Mexico Guadalajara The Tequila Land

Guadalajara, Guadalajara!

Story and photos by Rich Grant
With more than 4 million people, Mexico’s second largest city can be modern, sprawling and congested, but it also offers a wonderful, colonial, pedestrian-friendly downtown worth spending a day or two exploring.
Start at the Cathedral de Guadalajara. Begun in 1561, this is the heart of the city, surrounded by plazas, shopping and incredible architecture. The balcony of La Antigua Restaurant and Bar at Morelos 371, overlooking Plaza Guadalajara and the cathedral, is a great place to grab a local amber Victoria beer, eat some delicious garlic shrimp and plan your tour of the city.

Plaza Liberacion, to the east, has the most colorful activity with everything from balloon vendors to Aztec dancers and drummers performing their ancient ceremonies beside a wild statue of revolutionary leader Miguel Hidalgo.
The Mercado Libertad is “deep Mexico,” with hanging pig’s heads at the butcher shop, herb and spice stalls, acres of produce and windows filled with mystical interpretations of devils and ghouls, no doubt to ward off evil spirits. Don’t miss the songbirds for sale in cages in the back courtyard.
Plaza de los Mariachis is a bit disappointing mid-week, but on Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons it jumps with mariachis bands for hire for official functions, parties, weddings and the like. The very first mariachis began right here in the 1860s as cowboy troubadour groups.
The Instituto Cultural de Cabanas is a Unesco heritage site and architectural gem, approached via a long pedestrian mall lined with shops, restaurants, fountains and statues. The rest of the square mile historic district has pocket parks and churches, museums on history and art, colonnaded walkways, courtyard cafes, and all manner of shops and department stores. It’s not as uniformly historic as the zocalo of Mexico City and there are many tasteless modern buildings mixed in with old treasures. But there’s a relaxed and friendly vibe to the city – and certainly no hint of danger. Guadalajara feels safer than most American cities.
There are horse-drawn carriage rides for the tourists, but you’ll do better on foot…and the horses look like they can use the rest.
Among several interesting places to visit outside Guadalajara is a shopping mecca a short ride away, and a nearby city where Mexico's most famous brew is produced. Day-trips to these spots can be arranged at the tour desks of most hotels.
Tlaquepaque
Besides being fun to say (tlah-keh-pah-keh), this is Guadalajara’s Beverly Hills, a truly pleasant pedestrian street a little over four miles from downtown. Lined with upscale artisan shops, cafes, parks, hanging walls of brilliant pink bougainvilleas and quiet courtyards, this is a lazy, tree-shaded town with a gleaming white basilica and plenty of cast iron benches to while away an afternoon. Marimbas are popular and several groups hustle around town playing them. El Parian, at the end of the mall, is an open courtyard shared by a half-dozen bars and restaurants. Here, you can sip a beer watching the street action, or sit quietly in the center court listening to live music.

Tlaquepaque is known throughout the region for offering some of the finest arts and crafts in the nation; many of the galleries represent artisans who work on-site. Like Beverly Hills, the stores are not cheap, but with its compact shopping area and more than 200 shops, restaurants and boutiques, this is the shopping destination in central Mexico and more fun, traffic-free and relaxed than any shopping district in Mexico City.
Tequila
The town of Tequila is less than an hour from Guadalajara and offers a quiet village of cobblestone streets, all surrounded by a sea of rolling hills covered with blue agave. Tequila was first introduced here in 1795 by Jose Cuervo, who received the exclusive government contract to distill it. Tours of the Cuervo distillery are available in English and Spanish (www.mundocuervo.com), and offer a variety of tasting options. The grounds and shops are beautiful.
In the central town square, don’t miss the bubble machine man, who pushes a cart dispensing bubbles, followed by a small army of kids. There’s also the National Museum of Tequila and any number of shops specializing in tequila and tequila souvenirs.
Staying in Guadalajara

Lobby of the Intercontinental Presidente. Photo by Bob Schulman.

Expedia's Hotels.com lists some three dozen tourist-class hotels scattered around the city. Among top properties is the recently remodeled 14-story Presidente Intercontinental, located near the Exposition Center and across the street from a mall-like shopping center loaded with restaurants and stores. More info: Visit the Mexico Tourism Board at www.visitmexico.com (click the Destinations button at left, then Guadalajara) or the Guadalajara tourism office at vive.guadalajara.gob.mx/indexi.asp.

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