Off The Beaten Path: Pleasant Park Tourists Usually Miss

By

CINDI BOWER

Just two blocks south of Dolores Hidalgo's parish church (Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores) and one block from the southern side of the main park (Jardín Principal) is a small, pleasant park called "El Jardín de los Compositores" (the Composers Park).

Few tourists discover this park, so spending some time here will give you a chance to observe the locals and maybe even strike up a conversation or two...in Spanish. Few locals speak English in this small town.

The park has several shade trees as well as areas of manicured lawn and flowering bushes. There are also several green iron benches placed along the sidewalks to invite walkers to stop for a rest.

A bandshell, with its roof and based covered with the tiles for which Dolores Hidalgo is famous, sits in the center of the park. In the evenings, mariachi bands play in the bandshell or wander around the park entertaining people who are out for their evening constitutionals.

On the northeast corner of the park stands a small monument to "El Pípila," the miner who was a hero in Mexico's War for Independence from Spain.

This park is small, but charming. Fewer people frequent it and the pace seems much slower than in the more touristy main plaza.

Check it out!

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A Walk Through Mexico's Crown Jewel: A Guanajuato Travelogue -- This travelogue is for American, English-speaking European, and Canadian travelers who have grown weary of the typical Mexican vacation. It is a travelogue with strong guidebook features about the city of Guanajuato (the capital of the state of Guanajuato). The book features the author walking through the city of Guanajuato and describing the areas of interest to tourists and most importantly saving the unaware tourist from getting lost in a topographically confusing terrain.