The Many Faces of Dolores Hidalgo

 

Yesterday Todd and I visited Dolores Hidalgo, a fairly typical Colonial village about 25 miles from San Miguel de Allende. It was not our first visit, although it has been some time since our last one. While we were building our house in Patzcuaro we made many many trips back and forth between the two towns, our little black Escape filled with the famous Dolores Hidalgo tile and Talavera pottery.

Dolores Hidalgo is said to be the birthplace of the Mexican War of Independence but despite it’s history and legacy to all of Mexico it is not a large tourist destination. However  those who take the time to wander the quiet streets of this Pueblo Magico, are rewarded with an interesting and very diverse experience.

Of course the main claim to fame of the town that was once just called Dolores, is the call to arms known as “El Grito”. Made by Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costillo in the early hours of September 16th, 1810 from the balcony of his home and church, it was the beginning of the 11 year long War of Independence. This cry is reenacted each year, by the mayor, in almost every city, town and village across Mexico on the eve of September 15th.

 

Statue of Hidalgo with his church in the background

Photograph by Todd McIntosh

 

Hidalgo, along with Ignacio Allende, a captain in the Mexican army who became a sympathizer of the independence movement, amassed an army of Indians and Mestizos, which eventually numbered 90,000, and marched on the cities of San Miguel el Grande, now San Miguel de Allende, and Ceylaya. Ten months later both Hidalgo and Allende were executed in Guanajato City, but the damage had been done and the war for independence was well under way. 

Another aspect of Doroles Hidalgo’s uniqueness is the production of Talavera pottery. This is a type of majolica pottery which is distinguished by a milky white glaze. Majolica pottery was introduced to Mexico by the Spanish in the first century of the colonial period and it’s production became highly developed in Puebla.

 

 

Miguel Hidalgo arrived in Dolores in 1803 at the age of 50. After obtaining the parish there, he turned over most of the clerical duties to one of his vicars and focused on his European studies and humanitarian activities. Hidalgo used the scientific knowledge that he had gained from his studies to bring economic improvement to the rural people of his parish.

He taught them grape cultivation, the raising of silkworms and beekeeping. He trained the indigenous people in the making of leather and taught the poor to use the natural resources of the area to create commercial value. He also established factories to produce bricks and pottery. Talavera pottery, and this practice continues to support a large percentage of the population of Dolores Hidalgo to this day.

 

 

According to Wikipedia, authentic Talavera pottery only comes from the city of Puebla and three nearby communities because the types of clay required and history of the craft are both centered there. The pottery must be hand-thrown on a potter’s wheel and the glazes contain tin and lead, as they did in colonial time. This glaze must also be porous and milky-white, but not pure white. The only colours permitted are blue, yellow, black, green, orange and mauve, all of course, made from natural pigments.

The base of each piece is not glazed, exposing the terracotta underneath, and is required to show the logo of the manufacturer, initials of the artist and the location of the manufacturer in Puebla. In the late 20th century some new designs were introduced and a law, Denominación de Origen de la Talavera, was passed to ensure that all Talavera pottery is produced using the original 16th century methods.

 

Talavera Tiles

Photograph by Todd McIntosh

 

This has become a huge, very restricted business. Yet here, in the little town of Dolores Hidalgo the people have been making this pottery, unaware of all the rigmarole, for 210 years, and will likely continue to do so for the next 210. As the Talavera of Dolores Hidalgo is not defined by the ‘Denominación de Origen de la Talavera'”, it is considerably less expensive while equally as beautiful.

 

Sinks

Photograph by Todd McIntosh

 

Still, Dolores Hidalgo is not distinguished solely by war and pottery. It is also the birthplace of soccer great Adolfo “ El Bofo”  Bautista Herrera, who has done his country proud on several Mexican teams, as well as singer, songwriter José Alfredo Jiménez.

Jiménez was an amazingly prolific songwriter, having written over 1000 songs that have become an integral part of Mexico's musical heritage. Sometimes called “El Rey”, The King, he is the author of my own favorite Mexican song, also entitled “El Rey”, as well as hundreds of other Ranchero style songs that we hear every day on the radio, in restaurants and bars or in El Jardin where we love to sit in the evenings and listen to the mariachis.

Beloved by the Mexican people, his songs have been recorded and re-recorded by artists all over the Spanish-speaking world. Sadly the world lost José Alfredo Jiménez at the young age of forty-seven when he died of complications resulting from hepatitis. Shortly before his death he released his last song,“Gracias”, thanking the public for it’s support and affection throughout his career.

 

 

José Jiménez was laid to rest in the cemetery in the town of his birth, Dolores Hidalgo. And what a sendoff they gave him! He is memorialized in a huge gravesite with a giant sculpture of his ever present  serape and sombrero. He is still visited there regularly by a never ending stream of fans. Each stripe of the serape is engraved with one of his hit songs.

 

Photograph by Todd McIntosh

 

The last reason one should not miss visiting Dolores Hidalgo is that it is just a lovely, little town with charming people reminiscent of small town USA or Canada in the 1950’s…… with some of the best ice cream I’ve ever had!

 

Photograph by Todd McIntosh

 

The center of town, of course, is the zocolo, a really large treed plaza with paths all leading to an ice cream vendor. There are six to eight ice cream kiosks all around the outside of the plaza and you can, literally, get just about any flavour you can imagine. Don’t believe me? Here are a few; shrimp, corn, roasted chicken, poblano pepper, pistachio, Hawaiian, guayaba, papaya, dragon fruit, tequila, beer, cream of whiskey, and on and on and on. And what better place to eat your cup of ice cream than on a bandstand right our of the movie “The Music Man”?

Right across the street from the ice cream is the aptly named Plaza Restaurant, where I had a filete mignon (which was not 1/4 inch thick), perfectly cooked to medium rare with an onion cream sauce, very subtle but so flavourful. Todd had arrachara, again perfectly cooked to medium rare and we washed those down with a couple of excellent Margaritas. I’m not sure why we’ve not been back to Dolores Hidalgo since we moved to San Miguel but it will definitely not be so long between visits the next time.