San Miguel´s “Globo” Skyscape J. K. Hannula San Miguel is routinely acclaimed as the world’s most beautiful -or “most livable” town/small city- by Travel and Leisure magazine, Conde Nast Traveler, and numerous other travel publishers. San Miguel’s popularity is not only because of its Spanish Colonial character and UNESCO’s World Heritage Site designation -Patrimonial Mundial- a recognition for its architecture, history, and culture. Without San Miguel’s geographical setting, however, the town would not be “San Miguel.” Its setting is its roots, the bedrock of its beauty.

Historic San Miguel was built on a mountain slope, steep and inaccessible except for a mountain pass and several arroyos (river drainage ways) that slice into El Sierro de Los C (?); the low mountain forms a ridge to the east. Towards the west, north, and south, lower hills and mountains surround the area to form an undulating valley of farmland, ranchos, woodland -and development. La Presa Allende lies at the bottommost part of this valley, a dam-formed lake visible from much of higher San Miguel. With its mountain-valley setting and many topographical features, the colonial town is exceptional in panoramic vistas and alluring glimpses down narrow cobbled streets. Overall, its beauty hovers around “#10”. One of San Miguel’s overlooked aspects is its skyscape, a part of the scenery that one frequently under-looks, given that so much of San Miguel’s beauty is within its centro historico, a breathtaking historic center. The town’s main attraction is its magical Parroquia, its pink, gingerbread, Gothic church acclaimed worldwide for its unusual beauty and prominent siting. La Parroquia stands as a sentinel at the upper end of the historic center, El Jardín Principal – beauty´s ground zero. In this centermost scenic space, however, much of the dense development obscures and fragments the skyscape. If you disperse from the center and move to open areas - or find a visual refuge at a rooftop bar or restaurant - you’ll see broader swaths of San Miguel’s impressive skyscape. This is especially true if you expand your days and locations to marvel at the sunrises, sunsets, full moons, and varying weather conditions -from azure blue skies to churning, towering, alto-cumulus clouds (during the rainy season). But be not centro-centric and seek only views from there. San Miguel’s varied topography invites views and skyscapes from a multitude of points around town. In this sense, you can view the town’s most prominent focal point, La Parroquia, from above or below, with a backdrop of distant mountains in the direction of Guanajuato or towards the nearby sierra to the east. For skyscapes, there is nothing more magical than los globos, the hot air balloons that rise shortly after the crack of dawn when the air above San Miguel barely stirs except for a slow drifting towards the west. Los globos became a welcoming part of my life after I bought a casa in Colonia Independencia, a neighborhood perched on a ridge a short distance from the historic center. Los globos launch from a field below, often in flocks of a half-dozen. Painted in bright colors and geometric patterns, some Aztec-like los globos appear like gigantic, bloated peacocks. Depending on the weather, I know their launching by the distinct “whoosh” of the gas heaters that fill the balloons with hot air, giving them their slow, graceful rise. My house is under their westerly flight path; they pass nearly directly overhead, only a few hundred feet above. Hearing the heaters from my bedroom (doors open), I often rush to my rooftop terrace to marvel at their beauty - with the rising sun appearing behind them, just above the mountain ridge in the direction of Querétaro. Seeing the globos is, literally, a “morning high.” I can hear “holas!” from passengers in the gondola, the basket-like platform suspended from the balloon. Thus, the skyscape from my roof reveals itself in full view and splendor - with los globos, the rising sun peaking above la sierra; and just a bit to the southeast, the center of San Miguel with its many churches, their bell towers thrusting into the backdropped sky, the backdrop a jumble of casas stepping up the looming sierra. During the night, the moon, Venus, Mars, and a riot of constellations hang in the inked sky above, like jeweled necklaces or earrings. And in my imagination, ghostly globos would rise and float among the stars - in our awesome skyscape.

La Noria de Santo Pantaleón 

Sombrerete, Zacatecas

– A Mining Ghost Town -

 

“If you were an eagle soaring in the restless mountain winds, you would spy a town below, its ruins clinging to the craggy slopes.  You would see old walls, strange, conical formations-and a tiny, orange chapel.  This is an old, ghostly mining town called La Noria de Santo Pantáleon”. 

 

Resting in the notch of a low mountain just to the northwest of Sombrerete is the abandoned, mining ghost town (pueblo fantasma) of La Noria de San Pantaleón.  Well, it’s not quite abandoned, as about 20 families, mostly descendants of the original miners, returned to re-occupy some of the long-deserted casas that once comprised the now tiny community. (The town reached a population of 5000 in the early 20^th century).  The old 16^th century Spanish Colonial gold and silver mining town sets at an altitude of around 8,700 feet (2,684 meters).  The community now consists of scattered casas and tiendas, a church (Templo San Pantaleón) with a convent attached, a tiny chapel, and a few, small civic buildings.  On the nearby mountainside sets the remains of old mining structures, and curious, conical structures long ago deposited by the excavated material from the mines bored into adjacent mountains. (The material was deposited by large containers suspended by cables). The (four) huge conical piles gradually solidified into solid structures that appear like extra-terrestrial creations.  On the top of a nearby ridge is an observation tower built by the local population.  “La Noria”, as it is called, is a curious place with intriguing beauty, and most worthy for exploring, painting, and photographing. 

 

Sketch map of La Noria´s central garden, watercolor by author. 

 

During my visit there with the Director of the Tourism Office, I manage to measure and sketch the centrally located plaza edged by a small church and abandoned structures. Next to the church is a small garden (jardín) with a gazebo (kiosco) in its center.  I quickly concluded that this magical pueblo fantasma deserved a place in this book.  I highly recommend spending time here.  The community is small and very safe. 

 

Vista (watercolor) of La Noria.

Be sure to bring a picnic lunch and plenty of water.  La Noria is about a 20-minute taxi ride from Sombrerete´s historic center.  Because of its high altitude, dress accordingly. 

A Casa in La Noria, oil painting by the author. 

La Noria de Santo Pantaleón will be include in my upcoming book, Painting Mexico: Sombrerete. 

Sombrerete, Zacatecas - A Pueblo Mágico

 Painting Mexico:

Painting Sombrerete, Pueblo Mágico

By J. K. “Jack” Hannula

 

 

Illustrative Plan, Constitution Plaza, watercolor by J. K. Hannula, 2017

When I first arrived in Sombrerete, I did not know what to expect -the patterns on the Google map were a mélange of grey, browns, and greens, abstract-painting-like, that provided few tangible details.  The bus from San Miguel de Allende passed through San Luis Potosí, Aguascalientes, then Zacatecas - and into an increasingly arid, mountain-valley landscape that quickly whisked by my window, leaving me wondering even more.  The bus arrived at a small station just off the highway, about a mile above Sombrerete´s center. Peering into the distance, I could finally see the compact, Spanish Colonial town nestled in a mountain-ringed valley just below me.  As opposed to a textured, abstract Google map, this was a delightful reality.

 

I checked into my hotel room and, with my trusted Nikon S9950 camera, followed the road into town on foot, first through an area of newer buildings, but gradually into the historic center (centro histórico). Along the way, I passed pale stucco buildings squatted low, except for the numerous church steeples that jutted up from the colorful jumble of rooftops.  During this leisurely walk, I quickly realized that I had a “keeper,” a “Magical Town” (Pueblo Mágico) to include in my next book.  

 

Sombrerete, a funky ranching town where pickup trucks outnumber cars and ice cream shops outnumber bars –is most captivating for artists and worth exploring and painting.  Founded in 1555 by Spanish explorers, Sombrerete became an officially listed Pueblo Mágico in 2012.  The lovely pueblo is known for its extraordinary churches and extensive portales (arcaded walkways) in the central plaza.  Sombrerete is named after a nearby mountain that looks like a sombrero. 

 

Sombrerete includes a scenic section of the historic Camino Real de Tierra Adentro (also called the “Silver Route”), the ancient commercial route that connected the Valley of Mexico (now Mexico City) to Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S.A. The Camino Real runs through the historic center of the town. 

Illustrative Plan of the Parroquia Plaza.  This is a lovely location.
 

(El Camino Real and its 55 recognized historic places are UNESCO World Heritage Sites, three of which are in Sombrerete, including two sites to its north: the national park, Sierra de Órganos; and the mining town of Noria de San Pantaleón).  

 

View in la Plaza de la Parroquia, watercolor by the author. 

Thus, Sombrerete is the setting, the “stage” on which history has pulsated through the millennia, from ancient migrations from Asia over 30,000 years ago -to the present. In Sombrerete, you´ll find it all.  All you need do is look closely, dig deep and turn over the many stones that mark this fascinating town and its history.  

The Pueblo Mágico "Magical Town" of Sombrerete offers us the opportunity to paint:

 

* classic townscapes

* panoramic landscapes

* garden scenes

* details and studies

 

Let’s now visit ten great places to explore and paint in this alluring town, including a regional park (Parque Nacional) Sierra de Órganos; and a ghost town, Noria San Panteon. We'll start with el centro historico..." (see above maps).

 

The Historic Center 

(El Centro Histórico)

 

(My pending book will cover all these scenic areas in detail.)                 Edited: 9-25-2021 (G)