Real del Monte

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This was our second stop of our weekend trip, Real del Monte (de Mineral or Mineral de Monte back in the day and with the nickname "El Real"). My Lonely Planet book doesn't give this small town enough credit. This is one of the best reasons to travel with locals because they take you to the hidden gems of their country. It is worth a visit. Even the website states the truth, Pueblos Magicos/Magical Towns. I did just find a website address for the town http://www.el-real.com.

Real del Monte is a very small town approx. 2 hours outside of Mexico City. It is the highest/tallest populated urban location in Mexico at 2660 m.. It was a mining town years ago, established by the English, so in turn has a very rich culture and history. It was the scene of a miner's strike in 1776, which was the first strike in the Americas. We spent part of the day walking around, but as you can see it is very small so that didn't take very long.

We stopped in El Minero Restaurant and Bar which has been in Real del Monte since 1824. This restaurant has a great view of the small town and has Victoria beer, so it was very popular with our group, of course. There was live music as well. In Mexico when people perform for you, whether you are in a restaurant or a public area such as a park, it is customary to give them some tip such as 1, 5 or even 10 pesos or so. Typically the music is fabulous so it is not a bother.

Every region, state, town has a different type of food. Because the English settled here first they brought "The Cornish Pastry" from Cornwell, England. Only the elite/high class ate "The Cornish Pastry" back then. It is still very popular today and is now eaten by all classes of people. "The Cornish Pastry" called Pastes in Spanish is like an empanada. It is a flour pastry filled with all different types of food: meat, chicken, beans, tuna, mole (of course), etc. and even sweet ones like apple, pineapple, corn with milk, etc. We had our share of the pastes. I ate a pastes with beans, but didn't realize it had some extra spices included so I could barely eat it because it was so spicy.

Sweets in Mexico are also very popular as you can see by the photo. You can buy them at any market or stand in any place in Mexico. I received a basket full of Mexican candies for my birthday, which I am still trying to finish. My favorites seem to be anything with coconut. I will be sure to bring som home for everyone to try.

As you can see in the photos, we were still hungery so we did what Mexicans so best...ate the delicious street food. This time our choice was elote, which is a stalk of corn loaded with mayonnaise, cheese and sometimes a bit of lime and spices as well. Let me tell you this was and continues to be a treat

We then took a short trip to an amazing Hacienda approx. 20 minutes from Real del Monte. Again, this was not in my book either, but well worth the trip. I have a website for this as well www.sanmiguelregla.com. While we didn't spend the night here, it was well worth the walk around the grounds. For $200 a person you have all the amenties you could hope for plus more. The grounds are absolutely beatiful. There was a wedding ceremony and recetion while we were there.

It was my choice to return to Real del Monte for the night instead of driving on. I was not comfortable driving at night with the highway conditions as you will see and hear about in my next entry. So we stayed for part of the Mexico vs. Iran soccer game before heading out.

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Comments

[Stephanie]

Thank you
Thank you for posting your thoughts and travel experiences. I'm actually staying in Pachuca for business and have found your entries great, I went to the pyramides two weeks ago, and am now going to hear to Real Del Monte after reading your stories :) have safe and happy travels! Adios Stephanie