Nirvana, Mexican style

Last Wednesday was a cold, raw day and we stayed inside much of the day, catching a showing of "The Blues Brothers" in the afternoon and then a jazz concert in the evening--these last two events are part of the San Miguel de Allende Jazz and Blues Festival.

Thursday, however, was  sunny and warmer, and as all of us were healthier and had more energy,  so we decided to go further afield.  We had read about the thermal springs outside of town and decided to check them out.

Stepping out of our front door, we flagged down the first taxi to come along and asked him to take us to the Nirvana Restaurant, which we had heard was great and near the baths.

Felipe, our cab driver, didn't know exactly where the restaurant was located, but he was more than willing to help us find it.

About ten miles outside of town, we came across a turn sign for the Restaurant and Resort Hotel.  The road, mostly dirt and holes, was in pretty bad shape, but we persevered and after a couple of more miles we arrived at our destination--a lovely green oasis. Felipe dropped us off, and offered to pick us up later if we called him.

Nirvana doesn't have any thermal pools, but does offer a lovely outdoor restaurant set in a wonderful garden with views of the countryside.

Casita at Hotel Nirvana

We were seated, ordered drinks and were happy just to relax and admire the garden. It was a lovely, peaceful afternoon.  After eating, we explored the grounds looking for the hotel which signs told us adjoined the restaurant.  But where, we wondered?  We found it--small casitas built into the cliff just below the restaurant.
We checked out each one, about nine total, and thought it would be fun to stay there, but probably would cost more than we could afford.

Altar in Atotonilco Sanctuary

As promised, Felipe, our taxi driver came back to pick us up.  He was very excited to show us a small village nearby, Atotonilco.



The sanctuary there is very old and famous and attracts thousands of pilgrims each year to pray at its shrine of the Virgin Mary . 

Ancient Baptismal Font

We enjoyed exploring it--seeing the beautiful altar, baptismal font and interesting frescoes throughout.





It was a wonderful day and just what the doctor ordered to get us all back into shape health wise.  The hot springs/thermal baths could wait for another day.

One of the many frescoes