I have a soft spot for Mexico. I try to spend a fair amount of time there and recently did, first in San Miguel de Allende and then in Zihuatanejo on the Pacific Coast.
San Miguel de Allende is near the geographic center of Mexico, and was the birthplace of Ignacio Allende, a Mexican Hero and key figure in the fight for independence from Spain. It’s a place steeped with history and architecture dating back hundreds of years and it always inspires me creatively. Among the many amazing structures is the Parish of San Miguel, a Neo-gothic church they call “The Parroquia”, which was rumored to have inspired Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty Castle after having visited San Miguel for some art class in the 50's.
I first visited San Miguel about 10 years ago. During that visit I came upon The Plaza de Toros Oriente, which was having a Bullfight that evening. Like most things in San Miguel, even though it was just up the street from where we stayed and I’d walked by it many times, I hadn’t noticed it as it’s behind large doors and a short walk off the narrow cobblestone street. I’m not a fan of the sport and it’s the only Bullfight I’ve been to, but I could not resist. I went alone, sat in the front row and nearly had a bull in my lap at one point, but that’s another story.
Walking by on this visit, we noticed the large doors open and wandered inside. We were allowed free run of the place, which is well over 100 years old. It was a trip standing in the center of the Bullring, imagining what it must be like with a thousand people cheering “Ole” and a very large pissed off bull trying to gore you.
Back to my arena, I have some bulls to kill too.
