Querétaro - Part I

     Our school offers two ‘field trips’ each session.  The first one is a day trip to Queretaro, a city about 60 miles southeast of San Miguel de Allende.  The outside of the city has factories, Costco, and Walmart, but the historical center of the city is completely different and has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

   The first thing we see in the city is its huge aqueduct, built between 1726-1738 and consisting of seventy five 70’ high arches.  Impressive!!  It was built by Marqués del Villar del Aguila.  The legend is that he fell in love with a beautiful nun.  Since they couldn't be together, she asked him to show his love by bringing clean water to her convent.  So the construction began.  The aquaduct spans throughout the city and ends close to the Convento de la Santa Cruz.  It is said that the final arch of the aquaduct brought water directly to the convent where the nun lived.  A very romantic story!

Aquaduct - tried to give this photo a 'Vintage Postcard' look

Overview of aquaduct from above - More than 75 arches and each one is 70' high

  The Convento de la Santa Cruz was one of my favorite stops.  A beautiful place with unique thorn trees, considered miraculous because the thorns grow in the shape of a cross.  We were given a tour by an elderly monk who spoke English.  For those of us that like California history, this is where Junipero Serra studied and set out on foot to establish five missions in northern Mexico and eventually 9 of the 21 missions in California.  

Courtyard of Convento de la Santa Cruz; dates to mid-seventeenth century.

   

Courtyard in the convent

The courtyard trees produce thorns in the shape of crosses.  The first tree is said to have sprung from the walking stick of one of the original friars of the church.

Fresh water was stored and kept cool in this tiled basin

Our guide, a 'retired' monk, led our group on a tour of the grounds.

Behind our guide, the chimney to the convent's original kitchen

Courtyard of the convent

   Convento de la Santa Cruz is one of Queretaro's many attractions. There will be future posts about our trip to this very interesting city.  Please stay tuned!

   As always, your comments and input are welcomed.

La Torre Gloriosa

On our first Sunday evening in San Miguel, we 'happened' upon one of my favorite events - a light show on the cathedral.  We were in the central plaza, El Jardin, when all the lights went out and the show began.  This one was amazing, lasting about 15 minutes and choreographed to music. It was difficult to make out all the imaging but afterwards, I found out more information.


2010 marked the 200th anniversary of Mexico's 'El Grito' (Cry for Independence) against the Spanish colonial government.  Cities in the state of Guanajuato (Dolores Hidalgo, San Miguel de Allende, Queretaro, and Guanajuato) are considered the birthplace of the independence movement.  

To celebrate the bicentennial, the French artist Xavier de Richemont created this light show, 'La Torre Gloriosa' (The Glorious Tower), to be displayed on San Miguel's gothic-designed parish church, La Parroquia. The images represent the heroes of the independence movement (San Miguel de Allende is named for one of them - Ignacio Allende), the area's mining history, and Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico's most popular religious image. The show continues through 2011. 

It's difficult to capture the event with only the single images below.  Here's also a link to a 30-second video that gives a brief idea:  

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8379908@N08/4900242056/

The passionate music, the bright colors, and the flow of movement all give me goosebumps!  The Mexican people are extremely proud of their heritage and their heroes.  When I see their historical struggles represented in this show,  it's impossible to not feel their emotion.