i left Queretaro feeling...well check the previous post and you may get a sense...i arrived in Guanajuato rather apprehensive but hopeful nonetheless. what i found is a perfectly lovely place and 2 people who i swear were put in my path because i needed exactly what they had to offer and say.
this city is ridiculously beautiful and has this sort of Spanish-European-Mexican feel that just makes you want to laugh because it is just the right mix. of course charming cobblestone streets, incredible architecture and the bluest of blue skies are not enough for me anymore...at least not enough to make me say, wow this is a fabulous city! it is the people, the history, the culture...the history here is deep and the pride in the city and the history is strong. the people are friendly, open and hard-working from what i can tell and from what i have gathered from the Senora at my hostel. which by the way is the BEST of the whole trip. hands down the best. ok back the the Senora who made me a yummy mexican breakfast and talked with me for 2.5 hours this morning about...well everything. she has lots of thoughts, opinions, experiences and questions and was open to sharing them all. it was enough to make me consider staying in town for another day just so i would have more time to talk with her...
the other person who was thrown in my path was The Photographer (everyone has alternate identities on my blog if you haven´t figured that out so far). born and raised in Queretaro to a mexican mother and italian father, he was spending the day in Guanajuata taking stock photos. initially, thinking i was french (laughable i know!) he spoke to me in french, when i responded in spanish we spent the next 5 minutes conversing in spanish before he asked me where i was from and then the language switched to english. for the next few hours we walked through the city as he gave me a impromtu tour interrupted only by coffee breaks and the expected photo op.
in this new place i was afforded the opportunity to meet people who were open and willing to share their time, thoughts, experiences with me just when i needed their presence. there are times when talking with other travelers and-or tourists (there is actually a difference) just isn´t enough or isn´t quite what you are needing. times when you have questions about the culture, history or even just life...or maybe it isn´t just when you have questions so much as you are hoping to meet someone who shows you that in this big world there are people who ask the same questions as you and may or may not have the same answers.
i have been thinking a lot about cultural differences and similarities. having time with these two people allowed me the space to ask some of my questions but more importantly i was pushed to listen and consider not just the words that were said but the meaning and the emotion.
tomorrow i will move on, Guadalajara is next, who knows what i will find or what will find me there.
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