During Mexico's colonial days, San Miguel, then known as San Miguel El Grande, was the wealthiest town in silver-rich New Spain, and stately mansions adorned with carved-wood doors and stone coats of arms today still line the cobbled streets. Some continue to serve as luxurious homes; others have been turned into sophisticated shops and restaurants that spill into flower-filled courtyards. 

The entire 1-square mile downtown has been declared a national historic landmark, protected forever from golden arches and neon marquees.Free of industry, and 6,000 feet above sea level, San Miguel also is bathed in the kind of clear light artists worship. (The town's artistic tradition goes back to the 16th century, when it was settled by a group of Indians who had been taught European techniques of weaving by a Franscian friar.) The pure air is further sweetened by the music of scores of church bells, which continually clang indecipherable codes to call the faithful. 

There is very little crime in San Miguel. Tourists and residents frequently shop at the street markets, but there is a modern supermarket on the outskirts of town if you choose to visit. 
San Miguel offers tourists a unique look at native Indian and Spanish traditions. Native women still patronize an outdoor public laundry, which now consists of washtubs that stand near the stream where women used to beat their clothes clean on rocks. 

Every Sunday night the local teen-agers continue the age-old Spanish custom of promenading around the main plaza (jardin) -- boys in one direction, girls in the other, until they start pairing up and then continue their stroll together. Without straying too far from the central plaza, tourists can visit the landmark Parroquia and several other historic churches plus a couple of museums. The southwest corner of the Jardin houses a natural-history collection. In the late afternoon you should head to El Mirado, San Miguel's most famous lookout point to watch the beautiful sunset. 

This quaint little town is a place that you will want to visit again...