Hiking around Guanajuato

On one of my days in Guanajuato I wanted to go for a hike and explore the hills above the city. From the reservoir at the edge of town I began to hike up the mountains to over look the town. On the way up I found a rock quarry in a cave of the mountain and a small water fall. I took some doing to get up the slope, but once I did the steep rocky scrub became rounded green pastures overlooking the city. To get to the best view of the city I had to get past the cows which looked pretty comfortable sitting on top of the world.












Hiking from the dam into the mountains, along the way I passed this rock quarry in a cave

















Waterfall near the quarry












Cows grazing at the top of the mountains












Bull getting up












Bull turning towards me with Guanajuato in the background












View of the city over the cliffs once the cows moved on












Hiking on I ran into the cows again. here is the mother and the calf












Calf showing some courage and walking towards me












Cows and the mountain landscape above Guanajuato

After talking in the view of the GuanaJuato I saw an interesting rock formation in the distance and I decided to go check it out. Once there I noticed that there was a small town not much further, and decided to take a look.












Walking towards rock formations












Unfinished building walking towards a nearby town












Small town in the mountains above Guanajuato












Basketball court in disrepair












Horse tied up

In the small, very humble town I noticed some brightly colored balloons and went to see what was happening. Within the arch of balloons were around 150 people celebrating something; as I took a picture of the entrance to the party they invited me in. I talked to some folks and they told me is was a “quincinera” birthday party. In the Latin American a girl's 15th birthday is a big celebration marking her passing into womanhood. Even though a family may not have much the “quininera” birthday party is usually an extravagant affair. The birthday girl wears something similar to a prom dress and is escorted by up to a dozen boys that wear dark suits or tuxedos if they can afford it. Often times there is a band and tons of food.

As I made my way around the party I met new friends and explained a little about my trip. Before long food and beer were being put in front of me and everyone was having a good time. I never expected to wind up in the middle of a “quicinera” when I started off on my hike, but I guess that how things go. I had such a great time, and the people were so friendly. Not only were all the distant family members invited to the party, but so was the rest of their small community. Kids were running around and having a great time, there were some characters in the crowd, and the kitchen was hopping. When I arrived the live band that was just beginning to set up while everyone was enjoying a great home cooked meal.












Entrance to "Quincinera" party












People enjoying the party












Birthday girl and party












People eating












Setting up the stage












Party from the backyard












Party from next door

The kids were great and had a lot of fun showing me the baby chicks from the chickens running around the yard. Their was one boy who didn't seem to know what was going on but he kept walking around in his tiny tuxedo doing the funny thing like sweeping the floor then jumping into the sand pile. Grandma wasn't far away and she came out of the kitchen to take a picture with her grandchildren.












Boy in tuxedo walking












Kids bringing chicks from the yard












More kids with chicks













Boy holding broom












Kids in their good outfits playing in the sand












Birds and girl












Grandma and grandkids












Close up of grandma and grandkids












Boy staring off












Boy in tuxedo on bike

The family pitched in the make and serve enough food to feed an army. There were huge pots of rice and beans and they butchered a whole cow and pig just for the party. Some of the relatives that were doing the cooking showed me how they were roasted the whole cow in a 55 gallon barrel. The whole party was a great time and interesting step into the life of a small town in Mexico.












One of the many characters at the party












Meeting new friends












Cooking a whole cow, whole pig and huge pots of beans and rice in the makeshift kitchen












Cowboy chef!












Lead singer of the band with balloon in foreground