxi to the bus station to get to the next town for a refill. We didn’t.
The next night we left the oven door open with the heat on and slept in our clothes — still frigid!!! In the morning, we were quick to dress and leave our place to find warmth and caffeine. Cafe Rama was our savior. We fell in love with their food and their fireplace — enjoying hot cappuccinos and a hot breakfast while watching the Flintstone’s.
The next day was spent walking through town, crashing a wedding, finding more good coffee, grocery shopping and restaurants — and we talked to our host about canceling the remainder of our reservation and leaving town early. At first she resisted, but then as we chatted in her living room (her body was rolled up in a blanket), she finally agreed.
It’s lovely in San Miguel, and we loved being there together, but we definitely need to travel to warmer destinations in the future.
It’s the one drawback of backpack travel — no room for cozy sweaters, winter PJs and Uggs.
ADDITIONAL TRIP NOTES
Notes about food, drinks and restaurants we loved…
Breakfast at Hotel Matilda and Café Roma — warm, cozy and funky.
Lunch at the Rosewood Hotel — elegant, upper crust, excellent
An excellent Peruvian dinner at Lima.
Don’t miss happy hour at the Rosewood Hotel rooftop bar. The view is amazing, the town colors at dusk are romantic, and church lighting at at night is beyond picturesque.
The Saturday organic food market (south of the Rosewood Hotel on the main street). Go hungry!
How long was our stay…Our initial plan was 7 nights — we stayed 3.
When we weren’t being travelers we…were planning our exit.
People we met along the way…
Carol, our lovely Airbnb host. She was an excellent ambassador for San Miguel, providing restaurant recommendations, art gallery openings and theater info.
Cynthia, Scott’s friend who lives in San Miguel and is a Realtor. It was so fun to meet her and see her home in the heart of town.
News from back home…
Hearing everyone get ready for the holidays; our first on the road away from our families.
What’s next…
We jumped on a bus and headed to Mexico City!
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