Reponer

OK, I totally get why people love it here. The San Miguel fairy has definitely sprinkled her magical dust on me. However, like most places, it's a town of the 'haves' and 'have nots'...There are so many foreigners here, including lots of fancy folks from Mexico City (especially on the weekends)...and on the surface, it looks like everyone is together...but in reality, people here seem to lead very separate lives. The "extraneros" and locals don't really seem to merge, except superficially (there are exceptions, I presume). Different groups of people lead their parallel lives, occasionally converging in the market, the jardin, restaurant or bar...but then everyone goes back to their own space at the end of the day. I guess when you have racial, socioeconomic and cultural differences, segregation is natural...and maybe this is a microcosm for the whole world.  That said, if I'm still single in twenty-five years (God forbid), this colorful San Miguel de Allende bubble might be a fabulous place for me to live! 

I've looked into lots of different ways to volunteer here...but I've decided volunteering (AKA "helping others") is not for me. And that's OK. Instead, I'm going to take naps, cook, hula hoop, read (fiction!!!), walk & wander, talk to random people (often in spanish!), drink my new favorite beer (and freshly squeezed juice; not at the same time), study spanish, take pictures, watch the sunset (& sometimes the sunrise), explore outside of "centro" San Miguel,  and learn how to make nichos (a folk art from this area). And I don't need your permission. :)

Hooping on my terrace at sunset