The State of Guanajuato, Mexico, is bordered by the states of San Luis Potosí, Michoacán, Querétaro and Jalisco, with an altitude that ranges between 800 and over 3,800 meters (3,150 and 15,000 ft, respectively).
Celaya church
Although its principal agro-industrial cities are Leon, Irapuato, Salamanca and Celaya, the state is more known to the visitor and tourist for the colonial towns and historical centers of Guanajuato, San Miguel del Allende and Dolores Hidalgo.
Guanajuato state is rich in minerals, particularly in the central and northern regions. Production includes silver, gold, iron, cinnabar, lead, bismuth, mercury, tin and sulphur. In the southern, more fertile areas of the state, corn, sorghum, beans, wheat, barley, chiles, tomatoes, onions, broccoli and other vegetables are cultivated, and the region around Irapuato is well known for its fine strawberries.
The First Inhabitants
Guanajuato’s first inhabitants, the Chupicuaro, settled in the southwest. They were an agrarian society, living in mud and grass huts, and were adept at ceramics and the forming of brown clay figures, flutes, ocarinas and other musical instruments. Between the years 700 and 900 A.D., other cultures began to migrate into the area, among them the Toltecs, who brought their knowledge of metalwork, and many of the Chichimecan tribes, who were a hunters and gatherers. The Chichimecas were skilled in weaving cane, wicker and other grasses.
Places of interest in the State of Guanajuato
Guanajuato City – one of Mexico’s most beautiful colonial cities and site of the annual Festival International Cervantino (the International Cervantes Festival), a magnificent series of cultural events including spectacular music, dance and theatre that takes place every October.
San Miguel de Allende – a quaint colonial city and center of the arts, home to many ex-pats.
Dolores Hidalgo – The cradle of Mexican Independence and center of fabulous handmade, decorative clay and ceramic tile production.
 Guanajuato fields |
 Colonial Guanajuato |
 Tiles, Dolores Hidalgo |
 San Miguel de Allende |
Weather Del Bajio
The state of Guanajuato is part of the central region of Mexico called “El Bajïo”. The entire Bajío encompasses the states of Querétaro, Guanajuato the eastern portion of the state of Michoacán.
The temperatures of the high plains areas are moderate to cool most of the year. Rains fall in the summer months, although the northern part of the state is drier even then, with a rainfall of no more than about 50 mm (20″) a year.
Gastronomia of Guanajuato
Guanajuato’s typical dishes include enchiladas mineras (miner’s enchiladas), tamales and other corn and tortilla based finger food. The state also produces cajeta – a sweet, caramelized goat milk paste – fruit candies, ice creams, bars made with nuts and seeds such as coconut, pumpkin seeds and amaranth seeds, strawberries and cream from Irapuato, and colonche, a regional drink made of fermented cactus juice.
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Originally posted 2009-10-12 11:56:47.
