Mexico RV trip 2012 - un viaje mas grande –Day 9 January 4, Dolores Hildalgo

Today we took a bus to the colonial city of Dolores Hidalgo, about 30 miles north of San Miguel de Allende. (1 hour) It is widely recognized as the “Cradle of National Independence,” the place where Mexico’s quest for independence from Spain began.

 
September 16, 1810, Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla gave the "Cry for Independence" which began the uprising. Father Hidalgo y Costilla also helped develop local industry, such as ceramics, carpentry and textiles. He also promoted the planting of mulberry trees and vineyards, started and trained farmers and craftsmen. Promoting social and economic development in the community, resulted in strong local support for the Mexican Independence Movement.

 
Today, Dolores Hidalgo is a lively community with a population of about 80,000. The area is well know for its hand-painted Talavera ceramics and unusual flavors of ice cream.

We arrived by bus and walked about 4 blocks to the central square where Father Hidalgo’s statue overlooks La Parroquia de Nuestra Senora de los Dolores.

 
The tourist office had a booth in front of the church and we were able to get a fairly good map of the area. 
 

The parish church is directly behind the square and statue. Inside the church they were applying gold leaf to some of the columns.

 
The inside of this church was amazing. There were many Mexican tourists also visiting the church.

We next toured La Carcel – Museo de la Independencia (Independence Museum). It was 15 pesos admission each, plus 10 pesos to take pictures inside. The museum is housed in what was originally the jail of Dolores Hidalgo. It was here, on September 16, 1810, where Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla liberated the prisoners who joined in the fight for independence. Some of the history was written in English as well as Spanish, making it an enjoyable and educational stop.

After lunch we decided to try some of the ice cream. We chose garambullo, which is made from a cactus. It had an interesting flavor, but was more like sherbet with lots of little seeds!

There were ice cream vendors all around the square, as well as this fellow selling the largest pork rinds I have ever seen!

This is Tobey, just across from the church.
We checked out the Talavera ceramics. Several shops were selling it and we enjoyed visiting with one man who was actually raised in the U.S. but had moved back to his hometown to help in the family business. He explained that while the styles were similar, each shop had their own designs and techniques. Tobey and I both thought this table was beautiful – but we are NOT bringing it home with us!

After a fun day exploring Dolores Hidalgo, we headed back to San Miguel de Allende for another night.
20.90715°N, 100.74896°W