One of my favorite visits during our Christmas vacation in Mexico was to downtown Real del Monte, twenty minutes north of Pachuca, the state capital. Real del Monte was founded in the 1550s as a mining town (go to UHOM to read more about its history). Today, it is a colorful town filled with shops, restaurants, parks, museums, and beautiful scenery.
I first learned of Real del Monte in the book Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. If you haven’t read it, please do. In my opinion, the title does not do it justice. It is a fascinating book about a rich city girl who, for the first time, has to roll up her sleeves and get to work if she wants to save her cousin from the family she married into. The family lives in Real del Monte in a mansion way past its glory days. The house is not dead yet, though. It is very much alive! In this fictional story, I learned that Real del Monte used to be a silver mining town once inhabited and managed by English settlers. Of course, this little fact perked up my ears. You can learn more about this fact at Unpopular History of Mexico.
So, it was this book that introduced me to Real del Monte, and being that my husband is from Hidalgo, the home of this silver mining town, we HAD to go. This Christmas season, the town was decorated with Christmas trees, red bows, green garlands, piñatas, and nativity sets. The main square was filled with families, bands, and tourists. They even have a red tourist bus that takes tourists on a one-hour drive. There’s that much to see!
This was an unexpected stop for us, so we didn’t have time to take the bus, which means we still have a lot to see and do (museums, parks, and waterfalls). We plan on coming back, definitely!
Our impromptu visit started with a super delicious meal at El Serranillo, a restaurant that began as a homemaker’s small business selling pastes outside of schools in the 1990s. Today, this restaurant is considered one of the best places according to the locals whom my husband asked for recommendations. He always likes to ask two to three people, and we usually go to the place that they all, or at least two, suggest. In this case, it was El Serranillo.
You can read more and get more pictures from our visit to Real del Monte on the paid section of my Substack, LA ABEJA. Or you can read about the history of Real del Monte on UHOM, also on Substack. Fascinating stuff, I promise!
¡Hasta la próxima!
