AROUND TOWN
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Meetings & Lectures
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
Hector Ulloa discusses the origins, history and practices of Mexico’s Independence Day at this Sunday’s service. A longtime student and observer of Mexican history and journalism, Ulloa is currently the academic dean of the Instituto Allende and a former editor of Atención.
The UU Fellowship meets every Sunday at 10:30am at La Posada de la Aldea, Ancha de San Antonio 15. Visitors are invited to attend the service and then join the UUs in the hotel restaurant for brunch.
Midday Rotary Club
On Tuesday, September 15, our guest speaker is Atahualpa Caldera Sosa, applicant for the Director of Ecology position in the new San Miguel de Allende administration of Mayor-Elect Lucy Núñez. He will discuss “Sustainable Living in Rural San Miguel.”
Atahualpa is a community activist and an expert on watershed management. He studied biology in the Morelos State University and directs a nonprofit organization founded in Morelos and now in San Miguel called Grupo de Acción Interdisciplinaria Ambiental. Atahualpa and his family currently are developing a model eco-village incorporating rainwater catchment, dry toilets, solar cookers, wind generators and solar panels. He is a practical visionary who understands how present unsustainable practices are destroying our future.
The Rotary Club of San Miguel de Allende-Midday meets Tuesdays at Hotel Real de Minas, intersection of calles Ancha de San Antonio and Stirling Dickinson. Check-in time is 12–12:15pm and the meeting starts promptly at 12:30. The meeting is followed by a luncheon and visitors are invited to stay for lunch and fellowship. Visit
www.rotarysma.org for more information.
Lions Club International
The Lions Club meets Thursday, September 17, at Sappos Restaurant at calle Nueva 10.
Check in time is 12:30pm and the meeting begins at 1pm, on the first and third Thursdays of each month. You may order lunch from the special menu and one-hour validated parking is available next door. For additional information, contact Nick Maguire 152-7523.
The Empowerment Center
The Empowerment Center has scheduled 10 events for Wednesday–Monday, September 9–14. The center is located at Privada Calzada de La Aurora 5, Col. Guadalupe, (415) 100-7633. The center is a gifting community and all are welcome to attend any event at no charge, though a donation is appreciated.
Book Club: Meets monthly on Wednesdays, 4–5:30pm with facilitator Judith Jenya.
The next meeting is September 23.
Writer’s Group: Meets weekly on Thursdays, 10am–1pm with facilitator Nicole Brussard. The next meeting is September 17.
Eckhart Tolle: An open discussion follows video presentations of A New Earth, on Thursdays, 2–4pm.
Grupo de Conversaciones en Español: Facilitado por Tosco, Jueves, de las 6–7:30pm.
Personal Philosophy of Life Dialogues: Tuesdays, 10:30am–noon, information: 152-4606.
Great Ideas in Philosophy: Lecture 24, Transcendentalism in the Twentieth Century, is the last one of The Transcendentalist Movement series, delivered Friday, September 11, 11am–1pm, by Professor Ashton Nichol, Ph.D.
Spiritual Reunion: Celebrating the Law of Attraction on Saturdays, 2:30–4pm.
Speaker Presentation: My Life by Farley Wheelwright is a special opportunity on Saturday, September 12, 4:30–6pm.
Meditation Practice: Quiet the mind and cultivate compassion with facilitator Suzanne Smith on Mondays, 4–5pm.
Conversations about Religion: Tom Lynch facilitates the first of a series on Sunday September 13, 2–3:30pm.
Classes & Workshops
Chess workshops
Free chess workshops for adults meet Mondays 5–6:30pm in the central patio of the Biblioteca Pública. Players also gather at Casa de la Cultura on Chorro, 10am–2pm on Saturdays and 4:30–7pm on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Tours & Excursions
Saturday Adventure Tours
On September 12, we go to Guajuye, a seldom-visited factory where all the blown glass you see around town comes from. You will be shown how used bottles are recycled—first broken to bits, washed, then put in hot kilns where they are liquified. The talent of the workers gives the old glass new life, perhaps blown into a beautiful vase. In the salesroom, you see the various forms into which molten glass is blown, from glasses to goblets, salad bowls to saltshakers, all at factory prices.
A drive through the flowering countryside brings us to Rancho Felipe, a “movie-set” ranch, from the ornate wrought-iron entrance to the first vista inside arched corridors surrounding luxury bedrooms. The main house is full of antique heirlooms and the elevated terrace offers views below of an elongated blue pool, a pool house, green grass, trees and an old wagon filled with colorful geraniums. Take cameras by all means!
These tours benefit the Centro de Crecimiento school for disabled adults and children and leave the Jardín, across from the Parroquia, at 10:30am on Saturdays and Wednesdays.
Lions Club Valle de Bravo trip
The Lions Club is off to the Switzerland of Mexico for a 2-night/3-day stay Thursday–Saturday, October 1–3. A beautiful lake created by a hydroelectric project in the forties made Valle de Bravo a blue-and-green waterside paradise and popular weekend spot.
The trip is 2,800 pesos each, double occupancy, for two nights at the Loto Azul hotel, including all breakfasts, tips, first-class bus and a donation to the Lions Club. The Lions Club does free diabetes testing and gives free glasses to the needy at their clinic every Thusday morning at Correo 63.
Reserve with Jean Schickel at 152-0934 or email her at jeanschickel@yahoo.com.
Botanical Garden Tour
A guided tour in English of El Charco del Ingenio each Tuesday and Thursday, 10am–12:30pm, is a fun and informative activity for people of all ages. Enjoy a stroll in nature while learning about our conservation project and garden. Entry is 30 pesos (waived for members) and the tour is 50 pesos. We suggest you wear a hat and closed shoes. Reservations are not necessary. Information:
www.elcharco.org or 154-8838.
Tree Identification Walk
On Monday, September 14, Fen Taylor leads a walk through El Charco del Ingenio focusing on trees, their characteristics, care and problems. Taylor has been gardening in San Miguel for 30 years and built an environmentally friendly home outside of town. She has many wonderful stories and surprising information about the main trees in the botanical garden. Have you ever tasted the seed of the mesquite tree? Try this and learn lots more.
The walk starts at the entrance to El Charco at 10am. Cost is 70 pesos for members of El Charco and 100 pesos for nonmembers. The walk/presentation has limited admission, so reserve a space early at
nzerriffi@yahoo.com.
Haciendas in the Heart of Mexico
Mexico’s haciendas open their doors each Thursday, 9am–7pm, during July, August and September. The owners and staff of Hacienda de Monjas, Hacienda de San Juan Pan de Arriba and Hacienda La Jaula, in the municipality of San Diego de la Unión in Guanajuato, welcome tourists to learn about the richness of the history of these large dwellings. Visitors are treated to an engaging version of Mexican colonial history as the people of the haciendas share their customs, their knowledge and their food.
Tickets at 900 pesos are available at Teatro Santa Ana, or call the project’s headquarters at 045 (442) 274-3540 or 274-3541. The full-day tour includes transportation, guide/translator, explanations of each Hacienda, visit to production areas, meals and tastings.
Bird Walks
Signe Hammer leads bird walks in El Charco del Ingenio on the first and third Wednesdays of each month. Join her on Wednesday, September 16 at 9am for a 2.5-hour exploration of San Miguel’s botanical garden.
The walk is for birders of all levels, no reservations are needed and you are free to leave the walk at any time. Bring binoculars and water, and wear comfortable walking shoes and a hat. Cost is 50 pesos for members of either El Charco or Audubon, 80 pesos for nonmembers (includes El Charco entrance fee).
Performances & Events
Grandparents’ Day
On September 13, 40 Santa Julia girls are hoping you will be their grandparents for the day! The application is easy; email info@santajulia.org with name, age, languages spoken, your interests and a digital photo if it is convenient.
You will be contacted with the name, age, languages spoken, interests and photo of the girl for whom you will be grandparent. You meet your Santa Julia girl at La Crepe Restaurant for a special lunch at 11am, 12:30pm, or 2pm. La Crepe will be open that day only for Santa Julia Grandparents’ Day.
For more information, email robin@robinloving.com or call 152-3709 in San Miguel or (925) 418-8003 from a US phone.
Mariachi Mass at St. Paul’s
The third annual Mariachi Mass is set for Sunday, 10:30am, September 20, at St. Paul’s Church, Cardo 6. The regular choir will be replaced in the choir loft with a lively group of mariachis who sing and play throughout the service. This year, at an extra event in the Parish Hall afterward, the mariachis will sing during a mini-cookout. Hotdogs, soft drinks and chips will be available for 40 pesos per person and the money goes to Centro Infantil San Pablo, the preschool for needy Mexican children founded by St. Paul’s. All are welcome to attend the service and the cookout.
Arthur Murray Dance Studio
Tuesday is the Newcomer Party at 7:45pm, students and visitors gather on Friday for the Studio Party at 8:30pm and Saturday is the Latin Party, also at 8:30pm. Every other Wednesday is Singles Night at 8:30pm; upcoming dates are September 16 and 30. Parties are free to Arthur Murray students and 200 pesos for non-students (Singles Night is 100 pesos). Call today to schedule a free first lesson: 152-0095 or 044 (415) 106-4401, or stop by Hernández Macías 68.
Singles Social Group
San Miguel Wednesday Social Group now meets at the Sunset Bar in Casa Linda, Mesones 101, diagonally across the street from Teatro Ángela Peralta. Singles, couples and anyone interested in meeting new people are welcome every Wednesday, 5:30–7:30pm, for 2-for-1 national drinks, delicious Mexican botanas and lively conversation.
Films & Videos
Meditation Center
The Meditation Center of San Miguel presents Video 9 in the 12-week Eckhart Tolle series, Touching the Eternal, from a retreat in India in 2002. The series continues Thursday, Sep 17, at 5:30pm at Callejon Blanco 4. Presentations of the Center are free; donations are gratefully accepted.
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