The summer rain keeps more tourists away, but San Miguel de Allende still has no shortage of community events — from thousands descending on Centro to watch Mexico face England, to hundreds admiring local art at the Fábrica La Aurora and a dozen more participating in a ritual Shabbat dinner — as we share in our latest community roundup.
Thousands gather to watch Mexico vs. England
San Miguel de Allende mayor Mauricio Trejo Pureco and the department of tourism set up a giant screen and a tent in front of the Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel on Sunday, July 5, where thousands gathered to enthusiastically cheer on Mexico in its round of 16 World Cup knockout clash against England.
San Miguel previously set up screens for Mexico’s round of 32 win over Ecuador on June 30.
Attendees ranged from toddlers being lifted on their parents’ shoulders to elderly residents taking in the scene. Fans waved Mexico flags and lit colored smoke sticks after Mexico’s national anthem, after goals and at the start of the second half.
Other fans brought drums to lead the crowd in chants and keep energy high. Attendees chanted for almost the entirety of the 90-minute game, raising their hands to shout “Sí se puede” to will El Tri on after they fell behind England.
Mexico’s loss didn’t stop the party
The energy began to dissipate midway through the opening half when England star Jude Bellingham struck, scoring two goals in two minutes to give England a commanding lead. The lull was short-lived, however, as Mexican forward Julian Quiñones reignited the crowd with a 42nd-minute goal.
The large overhead tent, which was erected to keep spectators dry, kept most of the ground noise in, making big cheers deafening.
Despite a red card for England early in the second half and a Raúl Jiménez penalty goal in the 69th minute, it wasn’t enough for Mexico, who bowed out in the round of 16 for the eighth time in the last nine World Cups.
Regardless of the result, the party did not stop, as supporters continued to dance long after the final whistle in celebration of one of Mexico’s most successful World Cup outings.
Artists show off work at Fábrica La Aurora art center
The Fábrica La Aurora, an old textile mill converted into hundreds of art galleries, welcomed hundreds of visitors on Saturday, July 4, allowing local artists to show off and sell their work to members of the community.
One of the many exhibits included the Healing Worlds Project by Kate Van Doren, which showed powerful portraits of women fighting for their rights, including victims of cancer and sexual assault.
Others included a public gallery from the Coordination for the Promotion of Foreign Trade of the State of Guanajuato, which featured artisan products from local artists all around Guanajuato.
Yesenia Olivares, who was working at the COFOCE gallery on Saturday, pointed out its benefits for the community.
“This is the first time I’ve seen this event. It strikes me as a great idea for getting more people acquainted with the gallery,” she said. “The hope is that this month-to-month initiative to further support the artisans’ work can lead to it being more highly valued.”
A boon to local artists
Guests admiring the artwork could pick up food from Café de la Aurora or Geek and Coffee, and food was available at Grand Pa & Son Burgers and Los Conspiradores. Fábrica La Aurora also features La Santísima Trinidad, a wine tasting room.
Francoise Yohalem, a former art curator who has been living in San Miguel de Allende for 12 years, mentioned the importance of the Fábrica La Aurora for community members and local artists alike.
“This event is an opportunity to see the work of local artists,” she said. “We have a lot of very good local artists … They can show their work and hopefully make some sales.”
Yohalem mentioned that the San Francisco Gallery, which features work across mediums from local artists, stood out to her at the event.
Weekly Shabbat dinners provide community for Jewish expats
Mayim Aversa, a lifelong Jewish woman born in Mexico City, hosts weekly Shabbat dinners in her San Rafael Home for the local Jewish population in San Miguel de Allende on Friday nights. Shabbat is the weekly Jewish day of rest, observed from sunset on Friday until sunset on Saturday.
“When we host these Shabbat dinners, there’s always the most interesting and colorful people,” Aversa said. “I’ll take every color, every flavor, every background … If you’re Jewish, come and eat my food.”
The dinners are open to the community regardless of religious denomination. Aversa and her husband, Adam Ben-Abraham, are Orthodox and observe the day of rest by keeping lights off, turning off phones and not completing any work until after sunset Saturday. Others, like first-time attendee Kim Eisenberg, were searching for a sense of community while being just culturally Jewish.
“I don’t even have a community of people that are Jewish (in the U.S.),” Eisenberg said. “(Being Jewish in Mexico) is not something I’ve experienced. I just see myself as a human.”
Lively dinner conversations
All of the food is kosher and is homemade by Aversa and her guests. The dinner is usually attended by Rabbi Daniel Huebner of the Chabad Center of San Miguel de Allende. Prayers are said over the food and drink before guests dive in. Attendees were expected to turn their phones off before the meal to respect the day of rest.
Conversations at a Shabbat dinner on Friday, June 26, with around 10 guests ranged from artificial intelligence to Jewish identity and to life in San Miguel. All of the conversation worked to build community and give Jewish expats in San Miguel a slice of home.
“I lived in very heavily Jewish areas in the United States … and then I had to come to Mexico to find my Jewish community,” Shabbat attendee Robin Stacey said.
For more information about attending a Shabbat dinner, reach out to Aversa through WhatsApp at +1 (617) 501-6275.
Jared Tucker is a summer intern at Mexico News Daily in San Miguel de Allende and a rising senior at the University of Washington in Seattle, where he is the sports editor for The Daily UW. He was previously a fellow at TheFulcrum.us, where he covered public participation in American democracy.
