02/01/24 Salvatierra

February 1, 2024

A gentle return to cycling after a week off the bike. I’ll have to pay it back tomorrow

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Well, two out of three isn’t bad. I received my camera and my bike parts, but the package with my spare tire, ear plugs, and other nice to have items is languishing in a FedEx black hole in Queretaro with no signs of life. After a week in San Miguel de Allende I’ve had my fill of La Jolla prices and affluent gringos so I’m not sticking around to see what happens. In principle I can get the package forwarded to wherever I am whenever it’s released, so I am on the move again, hoping to see the monarchs in Michoacan.

San Miguel de Allende is too beautiful. There’s no sense of normal life here, just people taking pictures of buildings and themselves, and lots and lots of expensive cafes and restaurants

That being said, I did enjoy my oat milk lattes and fine French pastries

Germán Chávez at Escarabajo cycles did an excellent job of replacing my shifter. The Pinion rep noticed hairline cracks in the picture of my crank and sent me two new ones free of charge, so I got those changed as well. While owning a Pinion drive hasn’t been problem free, the customer service has been exceptional

In addition to fixing my bike I also got my toe fixed and all my skin spots scrapped and frozen. Access to routine medical care here is so much simpler than what one has to deal with back in Albuquerque

And nice to be out of town and in the countryside

I rode through Celaya, stopping only for some tacos

There’s a bit of bicycle infrastructure, enough to avoid some nasty spots

Note the holes up top. I couldn’t figure out if the road was going up or coming down, but suspect the latter

Riding towards the center of Salvatierra. My dermatologist told me this is a dangerous town, there was a massacre between rival cartels last month, now featured in Wikipedia (2023 Salvatierra massacre)

I picked a very nice hotel next to the plaza. Overpriced because it’s a festival weekend, but I was too tired to keep looking

The plaza is being decked out for the festival, this will be a happening place tomorrow

Ladies practicing for tomorrow. I’ll be missing the party, hoping to leave early and start the climb into Michoacan

Today's ride: 56 miles (90 km)
Total: 1,614 miles (2,597 km)

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