Who would have guessed that I would be learning Spanish and belong to a language community when I was 68 years old? Probably no one! We can sometimes attribute dramatic changes in life style to our being adventurous and wanting new and exciting changes.

Anyway, here I am writing this blog, and hoping to find new friends who are interested in some of the same things that I am.

So let's begin with the fact that my wife and I both love Guanajuato. This is a wonderful city in Mexico that has a European flair. The city is built on hills with almost all of the houses attached to each other, and the houses are painted in bright warm colors to give the city a panoramic effect. The streets here are narrow and slow to navigate, so most of the traffic goes under the city. Yes, you did read that correctly! There are thirteen tunnels that go under Guanajuato and there is parking in the tunnels. To get to Al Centro (Downtown) you go up stairways to the city. Of course if you would rather drive the narrow streets through Al Centro you can do that also. It's up to you. If you don't want to drive at all then Guanajuato could be the perfect place for you. The city buses here are very good, they run a regular shedule, and the price of 4 pesos is very reasonable. If you wish to expedite things you can take a taxi anywhere in Guanajuato for fifty pesos or less. We usually pay thirty - forty pesos for a taxi anywhere that we have to go.

Traveling to other cities in Mexico is also very easy on one of the many bus lines. Mexico has one of the finest bus systems in the world, the buses are clean and comfortable, the drivers are courteous, the terminals are magnificent, and the fares are great. It makes life a pleasure to sit back, enjoy your soft drink, and watch a movie while someone else does the driving.

In my opinion you should speak some Spanish to live in Guanajuato. I haven't mastered the language yet, but we've only been here for six months. Lucky for me I am blessed with a wife who speaks five languages and one of them just happens to be Spanish. Thanks to the Loquella courses I can look forward to speaking more Spanish in the near future.

In Guanajuato we have met and enjoyed time visiting with people from all over the world. It's the only medium sized city (300 - 400 thousand) people that I've ever been in that I can see the Chinese National Ballet one evening and the next evenng see a performance from Spain or France. There are also many cultual events all year long for you to enjoy. But, in October of every year they have the Cervantino Festival for three weeks. For those three weeks in October there are four to six different performances every night in different theatres around the city. If you love the arts you might want to schedule your vacation to visit Guanajuato.

I've posted several pictures of Guanajuato, and my friends on this website and plan to add more in the future. It's my wish that you will enjoy viewing them and perhaps come and see Guanajuato for yourselves some day.

Gene