Arriving in San Miguel de Allende

Our travel from Atlanta to San Miguel de Allende, Mexico went flawlessly.

We flew on Delta's partner Aeromexico and arrived in Leon, Mexico BJX airport right on time.  After immigration and customs, we found the driver from BajioGo in the waiting area holding a sign with our names. We had booked this transportation while in the States and we were glad that everything worked as planned.

The ride from the airport to SMA was an uneventful 90 minute ride through a lot of desert. When we arrived at our rented home, the Bajiogo driver did not depart until Gregorio, who was to meet us at the house, opened the door and greeted us.

Gregorio walked us through the house, confirmed our access to the Wifi, showed us how to work the TV, handed us the keys, wished a happy visit and assured us we could contact him if troubles arose.

Even though we were encouraged in our planning of the trip to be cautious but not concerned about local crime, we could not help but notice that we needed to pass through three locked doors to enter the home.  We also noted the iron bars on windows designed to thwart any attempts at unwanted entry.

We have followed advice from the homeowner / landlord to leave extra cash, credit cards and our passports in the house rather than carry them with us on the street.

One piece of counsel we have taken to heart from our landlord is NOT to step outside the front door without the keys. The front door automatically locks upon closing. We have included in our departure ritual the holding of the keys in clear view, before we allow the front door to close. We also carry Gregorio's phone number in our wallets just in case an absent minded moment finds us on the street without a key.

After meeting Gregorio and getting all the info we needed about locking the doors, we met Ellie and David who have lived in SMA for a number of years. They are the UUs who found this house for us to rent and are nearby neighbors. We had dinner at the lovely Hecho en Mexico then took a brief tour of the neighborhood that ended with a nightcap at their luxurious home.

We learned

• Most expat homes have home-wide filtered water, as do many restaurants serving the expat community.
• Where to find the closest ATM.
• How and where to flag down a taxi and how much to pay (40 - 50 pesos).
• How to direct a taxi to our home, which on an alley.
• A great restaurant recommendation for breakfast.
• How tipping works (10 - 20%).
• That one must ask for the check "La cuenta,  por favor" or else you may sit at your table all evening.
• Where the large grocery store is located. 
• A suggestion to attend the organic market held each Saturday.
• An invitation to join them for Sunday service at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, located just around the corner from us - a two minute walk.