The aqueduct

When I learned I would be living and teaching in Querétaro, I immediately turned to the internet to see how close it was to the ocean.... it's really far. After figuring out the distance to the closest surf spots (5 1/2 hours to Troncones, 7 to Sayulita, 7 to Nayarit...), I looked it up in my Lonely Planet guide and was alarmed that they began their description by saying "As far as the silver cities go, Querétaro is sometimes intimated to be the ugly sibling." WHAT?!  I threw my book aside and went back to the internet to look up images. One of the very first that caught my attention was the aqueduct. As I read more, I began to accept that my year would not be spent learning to nose ride, but rather immersing myself in real Mexico.

Querétaro is where the revolutionaries of the Mexican Independence Movement met in secret to discuss the overthrow of the Spanish government. In 1917, the Mexican Constitution was composed in Querétaro. UNESCO named the Historic Monument Zone a World Heritage site in 1996. The city is steeped in history, from the founding of the Franciscan missions to the execution of Emperor Maximilian. The aqueduct the has come to represent Querétaro was built between 1726 and 1735 to bring clean drinking water to the city and include 74 arches and stretches across 1280 meters (4,200 feet). It still provides Querétaro with water today.

I have let go of my dream of becoming an amazing surfer while living in Mexico, I'll work on that when I get back to California. I'm now looking forward to wandering the pedestrian only alleyways, trying the enchiladas queretanas, and standing under the aqueduct that led me to discover the richness and beauty of my new home.