The Soul of San Miguel
“Too many Americans” and “too many rich Americans” are the refrains one hears whenever Mexico’s San Miguel de Allende is mentioned. I’ve never believed this, not since visiting San Miguel and certainly not since moving to Santa Fe, where the same complains are commonplace.
Artists and poets have been coming to San Miguel from other parts of the world since the 1930s. According to local statistics, from 12,000 to 16,000 of the town’s 80,000 population are expatriates, about 70% of them from the U.S.
Writing in Travel + Leisure magazine, John Davidson asserts that San Miguel has not lost its authenticity as a true Mexican town. He writes, “Here, the town is the thing, the promise of community.” And community is not a bad thing.
With beautiful churches and thermal baths, the town also boasts the best bilingual library in all of Mexico and two art schools. Restaurants, galleries, concerts and numerous cultural events lure visitors, some of whom decide to stay. It may come as a surprise to the San Miguel bashers, that about 60% of the tourists who come here are from other parts of Mexico.
For Davidson’s excellent article, see the March issue of Travel + Leisure or go to www.travelandleisure.com/articles/mexico-magico. Accompanying the article are some fine photos of places and people in and around San Miguel. For more about living in Mexico as well as a list of books for prospective expats in Mexico, see www.liveabroad.com/articles/mexico.html.