Thursday, April 13, 2017

Tour of San Luis Potosi

living.boondockingmexico@yahoo.com

Interesting that this may look like Ku Klux Klan week but it's not.  This is a costume used during the procession of Holy .   The costumes represent different religious brotherhoods and was started during the colonial period by the Carmelites.   Kind of scary though when you come from a culture where this costume represents racism to its extreme form.


The kiosk in the main plaza de armas.  Beautiful plaza full of life during this vacation period.


The theater of the city built in the mid 1800s.  Used today for local and city events as well as concerts, symphonies and theater play productions.


Would you believe that this was actually someone's house?  It was constructed by Don Ramon Marti.   After he passed away his children lost interest in the place and sold it off to the city.  In 1982 it was restored to its original condition.  The first floor had been used as city offices but upstairs remained in its original state.  The museum now houses a series of Mexican masks from around the country as well as the world.  We paid 10 pesos for a private tour.  Very interesting and informative.  There is also a mask museum in Zacatecas.  I'm investigating exactly who Don Marti was.  I am assuming he was a cattleman or owned a family mining company.

Too many pictures to post.  This was the family living room.  Can you imagine the wealth of this family during the 1800s.  Incredible. 


Like all Mexican colonial cities, they are formed around cathedrals, convents and monestaries.  So many examples here in San Luis.  Amazing the art work and craftsmanship dedicated to detail.

May be hard to see but you can click to see the details.  The buildings in the back show the architecture of the 1950s.  On the left is the Sears building.  Very similar to the Sears in Mexico City located in front of Bellas Artes.


This is a side vestibule in the main cathedral downtown dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe.


We've decided to move on tomorrow for Villa de Reyes.  This town is located about an hour and a half from Mexquitic where the rv park is located.  Villa de Reyes is part of the Parque Nacional Gogorron.  There are three balnearios we will check out that all have hot springs baths, swimming and camping.  We will call again in the morning before heading out.  We tried today but it was after six. 

This rv park is nice for a night or two.  Too far from the city to make the trip everyday.  There is public transport but it takes forever.  The San Luis is worth the trip.  Apparently, the Easter celebration is a big to do here.  Tickets for seats along the procession route cost up to 200 pesos for the best seats.  Balconies can be rented also.  We may come next year but stay in a hotel downtown. 

Tomorrow I'll try to post about Mexquitin.   It has a wonderful history including the story behind the presa or the lake that is now dry.

7 comments:

  1. Your pictures bring back memories. Thanks.

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  2. Thanks for the tour. Now I think we will have to check it out ourselves.

    We saw a statue in one of the cities in Spain that had similar costumes and when we first looked at them we thought Klu Klux Klan as well but we knew that they weren't. Still it was weird to see.

    Looking forward to your next post!

    www.travelwithkevinandruth.com

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  3. Those costumes are scary, for sure! When Dad drove up to a little general store in rural Georgia to pick up a bag of flour for Mom to cook with and took me with him (I was about 8 or 9 years old), all these cars arrived across the road and parked in front of a cleared field; they got out of their cars and opened their trunks and put on white hoods and robes and erected a cross. As Dad appeared from the store, I told Dad that those people must be having church meeting in the field (because of the cross). I remember he was upset and a little angry, and all he could say to me over and over was get in the car, now, get in the car, now. He drove off quickly and never explained. Now, we all know.

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  4. There are three magnificent haciendas very near Gogorron. One is Jaral de Berrios which was the largest and in its day reached to the State of Durango! If you go and ask for the guard, someone in the little, little village will summon him and for a tip will allow you to see some parts of the estate. They also make Mescal de Berrios and you can buy some there. It is on the Mescal Trail. There are two more haciendas closer to Gogorron that you can see as well. Right this minute, the names escape me, but, if you are interested, I'll research that for you....or ask the people at Gogorron. They'll know for sure. Happy Trails.

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  5. We enjoyed SLP as well. We drove from Peter's RV park to the Walmart where we stashed the car and took a cab downtown. It was a smart move, everyone drove like Chris! LOL

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